Services Broker Session State Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current groupware systems lack efficient methods for resuming collaborative sessions across different locations and configurations, often resulting in data loss and difficulty in re-establishing sessions with changed participant or environmental service setups.
Innovation Solution
A services broker system that manages multi-user sessions by assigning unique identifiers, storing session states, and re-establishing associations to allow for seamless suspension and resumption of collaborative sessions across different settings and participant configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If session state is stored at environmental services, then session can be resumed, but system complexity increases and reliability decreases when services are unavailable
Solution Approach 1:
A services broker is introduced as an intermediary component between participants and environmental services. The broker centrally manages session state information and coordinates session resumption across multiple services, eliminating the need for each service to independently manage session state. This mediator approach reduces overall system complexity while improving reliability by centralizing session management functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The system segments session management responsibilities by separating session state storage from environmental services. Session state is maintained by the services broker independently of specific environmental services, allowing session resumption even when individual services are unavailable. This segmentation decouples session management from service availability.
2Productivity
If session is suspended without state extraction, then system simplicity is maintained, but data loss occurs and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary extraction of session state information when suspension is requested. The services broker captures and stores session state data before the actual suspension occurs, ensuring that all necessary information is preserved in advance. This preliminary action enables seamless session resumption without data loss while maintaining system simplicity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple associations are opened for session participation, then collaboration capability improves, but session management complexity increases when resuming
Solution Approach 1:
The services broker acts as a mediator that manages multiple associations between participants and environmental services. It maintains a centralized view of all active associations and automatically re-establishes the appropriate associations during session resumption, reducing the complexity of managing multiple connections while preserving session flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The services broker provides universal session management functionality that works across different participant configurations and environmental services. It handles various session scenarios (different participants, services, locations) through a single unified mechanism, reducing management complexity while maintaining adaptability.
Data Source
AI summary
A services broker provides session suspend and resume capabilities to a computer-supported multi-user session made up of associations between a plurality of participants and the services broker. The services broker includes: a memory; an input/output subsystem for transmission of session data and for communicating with the plurality of participants; a processor, operatively connected to the memory, for carrying out instructions. The instructions cause the processor to: receive a trigger event from at least one of the plurality of participants, the trigger event for resuming a suspending session; verify that the suspending session can be resumed; transmit a resume request to the plurality of participants; and re-establish associations among the plurality of participants. Additionally, the services broker will transmit a stored session state and stored session data to at least one environmental device for resuming the suspended session at the point where the suspended session ended. The services broker also carries out instructions for suspending a joint session.