In current large data storage applications, a client typically requests that a third party service store data for the client. For example, current data storage services provide data storage capabilities for clients who have registered with the service. In order to store data with the service, the clients send a request to store data along with the data itself in the same transaction. Thus, the client pushes the data to the service while the service is merely a repository for the data. Such push data models can take a lengthy amount of time to complete a transaction since the entire data file must be transferred before the transaction is completed. If the transaction is not completed before the client becomes unavailable, (e.g., client wireless device loses battery power) the entire transaction may have to be restarted which takes considerable time and resources.
Upon receiving the reference data 170, the storage service 110 can begin to pull the data file 160 via the data collector 140 and store it in a data store 180 (e.g., disk drive). The pull operation of the data file 160 can be spread out over multiple packets and time or queued to be collected at some point in the future such as via a schedule, for example. In general, the network device 150 submits a storage request to the storage service 110 where the reference data 170 is passed to the data file 160. The storage service 110 then requests the data file 160 from the network device 150 via the data collector 140. The network device 150 then delivers and transmits the data file 160 to the storage service 110 via the data collector 140 where it is aggregated at the data storage 180.
Pulling the data file 160 from the network device 150 utilizing the reference data 170, offers several benefits over standard push models. In one example, the storage service 110 is able to respond quickly to requests with data references such as the reference data 170 as compared to requests for all contents of the data file 160. In another example, the storage service 110 queues requests if overloaded, then transfers data as processing cycles become available. The network device 150 can be substantially any type of device that transmits data over a network (e.g., wired and/or wireless network) such as a laptop computer, server, mobile phone, personal digital assistant (PDA), network printer, scanner, and so forth. The reference data 170 can include an address for identifying a location of the data file 160. In addition to an address, the reference data 170 can include a number of bytes (or other designator such as a number of words or bits) to be retrieved from the respective address. In another example, the reference data 170 can include an end of file code to enable the data collector 140 to determine when to stop transferring data from the network device 150. The address passed by the reference data 170 could include a universal resource locator (URL) address or a file transfer protocol (FTP) address, for example. As will be described below with respect to
The executable module 120 can be provided as a non-transitory computer readable medium having computer readable instructions 130. This includes the storage service 110 that employs the data collector 140 to pull data files 160 from the network device 150 and utilizing the reference data 170. The data collector 140 operates with the storage service 110 to retrieve data from the network device 150 based upon a request from the device to store data. The data collector 140 can represent network interface instructions including security interfaces to retrieve the data file 160 from the network device 150. The network interface instructions employed by the data collector 140 could include an HTTP get command for example, where the get command utilizes the reference data 170 (e.g., “get (reference data, number of bytes)”) to pull the data file 160 from the network device 150. The network interface instructions utilized by the data collector 140 can include various security options for interacting with the network device 150 (e.g., utilizing encryption or certificates to securely access the data file 160 and gain trust of network device 150). The data storage 180 can be substantially any medium for storing data such as hard disk drives or other magnetic storage including large databases controlled by server farms, for example.
For purposes of simplification of explanation, in the present example, different components of the system 100 are illustrated and described as performing different functions. However, one of ordinary skill in the art will understand and appreciate that the functions of the described components can be performed by different components, and the functionality of several components can be combined and executed on a single component. The components can be implemented, for example, as computer executable instructions (e.g., software, firmware), hardware (e.g., CPU, an application specific integrated circuit), or as a combination of both. In other examples, the components could be distributed among remote devices across a network, for example.
