International Business Machines Corporation

David U Shorter

Jorge A Arroyo

Filip J Yeskel

Robert M Szabo

Brian P Shorter

Susan Carol Lilly

Robert Bruce Scott

Kevin Patrick McAuliffe

Stephen E Bello

Emily Plachy

John S Kapernick

Tze-Rong Fu

Kathryn Priest Reece

Paul McDaid

John F Palmer

A message router for routing data repository messages between a plurality of computer systems, wherein the computer systems include data repositories having disparate syntaxes. The message router can include a conversion engine for translating content in a received message from a syntax corresponding to a data repository of an originating computer system to a syntax corresponding to a data repository of at least one target computer system.

Method and system for routing data repository messages between computing devices

The present invention describes a method and system for creating and exposing order status within a supply chain of trading partners having disparate systems. A trading partner exchange (TPE) interfaces with each of the disparate systems and gathers information pertaining to a particular transaction. The information can be made available to an access platform through an access platform interface. Initially, a transaction is reported to the TPE where it is assigned a unique identifier. Subsequent activities pertaining to the transaction which are reported to the TPE by the trading partners can be linked to the unique identifier. By using the access platform, a customer or any trading partner can acquire the status of a particular order from the TPE.

Method and apparatus for creating and exposing order status within a supply chain having disparate systems

A method and system for forming and procuring an integrated solution to meet a set of requirements. The invention includes an electronic exchange for providing an information technology (IT) solution, comprising: a matching system for matching IT requirements with a set of candidate IT components that provide the IT solution; a supplier exchange system for interfacing with suppliers of the set of candidate IT components; and an exchange catalog for storing information relating to available IT components, including supplier information.

Method and system for matching complex customer requirements with provider solutions

The present invention describes a method and system for ensuring data consistency amongst a plurality of disparate computing systems that communicate in order to provide an electronic transactional service. Information or data that is common between various databases associated with each of the disparate systems can be identified and monitored during communication. Once the common data gets modified, the modified data can be converted to a format compatible with all the other databases. All the other databases can then be updated to ensure that the modified data is consistent amongst the databases of the various disparate systems. In one aspect of the invention, adapters interfacing with each disparate computing system can identifications to common data. The adapter can communicate the modification to a central data control point (DCP), which can then update all other databases with the modification. During the update, the DCP can propagate the modification to adapters communicating with the databases of other application vendor product systems.

Method and apparatus for ensuring data consistency amongst a plurality of disparate systems having multiple consumer channels

Each network of data processing systems within a system of networks is assigned a unique network identifier when connected to the system. Each data processing system within a given network is assigned a unique host system identifier when the data processing system is added to the network. When a new object is added to a given data processing system, a unique object identifier is constructed with three fields, including a high order field containing the network identifier for the network in which the object is being added, a next order field containing a host system identifier for the data processing system to which the object is being added, and an object identifier unique for all objects within the host data processing system. The combination of the three identifiers results in a single, unique object identifier which is unique for all objects across the system of networks and data processing systems. The host data processing system need not be connected to any other data processing system or network at the time the object is added to guarantee that the object identifier is unique across the entire system of networks. Therefore, the object may be added to a database of objects distributed among a plurality of data processing systems and accessed by an application communicating, when bandwidth is available, with other data processing systems over the Internet.

Unique object identification in a network of computing systems

Provided are a method and system for locating data stored within an environment having multiple interconnected computing systems. The method and system achieve their objects via the following actions. A superset of one or more elements comprised of data location identifiers and associated data attributes is created. A list of data attributes is received. In response to said received list of data attributes, any data location identifiers, within said created superset, which have the data attributes in the list, are transmitted. In one embodiment, the superset elements consist of object identifiers paired with the computing system wherein the objects associated with the object identifiers are located, the list of data attributes contains a list of object attributes, and the data location identifiers transmitted consist of an object identifier paired with a computing location.

