Patent Application
20140201138
A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the United States Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. The following notice applies to the software and data as described below and in the drawings that form a part of this document: Copyright 2013, Box, Inc., All Rights Reserved.
Today, in addition to working with documents on a local device, such as a desktop computer or a tablet, people keep copies of documents in a cloud-computing environment. They may do so for backup, collaboration and other purposes. It is important to keep different versions of documents synchronized between the local device and the cloud-computing environment, and it would be useful to make the synchronization process efficient and user-friendly.
The following description and drawings are illustrative and are not to be construed as limiting. Numerous specific details are described to provide a thorough understanding of the disclosure. However, in certain instances, well-known or conventional details are not described in order to avoid obscuring the description. References to one or an embodiment in the present disclosure can be, but not necessarily are, references to the same embodiment; and, such references mean at least one of the embodiments.
Reference in this specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the disclosure. The appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment” in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of other embodiments. Moreover, various features are described which may be exhibited by some embodiments and not by others. Similarly, various requirements are described which may be requirements for some embodiments but no other embodiments.
The terms used in this specification generally have their ordinary meanings in the art, within the context of the disclosure, and in the specific context where each term is used. Certain terms that are used to describe the disclosure are discussed below, or elsewhere in the specification, to provide additional guidance to the practitioner regarding the description of the disclosure. For convenience, certain terms may be highlighted, for example using italics and/or quotation marks. The use of highlighting has no influence on the scope and meaning of a term; the scope and meaning of a term is the same, in the same context, whether or not it is highlighted. It will be appreciated that same thing can be said in more than one way.
Consequently, alternative language and synonyms may be used for any one or more of the terms discussed herein, nor is any special significance to be placed upon whether or not a term is elaborated or discussed herein. Synonyms for certain terms are provided. A recital of one or more synonyms does not exclude the use of other synonyms. The use of examples anywhere in this specification including examples of any terms discussed herein is illustrative only, and is not intended to further limit the scope and meaning of the disclosure or of any exemplified term. Likewise, the disclosure is not limited to various embodiments given in this specification.
Without intent to limit the scope of the disclosure, examples of instruments, apparatus, methods and their related results according to the embodiments of the present disclosure are given below. Note that titles or subtitles may be used in the examples for convenience of a reader, which in no way should limit the scope of the disclosure. Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure pertains. In the case of conflict, the present document, including definitions will control.
Embodiments of the present disclosure include systems and methods for a synchronization client that is connected with a collaboration environment including a cloud-based platform (e.g., cloud-based file sharing, collaboration, and/or storage platform/service) and runs on a client device to synchronize folders and files between the collaboration environment and the user device.
The client devices 102 can be any system and/or device, and/or any combination of devices/systems that is able to establish a communication or a connection, including wired, wireless, cellular connections with another device, a server and/or other systems such as the host server 110. The client devices 102 typically include a display and/or other output functionalities to present information and data exchanged between among the client devices 102 and/or the host server 110.
For example, the client devices 102 can include mobile, handheld or portable devices or non-portable devices and can be any of, but not limited to, a server desktop, a desktop computer, a computer cluster, or portable devices including, a notebook, a laptop computer, a handheld computer, a palmtop computer, a mobile phone, a cell phone, a PDA, a smart phone (e.g., a BlackBerry device such as BlackBerry Z10/Q10, an iPhone, Nexus 4, etc.), a Treo, a handheld tablet (e.g. an iPad, iPad Mini, a Galaxy Note, Galaxy Note II, Xoom Tablet, Microsoft Surface, Blackberry PlayBook, Nexus 7, etc.), a phablet (e.g., HTC Droid DNS, etc.), a tablet PC, a thin-client, a hand held console, a hand held gaming device or console (e.g., XBOX live, Nintendo DS, Sony PlayStation Portable, etc.), mobile-enabled powered watch (e.g., iOS, Android or other platform based), Google Glass, a Chromebook and/or any other portable, mobile, hand held devices, etc. running on any platform or any operating system (e.g., Mac-based OS (OS X, iOS, etc.), Windows-based OS (Windows Mobile, Windows 7, Windows 8, etc.), Android, Blackberry OS, Embedded Linux platforms, Palm OS, Symbian platform, Google Chrome OS, and the like. In one embodiment, the client devices 102 and host server 110 are coupled via a network 106. In some embodiments and the client devices 102 and host server 100 may be directly connected to one another.