The storage service 214 is employed to aggregate a data block 218 (or data blocks) from a network device 220 (or devices) and stores the data block 218 via the service at data store 230. The data block 218 can represent a number of bytes or words that are not necessarily associated by a file structure although a data block 218 can also be a data file as previously described. A data collector 240 processes a reference name 250 associated with the network device 220, wherein the data collector pulls the data block 218 from the network device 220 according to an address location specified by the reference name as shown at reference numeral 254. The reference name 250 can directly specify an address or be an indirection name to some location of the data block 218. A file length parameter 260 or an end of file parameter 264 can be employed to specify an amount of data to be transferred from the data block 218 in accordance with the reference name 250. A get command 270 can be utilized by the data collector 240 to pull the data shown at 254 from the network device 220 in accordance with the reference name 250 and the file length parameter 260 or the end of file parameter 264. A security protocol 280 can be utilized with the get command 270 to pass through security blocks (e.g., firewall) that may be setup on the network device 220. The security protocol 280 can include a secure socket layer, a trusted certificate, or an encrypted channel to pass through a firewall of the network device 220, for example.
Before proceeding, further description is provided for the get command 270, security protocol 280, and network 206 shown as a cloud configuration. Cloud computing is location-independent computing, whereby shared servers provide resources, software, and data to computers and other devices on demand. The term “cloud” is typically used as a metaphor for the Internet, based on the cloud drawing often used to represent computer networks. Although the Internet is the most common network 206 that may be employed with the storage service 214 described herein, other network configurations are possible (e.g., internal corporate networks). Cloud computing describes a supplement, consumption, and delivery model for information technologies services based on the Internet, and can involve over-the-Internet provision of dynamically scalable and often virtualized resources such as the storage services, including the storage system 200, described herein.
With respect to the get command 270, this is but one example of how data can be pulled from the network device 220 via the reference name 250. Substantially any network command that employs the reference name 250 to pull data as described herein can be utilized. In one specific example of a get command 270, an HTTP get command operates as a command line HTTP file grabber. It can operate through a proxy service and can communicate using Secure Socket Layer (SSL), for example. This command can default to copying the file specified in the command line URL, for example. A filename can also be specified to send the data block 218 to a local file designated at the data store 230. Another form of the get command 270 can be an FTP get command where files are transferred from one computer to another using file transfer protocol.
With respect to the security protocol 280, various security options can be employed with the get command 270 to pull data from the network device 220. For example, the network device 220 may have a firewall or other security measure where security is to be negotiated between the storage service 214 and the network device 220. For example, if a client mobile device were to submit a data storage request to the storage service 214 and was to be unavailable for some length of time (e.g., client device turned off on airplane), data transfer between the client device and the storage service would have to be scheduled for some point in the future. For example, a schedule table could be setup to contact the client device several hours in the future or at a specified data in the future. At the scheduled time or date, a background routine or scheduler could invoke the storage service 214 to initiate a data pull transaction with the client device. At the scheduled time or date, the storage service 214 may need to negotiate one or more security parameters via the security protocol 280 in order to complete the scheduled data transfer with the network device 220.
As noted previously, one type of security protocol 280 that may be employed by the storage service 214 may include a secure sockets layer (SSL). Secure Sockets Layers are cryptographic protocols that provide communication security over the Internet. This layer encrypts the segments of network connections above the Transport Layer, using asymmetric cryptography for privacy and a keyed message authentication code for message reliability. Several versions of these security protocols 280 are employed in applications such as web browsing, electronic mail, Internet faxing, instant messaging, data storage, and voice-over-IP (VoIP), for example. Another type of security protocol 280 can include the use of digital certificates where public and private keys are exchanged between storage service 214 and network device 220 before further data communications can occur. As noted above, encryption or other security measure can also be utilized in accordance with the security protocols 280.
In view of the foregoing structural and functional features described above, an example method will be better appreciated with reference to
What have been described above are examples. It is, of course, not possible to describe every conceivable combination of components or methodologies, but one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that many further combinations and permutations are possible. Accordingly, the disclosure is intended to embrace all such alterations, modifications, and variations that fall within the scope of this application, including the appended claims. As used herein, the term “includes” means includes but not limited to, the term “including” means including but not limited to. The term “based on” means based at least in part on. Additionally, where the disclosure or claims recite “a,” “an,” “a first,” or “another” element, or the equivalent thereof, it should be interpreted to include one or more than one such element, neither requiring nor excluding two or more such elements.
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