Associative Templates for Hierarchical Unstructured Data Configuration
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Solution Overview
Problem
The rapid growth and complexity of unstructured data pose significant challenges for configuration management, as existing methods struggle to efficiently enforce configuration settings across large, hierarchically-organized data sets, which are often irregular and prone to changes.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of associative templates that identify and enforce configuration parameters within hierarchically-organized unstructured data (HOUD) by defining a hierarchy, creating nodes with parameter values, and applying configuration settings based on template associations, allowing for flexible management and inheritance rules.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional configuration management methods are used on unstructured data, then configuration settings can be applied to individual data items, but the management becomes quite challenging and inefficient as data volume increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the unstructured data into hierarchically-organized units (folders, files, streams) and applies configuration settings at different hierarchical levels. This segmentation allows configuration management to be performed on manageable units rather than individual data items, significantly improving efficiency while reducing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a universal configuration management system that handles multiple types of unstructured data (files, folders, data streams) through a common hierarchical framework. This multi-functional approach enables the same configuration mechanisms to manage diverse data types uniformly, improving productivity without increasing operational complexity.
2Adaptability or versatility
If unstructured data is organized in a directory structure, then some organization is achieved, but the organization will inevitably change over time and often changes quickly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a dynamic configuration management system where configuration settings are applied hierarchically and automatically propagate as the directory structure evolves. The system dynamically adapts to organizational changes by maintaining configuration associations at stable hierarchical levels rather than fixed physical paths, allowing the structure to change while preserving configuration integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent establishes configuration settings in advance at hierarchical levels before the actual data organization is finalized. This preliminary configuration action ensures that when the directory structure changes, the pre-established configuration framework can adapt and propagate settings automatically, maintaining stability amidst structural changes.
3Reliability
If configuration settings are enforced on large sets of unstructured data, then consistency can be maintained, but the process becomes computationally intensive and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from enforcing configurations on individual data items (one dimension) to enforcing configurations on hierarchical levels (multiple dimensions). By operating at the folder and stream level rather than individual file level, the system maintains configuration consistency across large data sets while dramatically reducing the time required, as changes propagate automatically through the hierarchical structure.
4Measurement precision
If configuration management is performed on individual data items in unstructured data, then precise control is achieved, but the management becomes quite challenging as data volume increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges configuration control at multiple levels (folder level, file level, data stream level) into a unified hierarchical system. This merging allows precise configuration control to be maintained while improving throughput, as configurations can be applied broadly at higher levels and then refined at lower levels without requiring individual processing of every data item.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, computer program products, and computer systems for configuration management are disclosed. Such methods, computer program products, and computer systems include determining whether unstructured data or structured data is available for use as a basis to define an associative template, and in response to a determination that unstructured data is available for use as the basis to define the associative template, determining whether the unstructured data is hierarchically organized. In response to a determination that the unstructured data is hierarchically organized, an associative template can then be defined using the hierarchical organization of the unstructured data, where the unstructured data is hierarchically-organized unstructured data (HOUD).