The input mechanism on client devices 102 can include touch screen keypad (including single touch, multi-touch, gesture sensing in 2D or 3D, etc.), a physical keypad, a mouse, a pointer, a track pad, motion detector (e.g., including 1-axis, 2-axis, 3-axis accelerometer, etc.), a light sensor, capacitance sensor, resistance sensor, temperature sensor, proximity sensor, a piezoelectric device, device orientation detector (e.g., electronic compass, tilt sensor, rotation sensor, gyroscope, accelerometer), or a combination of the above.
Signals received or detected indicating user activity at client devices 102 through one or more of the above input mechanism, or others, can be used by various users or collaborators (e.g., collaborators 108) for accessing, through the network 106, a web-based collaboration environment or online collaboration platform (e.g., hosted by the host server 110). The collaboration environment or platform can have one or more collective settings 105 for an enterprise or an organization where the users belong, and can provide a user interface 104 for the users to access such platform under the settings 105.
In general, the network 106, over which the client devices 102 and the host server 110 communicate may be a cellular network, a telephonic network, an open network, such as the Internet, or a private network, such as an intranet and/or the extranet, or any combination or variation thereof. For example, the Internet can provide file transfer, remote log in, email, news, RSS, cloud-based services, instant messaging, visual voicemail, push mail, VoIP, and other services through any known or convenient protocol, such as, but is not limited to the TCP/IP protocol, Open System Interconnections (OSI), FTP, UPnP, iSCSI, NSF, ISDN, PDH, RS-232, SDH, SONET, etc.
The network 106 can be any collection of distinct networks operating wholly or partially in conjunction to provide connectivity to the client devices 102 and the host server 110 and may appear as one or more networks to the serviced systems and devices. In one embodiment, communications to and from the client devices 102 can be achieved by, an open network, such as the Internet, or a private network, such as an intranet and/or the extranet. In one embodiment, communications can be achieved by a secure communications protocol, such as secure sockets layer (SSL), or transport layer security (TLS).
In addition, communications can be achieved via one or more networks, such as, but are not limited to, one or more of WiMax, a Local Area Network (LAN), Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), a Personal area network (PAN), a Campus area network (CAN), a Metropolitan area network (MAN), a Wide area network (WAN), a Wireless wide area network (WWAN), or any broadband network, and further enabled with technologies such as, by way of example, Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Personal Communications Service (PCS), Bluetooth, WiFi, Fixed Wireless Data, 2G, 2.5G, 3G (e.g., WCDMA/UMTS based 3G networks), 4G, IMT-Advanced, pre-4G, LTE Advanced, mobile WiMax, WiMax 2, WirelessMAN-Advanced networks, enhanced data rates for GSM evolution (EDGE), General packet radio service (GPRS), enhanced GPRS, iBurst, UMTS, HSPDA, HSUPA, HSPA, HSPA+, UMTS-TDD, 1xRTT, EV-DO, messaging protocols such as, TCP/IP, SMS, MMS, extensible messaging and presence protocol (XMPP), real time messaging protocol (RTMP), instant messaging and presence protocol (IMPP), instant messaging, USSD, IRC, or any other wireless data networks, broadband networks, or messaging protocols.
In general, a workspace can be associated with a set of users or collaborators (e.g., collaborators 108) who have access to the content included therein. The levels of access (e.g., based on permissions or rules) of each user or collaborator to access the content in a given workspace may be the same or may vary among the users. Each user may have their own set of access rights to every piece of content in the workspace, or each user may have different access rights to different pieces of content. Access rights may be specified by a user associated with a workspace and/or a user who created/uploaded a particular piece of content to the workspace, or any other designated user or collaborator.
