Mediator Framework for Automatic Context Passing in Management Applications

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing context passing mechanisms between management applications fail to preserve the managed context when navigating between applications that work with different managed entities, leading to loss of information and hindering complex management scenarios.

Innovation Solution

Implement a system that collects and retrieves managed entities and their related entities using Java Management Extensions (JMX) Managed Entity MBeans, storing this information in a mediator framework to enable automatic context passing between management applications, even when they operate on different entities.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If a basic framework mediator approach is used for context passing between management applications, then the mechanism works adequately when applications use the same managed entities, but the managed context is lost when management applications work with different managed entities

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecontext preservation reliabilityVSAvoidapplicability to different managed entities

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces an enhanced mediator framework that not only passes context between management applications but also automatically discovers and resolves entity relationships across different entity types. The mediator includes an entity relationship analyzer that examines MBean relationships, navigates entity graphs, and performs type mapping to bridge different managed entity domains, thereby maintaining context reliability across diverse entity types.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The system dynamically changes the parameters of context passing by analyzing entity types, relationships, and MBean attributes. It transforms entity identifiers into relationship-aware context data structures that adapt to the specific entity types involved, enabling the same mediator framework to handle both identical and different managed entities effectively through parameter transformation and type mapping.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Adaptability or versatility

If management applications navigate between different managed entities, then users can access diverse functionality, but information loss occurs and complex management scenarios cannot be built

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenavigation between different entitiesVSAvoidmanaged context loss

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

Before navigation occurs, the system pre-analyzes the source entity and its relationships using the entity relationship analyzer. It identifies related entities through MBean relationship navigation and prepares transformed context data structures in advance, ensuring that relevant information is preserved and adapted for the target application before the user initiates navigation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system implements feedback mechanisms where the entity relationship analyzer continuously monitors entity relationships and context transformation effectiveness. It uses this feedback to refine its navigation strategy, adjust entity type mappings, and improve context preservation for subsequent navigation operations between different managed entities.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

3Ease of operation

If a framework mediator is used to pass context information, then navigation between applications is supported, but the mechanism cannot handle relationships between different types of managed entities

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenavigation supportVSAvoidhandling different entity types

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The mediator framework is designed with universal functionality to handle both same-type and different-type entity relationships. The entity relationship analyzer and type mapping module provide multi-functional capabilities that work across various entity types and management applications, making the same framework adaptable to diverse entity relationships without requiring application-specific customization.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS9501293B2Automatic context passing during management application navigation

Publication Date: 2016.11.22 SAP SE

AI summary

Various embodiments of systems and methods for automatic context passing during management application navigation are described herein. When management applications work with different managed entities, the managed context is preserved by following the relations between the managed entities. These relations are followed from a mediator framework during the navigation between the management applications. In this manner, a managed application passes context information for one entity type, and second managed application retrieves from the framework context information for different entity type, but the user context information will be preserved as the framework follows the relations between the passed entity and the requested entity types.