License Synchronization via Unique Transaction IDs
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional digital rights management systems face challenges in maintaining robustness during device failures, as the licensing state of a main server may not be identical to that of a backup server, leading to risks for both issuers and customers regarding license access and usage.
Innovation Solution
A digital supply management system that synchronizes electronic inventory records across multiple inventory management nodes, including local main and backup distribution servers, to ensure accurate accounting and prevent over-issuance of licenses, using a back-office system to restore states during failures and employing unique transaction IDs to remove duplicates.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a centralized license server architecture is used with backup servers, then system availability is improved during failures, but license accounting accuracy deteriorates due to state synchronization issues between main and backup servers
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the centralized license server into multiple independent nodes (main server, backup servers, and peer servers). Each node maintains its own license pool and can independently serve clients, eliminating the single point of failure while preserving accounting accuracy through distributed peer-to-peer synchronization rather than centralized control.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention implements a copying mechanism where license pool states are replicated across multiple peer servers. When a main server fails, backup servers already possess synchronized copies of the license state, enabling immediate failover without data loss or accounting discrepancies. The copying occurs through periodic state exchanges between peers.
2Reliability
If backup servers are used to maintain system availability, then service continuity is improved, but device complexity increases due to state synchronization mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
Each server node in the distributed system autonomously manages its own state and actively participates in synchronization by exchanging license pool states with peer servers. This self-service approach eliminates the need for complex centralized coordination mechanisms, as each node independently maintains consistency with peers through standardized state exchange protocols.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention merges the roles of main server and backup servers into equal peer servers within a distributed network. All servers perform identical functions and maintain identical capabilities, eliminating the hierarchical complexity of primary-backup relationships. Any server can take over licensing duties of any other server, simplifying the overall system architecture while ensuring service continuity.
3Reliability
If license states are synchronized between main and backup servers, then failover capability is improved, but the risk of overage states and double billing increases due to duplicate transaction records
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements feedback mechanisms where servers continuously exchange license pool state information with peers. When a server processes a license transaction, it updates its local state and notifies peer servers, which then adjust their states accordingly. This real-time feedback loop prevents overage states by ensuring all peers have accurate, synchronized views of available licenses, eliminating the risk of double billing.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the state synchronization approach from passive backup copying to active parameter exchange between peers. Servers exchange detailed transaction parameters and pool state parameters, allowing each node to independently validate and adjust its state based on received information. This parameter-based synchronization method ensures consistency across the distributed system while preventing harmful overage states.
Data Source
AI summary
Several embodiments include a policy-bound token distribution system. The system can include a back-office server that issues policy-bound tokens to local main distribution servers. A local main distribution server can distribute a policy-bound token to a digital environment to authorize an operator to take advantage of a protected resource. The system can rely on a backup server to distribute the policy-bound tokens whenever the distribution service of the local main distribution server is unavailable. To prevent run-time leakage from the backup server, the backup server can synchronize its distribution state with the local main distribution server and the back-office server. The distribution state can include distribution transaction records between the backup server and client devices. Throughout the system, each distribution transaction record can be assigned unique transaction ID to prevent multiple accounting of the same distribution transaction record from different servers.