In general, the collaboration platform allows multiple users or collaborators to access or collaborate on work items such that each user can remotely see edits, revisions, comments, or annotations being made to specific work items through their own user devices. For example, a user can upload a document to a workspace for other users to access (e.g., for viewing, editing, commenting, signing-off or otherwise manipulating). The user can login to the online platform and upload the document (or any other type of work item) to an existing workspace or to a new workspace. The document can be shared with existing users or collaborators in a workspace.
The web-based platform for collaborating on projects or jointly working on documents can be used by individual users and shared among collaborators. In addition, the collaboration platform can be deployed in an organized setting including but not limited to, a company (e.g., an enterprise setting), a department in a company, an academic institution, a department in an academic institution, a class or course setting, or any other types of organizations or organized setting.
When deployed in an organizational setting, multiple workspaces (e.g., workspace A, B C) can be created to support different projects or a variety of work flows. Each workspace can have its own associate work items. For example, workspace A 205 can be associated with work items 215, workspace B 225 can be associated with work items 235, and workspace 245 can be associated with work items 255. The work items 215, 235, and 255 can be unique to each workspace but need not be. For example, a particular work item or a note can be associated with only one workspace or it can be associated with multiple workspaces.
In general, each workspace has a set of users or collaborators associated with it. For example, workspace A 205 is associated with multiple users or collaborators 206. In some instances, workspaces deployed in an enterprise can be department specific. For example, workspace B can be associated with department 210 and some users shown as example user A 208, and workspace N 245 can be associated with departments 212 and 216 and users shown as example user B 214.
In the case of a notebook, collaborators of the notebook can have simultaneous read/write access to a note in the notebook. Specifically, in a concurrent fashion, each of the collaborators is able to make changes to the note or even edit the changes made by other collaborators. In addition, a separate list of collaborators can be specified at the note level to override the list of collaborators at the notebook level, so that different notes within the same notebook can be associated with different sets of collaborators.
In each workspace A, B . . . N, when an action is performed on a work item by a given user or any other activity is detected in the workspace, other users in the same workspace can be notified (e.g., in real time or in near real time, or not in real time). Activities which trigger real time notifications can include, by way of example but not limitation, adding, deleting, or modifying collaborators in the workspace, uploading, downloading, adding, deleting a work item in the workspace, creating a discussion topic in the workspace.
In some embodiments, items or content downloaded or edited can cause notifications to be generated. Such notifications can be sent to relevant users to notify them of actions surrounding a download, an edit, a change, a modification, a new file, a conflicting version, an upload of an edited or modified file.
In one embodiment, in a user interface to the web-based collaboration platform where notifications are presented, users can, via the same interface, create action items (e.g., tasks) and delegate the action items to other users including collaborators pertaining to a work item 215, for example. The collaborators 206 can be in the same workspace A 205 and can invite a new collaborator to join the workspace, for example. Similarly, in the same user interface where discussion topics can be created in a workspace (e.g., workspace A, B or N, etc.), actionable events on work items can be created and/or delegated/assigned to other users such as collaborators of a given workspace 206 or other users. Through the same user interface, task status and updates from multiple users or collaborators can be indicated and reflected. In some instances, the users can perform the tasks (e.g., review or approve or reject, etc.) via the same user interface.
The collaboration platform offers a synchronization client that runs on a client device to perform synchronization of folders and files between a location on the collaboration platform and a location on the client device. The synchronization client offers user interfaces that may be accessed directly from the client device or through the web. It informs a user of the status of synchronization processes and allows a user to choose various options depending on the informed status, thus making the synchronization process efficient and user-friendly.
As used herein, a “module” or the like includes a general purpose, dedicated or shared processor and, typically, firmware or software modules that are executed by the processor. Depending upon implementation-specific or other considerations, the module can be centralized or its functionality distributed. The module or the like can include general or special purpose hardware, firmware, or software embodied in a computer-readable (storage) medium for execution by the processor.
