Cloud Actions Interface for Scalable Third-Party Integrations

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing data intake and query systems lack a centralized interface for integrating with third-party services and devices, leading to redundant implementations, frequent updates, and inefficiencies in maintaining and scaling integrations across multiple applications.

Innovation Solution

A cloud-based actions service provides a centralized API for invoking actions involving third-party services and devices, allowing applications to request actions without independent implementations, and supports a continuously evolving set of actions with minimal changes, leveraging cloud-based resources for efficient execution.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If each application implements integrations with external services and devices independently, then each application can access external services, but development effort increases and similar actions are duplicated across multiple applications

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveintegration capabilityVSAvoiddevelopment effort

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements a universal actions service that provides a common interface for all applications to access external services and devices. Instead of each application having its own integration code, the actions service serves as a multi-functional platform that handles integrations centrally, allowing any application to invoke actions through the unified API without duplicating integration logic.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The actions service acts as an intermediary layer between applications and external services/devices. It mediates all integration requests, managing the complexity of external service connections while presenting a simplified interface to applications. This intermediary approach eliminates the need for applications to directly implement integration logic with each external service.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Adaptability or versatility

If integrations are implemented independently in each application, then each application has full control over its integrations, but maintaining and updating integrations becomes error-prone and requires frequent redeployments

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveintegration controlVSAvoidmaintenance stability

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts integration logic from individual applications and places it in the centralized actions service. By taking out the integration code from each application's codebase, the system allows integration updates to be made in one location without requiring redeployment of multiple applications, thereby improving maintenance stability and reducing errors.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The actions service provides self-service capabilities for managing integrations, including automatic handling of service credentials, connection management, and action execution. This self-service approach reduces manual intervention requirements and minimizes human error in maintaining integrations across the system.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

3Productivity

If a centralized actions service is implemented, then development effort is reduced and actions are deduplicated, but the service complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedevelopment efficiencyVSAvoidservice architecture

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the actions service into distinct functional components: an API layer for receiving requests, an action execution engine for processing requests, and a service registry for managing available actions. This segmentation organizes the complexity into manageable modules, making the service architecture more maintainable while still providing centralized integration management.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

4Manufacturing precision

If applications directly integrate with external services, then integration-specific logic can be optimized for each application, but scaling the system becomes difficult and redundant implementations arise

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveintegration precisionVSAvoidsystem scalability

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The actions service provides a universal interface that serves multiple applications simultaneously, enabling the system to scale without requiring duplicate integration implementations. Each application can leverage the same proven integration logic, ensuring consistency and reducing the overhead of scaling to new applications or services.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS12547482B1Cloud-based actions service for a data intake and query system

Publication Date: 2026.02.10 CISCO TECHNOLOGY INC

AI summary

Techniques are described for using a cloud-based actions service to provide IT and security-related applications with a centralized interface for requesting the performance of a wide range of actions involving third party services and devices. Any application with the ability to send API requests to the actions service can thus request the invocation of actions supported by the service without the need for independent implementations of such actions. Furthermore, the actions service provides a source for a continuously evolving set of actions with only minimal changes needed to applications desiring to use new and updated actions.