Centralized Session Management for Portal Portlets
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Solution Overview
Problem
In distributed client-server application environments, particularly in portal settings, individual portlet applications require separate sessions, leading to inefficiencies and security concerns due to timed-out sessions when users interact with one application while idle in others, necessitating re-authentication and undermining the convenience of single sign-on (SSO) authentication.
Innovation Solution
A centralized session management system that aggregates applications and portlets, maintaining active sessions by detecting interactivity across the environment, using a table to track session identifiers, time-out values, and last access times, and sending keep-alive messages to prevent time-outs as long as activity is detected within the host aggregation or portal environment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If individual portlet applications maintain separate sessions for security monitoring, then security control is improved, but session timeout occurs when users interact with one application while idle in others, requiring re-authentication and reducing user convenience
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple individual portlet sessions into a single centralized session managed by the portal server. Instead of each portlet maintaining its own separate session, the portal server creates one unified session that encompasses all portlets, allowing the user to interact with multiple portlets without repeated authentication while maintaining security through centralized monitoring.
Solution Approach 2:
The centralized session serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides security monitoring for all portlets, maintains user authentication state across the entire portal environment, and prevents timeout for any portlet as long as the user is active anywhere in the portal. This universal session replaces the need for multiple individual sessions.
2Reliability
If separate sessions are maintained for each portlet application, then individual application security monitoring is improved, but multiple authentication processes are required defeating the convenience of single sign-on
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple authentication processes into a single authentication event. When a user authenticates to the portal, this single authentication creates a centralized session that is recognized by all portlets, eliminating the need for separate authentication processes for each portlet while maintaining security monitoring capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the authentication and session management functions: the portal server handles centralized authentication and session creation, while individual portlets rely on this centralized session rather than maintaining their own authentication processes. This segmentation reduces complexity while preserving security.
3Reliability
If session timeout is enforced for idle portlets, then security is maintained, but user convenience is reduced when switching between active and idle applications
Solution Approach 1:
The centralized session maintains continuous validity as long as the user is active anywhere in the portal environment. When a user interacts with any portlet or the portal, the centralized session is refreshed, preventing timeout for all portlets simultaneously. This allows users to switch between portlets without re-authentication while maintaining security through the centralized monitoring mechanism.
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments of the invention provide a method, system and apparatus for centralized session management in an aggregated application environment. In one embodiment, a centralized session management method can include aggregating a set of applications in a host aggregation environment. Subsequently, each of the applications can be centrally kept alive so as to avoid a time out condition in any one of the applications so long as interactivity is detected within any one of the applications or within the host aggregation environment. In one aspect of the invention, the aggregating step can include aggregating a set of portlets in a portal environment.