As used herein, a computer-readable medium or computer-readable storage medium is intended to include all mediums that are statutory (e.g., in the United States, under 35 U.S.C. 101), and to specifically exclude all mediums that are non-statutory in nature to the extent that the exclusion is necessary for a claim that includes the computer-readable (storage) medium to be valid. Known statutory computer-readable mediums include hardware (e.g., registers, random access memory (RAM), non-volatile (NV) storage, to name a few), but may or may not be limited to hardware.
The network interface 308 can be a networking module that enables the host server to mediate data in a network with an entity that is external to the host server, through any known and/or convenient communications protocol supported by the host server and the external entity. The network interface 308 can communicate with one or more of a network adaptor card, a wireless network interface card (e.g., SMS interface, Wi-Fi interface, interfaces for various generations of mobile communication standards including but not limited to 1G, 2G, 3G, 3.5G, 4G, LTE, etc.), Bluetooth, a router, an access point, a wireless router, a switch, a multilayer switch, a protocol converter, a gateway, a bridge, a bridge router, a hub, a digital media receiver, and/or a repeater.
The entry module 302 manages sign-up, login-in, log-out and tutorial tasks.
For the sign-up and login-in tasks, the entry module 302 may accept a username and a password from a user. It may respond to unacceptable or incorrect user names or passwords and optionally apply the CAPTCHA technique. For the login-in task, the entry module 302 may also apply the OAuth technique or the Single Sign On (SSO) technique in addition to accepting the username and password for two-factor authentication. In applying these techniques, the entry module 302 may display a dialog requesting a user to grant permission to the synchronization client for accessing resources on a user's local computer, or send email requesting a user to confirm the log-in by following a URL.
Upon a successful login, the entry module 302 may store a token to indicate the success of the OAuth or SSO technique and keep the token alive for all future login-ins within a predetermined period of time, such as two weeks or a month. The entry module 302 may also perform different actions depending on whether the current user is the same as the last user. Specifically, it may work with a folder of a fixed name, such as “Box Sync”, in a fixed location on the collaboration platform. It may then reuse the folder if the current user is the same as the last user. It may also create the folder if that folder does not already exist or if the current user is different from the last user. In the latter case, if the folder already exists, it may rename that existing folder before creating a new one and show a warning message to that effect.
For the log-out task initiated by a user or caused by the expiration of a token, the entry module 302 may preserve all the data created since the log-in. It may also display a message indicating that a user is no longer connected to the synchronization client.
The synchronization module 304 manages file synchronization between the collaboration platform and other devices. Specifically, it enables the replication of folders and files in a location on the collaboration platform (“collaboration location” hereinafter) to a location on a device designated by a user (“local location” hereinafter), and synchronization of those folders and files between the two locations in real time. The synchronization module 304 may allow a user to select the collaboration location and the local location.
During synchronization, the synchronization module 304 may keep a user informed through various status report mechanisms. In some embodiments, the synchronization module 304 may automatically present a user interface for real-time synchronization status update.
In some embodiments, the synchronization module 304 may allow a user to invoke a user interface to view summary information regarding ongoing or recent synchronization and take further actions.
In some embodiments, the synchronization module 304 may automatically present a user interface for system-wide status update. As an example, the synchronization module 304 may display icons in an administrative area on a screen of a user's device, such as in the system tray for Windows and in the menu/status bar for Mac. Specifically, it may map the icons to predefined states, including “complete”, “in progress”, “paused”, “insecure”, and “offline”. The “complete” state indicates that that the synchronization client is running yet with no synchronization in progress for a user, the “in progress” state indicates that synchronization is in progress for a user, the “paused” state indicates that synchronization is on hold for a user, the “insecure” state indicates that synchronization is stopped for a user, at the user's instruction or due to an unforeseen security breach on the collaboration platform, for example, and the “offline” state indicates that that the synchronization is no longer running (although the user is still connected to the collaboration platform).