Method and system for identifying an object located among a number of multiple interconnected computing systems

A method and system are disclosed for the determination of a particular one of a plurality of data objects stored in the data processing system utilizing attributes associated with the object. Data is associated with a first plurality of a plurality of attributes associated with each data object. In response to an establishment of each data object, an object attribute record is established which includes the first plurality of the plurality of attributes. Search data is specified for a second plurality of the first plurality of attributes. Each object attribute record is searched for the search data. In response to a location of at least a portion of the specified search data in one of the object attribute records, the data object associated with that object attribute record is determined.

Method and system for the determination of a particular data object

A request for determining a unique object identifier for an object located somewhere within a plurality of data processing systems in a network may be received from an application by a single data processing in the network. A local object index containing object attribute records is searched for matches with specified input criteria and any matches are identified. A local search list is then consulted and, if other object indexes require searching, the request is forwarded to the next object index on the list together with an indication of the object index or indexes already searched. The inclusion of an indication of indexes already searched prevents a loop-back condition from occurring. As each object index is searched, the search list is consulted and, if additional object indexes remain to be searched, the request is propagated to the next object index and the results of searching a local object index are returned to an originating data processing system. Communication among data processing systems containing the respective object indexes is limited to requests and response, rather than entire object indexes, which facilitates operation over limited bandwidth communications links such as the Internet. The originating data processing system aggregates the search results for the network, which may be no matches, one match, or multiple distinct matches. Where a single match is determined, the corresponding object identifier is returned to the requesting application. Where multiple distinct matches are determined, an error condition is returned to the requesting application.

Method of determining the unique ID of an object in a peer to peer

Specified combinations of attribute input criteria may be utilized to determine the unique object identifier of an object in a database. The value of each attribute specified as input criteria is compared to the value of a corresponding attribute within an object attribute record. If the values are equivalent, a match weight associated with the attribute is added to a weight accumulator. If not, an executable rule associated with the attribute may be executed on the input criteria value and the result compared to the object attribute record value. If a match is determined after a rule is executed, a post-rule weight is added to the weight accumulator. If no match is determined, either before or after a rule is executed, a non-match weight is subtracted from the weight accumulator. When all attributes from the input criteria have been compared to the corresponding attributes from the object attribute record, the total computed match value from the weight accumulator is compared to a threshold value specified as indicative of a unique match. The input criteria are compared in similar fashion to all object attribute records for objects in the database. No matches, one match, or multiple matches may be found, although a determination of multiple matches will be considered an error condition.

Method of determining the unique ID of an object through analysis of

A method for processing distributed application programs in SNA type networks employing LU 6.2 protocols, including an information processing system having a host processor, a virtual machine type Operating System, and a plurality of Intelligent Work Stations (IWSs). The Operating System is provided with a Virtual Machine Pool Manager (VMPM). The function of the VMPM is to create and dynamically manage the assignment of a plurality of virtual machines in the pool to process requested individual LU 6.2 conversations, to permit the transfer of information between Parts A and B of a distributed Application, which parts are stored respectively at one IWS and the host processor. In response to a conversation request, an idle Virtual Machine (VM) in the pool is assigned by the VMPM to process one LU 6.2 conversation. At the termination of the conversation the VMPM returns the assigned VM to the pool with an idle status so that it can be assigned to process another conversation requested by the same IWS or a different IWS. An LU 6.2 'session' between Part A of a DAP executing on one IWS and Part B executing on the Host Processor, involving a plurality of sequential conversations spaced apart in time, involves only the assignment of VM resources from the pool at the host for the actual conversation time of the 'session', and not the total session time. As a result, VM resources at the host can service a larger number of IWSs.

Method to provide concurrent execution of distributed application

A method to preserve system resources during the execution of distributed application programs in an SNA type data processing network that supports program to program communication between an Intelligent Work Station (IWS) and a host processor in accordance with SNA Logical Unit 6.2 protocols when a Virtual Machine Pool Manager exists at the host processor and functions to,

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Lewisville, TX, United States of America

David U Shorter