Further according to the example, the synchronization module 304 may allow a user to click on each of the icons to take further actions and present the list of further actions via a drop-down menu.
In some embodiments, the synchronization module 304 may automatically display a status indicator together with a representation of a folder or a file, within a file explorer running on the collaboration platform or on the user's local device, to indicate a status of the folder or the file. For example, the synchronization module 304 may display an icon to indicate whether a folder or a file is shared (collaborative) or private, whether it is locked (checked out) or unlocked, and whether it is already synchronized, being synchronized, not synchronizable, or to be ignored. The icon could show one of these statuses at a time or more than one of them at the same time. Furthermore, the synchronization module 304 may follow a cascading rule in displaying the icons in that the icon for a folder should reflect an aggregate status over all the files in the folder. For example, it may display an “already synchronized” icon for a folder only when it is not displaying a “being synchronized” icon for any of the files in the folder.
The configuration module 306 manages the configuration of the synchronization client according to a user's preferences. In some embodiments, the configuration module 306 may display a user's account information.
In some embodiments, the configuration module 306 may allow a user to customize synchronization settings.
In some embodiments, the configuration module 306 may display help and administration information to a user.
In alternative embodiments, the machine operates as a standalone device or may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networked deployment, the machine may operate in the capacity of a server or a client machine in a client-server network environment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment.
The machine may be a server computer, a client computer, a personal computer (PC), a user device, a tablet PC, a laptop computer, a set-top box (STB), a personal digital assistant (PDA), a cellular telephone, an iPhone, an iPad, a Blackberry, a processor, a telephone, a web appliance, a network router, switch or bridge, a console, a hand-held console, a (hand-held) gaming device, a music player, any portable, mobile, hand-held device, or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine.
While the machine-readable medium or machine-readable storage medium is shown in an exemplary embodiment to be a single medium, the term “machine-readable medium” and “machine-readable storage medium” should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one or more sets of instructions. The term “machine-readable medium” and “machine-readable storage medium” shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution by the machine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies of the presently disclosed technique and innovation.
In general, the routines executed to implement the embodiments of the disclosure, may be implemented as part of an operating system or a specific application, component, program, object, module or sequence of instructions referred to as “computer programs”. The computer programs typically comprise one or more instructions set at various times in various memory and storage devices in a computer, and that, when read and executed by one or more processing units or processors in a computer, cause the computer to perform operations to execute elements involving the various aspects of the disclosure.
Moreover, while embodiments have been described in the context of fully functioning computers and computer systems, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the various embodiments are capable of being distributed as a program product in a variety of forms, and that the disclosure applies equally regardless of the particular type of machine or computer-readable media used to actually effect the distribution.
Further examples of machine-readable storage media, machine-readable media, or computer-readable (storage) media include, but are not limited to, recordable type media such as volatile and non-volatile memory devices, floppy and other removable disks, hard disk drives, optical disks (e.g., Compact Disk Read-Only Memory (CD ROMS), Digital Versatile Disks, (DVDs), etc.), among others, and transmission type media such as digital and analog communication links.
The network interface device enables the machine to mediate data in a network with an entity that is external to the host server, through any known and/or convenient communications protocol supported by the host and the external entity. The network interface device can include one or more of a network adaptor card, a wireless network interface card, a router, an access point, a wireless router, a switch, a multilayer switch, a protocol converter, a gateway, a bridge, bridge router, a hub, a digital media receiver, and/or a repeater.
The network interface device can include a firewall which can, in some embodiments, govern and/or manage permission to access/proxy data in a computer network, and track varying levels of trust between different machines and/or applications. The firewall can be any number of modules having any combination of hardware and/or software components able to enforce a predetermined set of access rights between a particular set of machines and applications, machines and machines, and/or applications and applications, for example, to regulate the flow of traffic and resource sharing between these varying entities. The firewall may additionally manage and/or have access to an access control list which details permissions including for example, the access and operation rights of an object by an individual, a machine, and/or an application, and the circumstances under which the permission rights stand.
Other network security functions can be performed or included in the functions of the firewall, can be, for example, but are not limited to, intrusion-prevention, intrusion detection, next-generation firewall, personal firewall, etc. without deviating from the novel art of this disclosure.
Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, throughout the description and the claims, the words “comprise,” “comprising,” and the like are to be construed in an inclusive sense, as opposed to an exclusive or exhaustive sense; that is to say, in the sense of “including, but not limited to.” As used herein, the terms “connected,” “coupled,” or any variant thereof, means any connection or coupling, either direct or indirect, between two or more elements; the coupling of connection between the elements can be physical, logical, or a combination thereof. Additionally, the words “herein”, “above”, “below”, and words of similar import, when used in this application, shall refer to this application as a whole and not to any particular portions of this application. Where the context permits, words in the above Detailed Description using the singular or plural number may also include the plural or singular number respectively. The word “or”, in reference to a list of two or more items, covers all of the following interpretations of the word: any of the items in the list, all of the items in the list, and any combination of the items in the list.
The above detailed description of embodiments of the disclosure is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the teachings to the precise form disclosed above. While specific embodiments of, and examples for, the disclosure are described above for illustrative purposes, various equivalent modifications are possible within the scope of the disclosure, as those skilled in the relevant art will recognize. For example, while processes or blocks are presented in a given order, alternative embodiments may perform routines having steps, or employ systems having blocks, in a different order, and some processes or blocks may be deleted, moved, added, subdivided, combined, and/or modified to provide alternative or subcombinations. Each of these processes or blocks may be implemented in a variety of different ways. Also, while processes or blocks are at times shown as being performed in series, these processes or blocks may instead be performed in parallel, or may be performed at different times. Further, any specific numbers noted herein are only examples: alternative implementations may employ differing values or ranges.
The teachings of the disclosure provided herein can be applied to other systems, not necessarily the system described above. The elements and acts of the various embodiments described above can be combined to provide further embodiments.
Any patents and applications and other references noted above, including any that may be listed in accompanying filing papers, are incorporated herein by reference. Aspects of the disclosure can be modified, if necessary, to employ the systems, functions, and concepts of the various references described above to provide yet further embodiments of the disclosure.
These and other changes can be made to the disclosure in light of the above Detailed Description. While the above description describes certain embodiments of the disclosure, and describes the best mode contemplated, no matter how detailed the above appears in text, the teachings can be practiced in many ways. Details of the system may vary considerably in its implementation details, while still being encompassed by the subject matter disclosed herein. As noted above, particular terminology used when describing certain features or aspects of the disclosure should not be taken to imply that the terminology is being redefined herein to be restricted to any specific characteristics, features, or aspects of the disclosure with which that terminology is associated. In general, the terms used in the following claims should not be construed to limit the disclosure to the specific embodiments disclosed in the specification, unless the above Detailed Description section explicitly defines such terms. Accordingly, the actual scope of the disclosure encompasses not only the disclosed embodiments, but also all equivalent ways of practicing or implementing the disclosure under the claims.
While certain aspects of the disclosure are presented below in certain claim forms, the inventors contemplate the various aspects of the disclosure in any number of claim forms. For example, while only one aspect of the disclosure is recited as a means-plus-function claim under 35 U.S.C. §112, ¶16, other aspects may likewise be embodied as a means-plus-function claim, or in other forms, such as being embodied in a computer-readable medium. (Any claims intended to be treated under 35 U.S.C. §112, ¶16 will begin with the words “means for”.) Accordingly, the applicant reserves the right to add additional claims after filing the application to pursue such additional claim forms for other aspects of the disclosure.
The present application claims priority to and benefit from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/751,578, titled “Functionalities, Features, and User Interface of A Synchronization Client to A Cloud-Based Environment” (Attorney Docket No. 61599-8056.US00), filed on Jan. 11, 2013, the content of which is incorporated by reference herein. This application is therefore entitled to an effective filing date of Jan. 11, 2013.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61751578 | Jan 2013 | US |
