Dropbox, Inc.

Emil Ibrishimov

Francois Alexander Allain

Anand Subramani

Mark Delamere

Nils Milton Bunger

Marcio Von Muhlen

George O'Brien

Tsahi Glik

David Stafford

Heinrich Koutcherouk

Greg Price

Thomas Giovanni Carriero

Philip Rha

Jonathan Vincent

Jung Park

Pranav Piyush

Matthew Eccleston

Andrew Bortz

Bo Hu

Boris Babenko

David Goldstein

Ken Park

Anton Anastasov

Alex Allain

Nested namespaces for selective content sharing.

Nested namespaces for selective content sharing

A content item sharing and synchronization system providing team shared folders is described. Users of the system have access to the team shared folder simply by being a member of a team. A team account manager of the team can grant access to the team shared folder simply by inviting selected users to the team. Similarly, the team account manager can revoke access to the team shared folder simply by removing a user from the team. Unlike typical network file server folders, separate access control list management for the team shared folder apart from user team membership management is not needed to grant and revoke access to the team shared folder, thereby reducing administrative steps necessary to effectively manage access to the team shared folder.

Content item sharing and synchronization system with team shared folders

Nested namespaces for selective content sharing. In one embodiment, for example, a computer-implemented method includes the steps of: receiving a request to share a content item with a first set of user accounts held with a content management system; determining a first namespace to which the content item belongs; based on detecting that a second set of user accounts allowed to access the first namespace is different from the first set of user accounts, creating a second namespace nested in the first namespace; associating the first set of user accounts with the second namespace; and based on the first set of user accounts being associated with the second namespace, allowing the first set of user accounts to access content items, including the content item, belonging to the second namespace.

Systems, methods, and non-transitory computer-readable storage media for serving content stored in an online synchronized content management system from a sandbox domain via a temporary address. The online synchronized content management system may receive a first request from a user to access a content item stored in the system. The first request may be received at a first domain via a first address that is directed to the first domain. The system may generate a second address that is directed to a second domain such as a sandbox domain. Then, the second address can be associated with the content item for direct access. When the system receives, at the second domain via the second address, a second request to access the content item, the content item can be served from the second domain. After the system receives the second request, it can generate and issue a session identifier for the second address to verify any subsequent requests to access the content item via the second address.

System and method for serving online synchronized content from a sandbox domain via a temporary address

Techniques for domain capture. In one embodiment, for example, a method comprises detecting an attempt by a personal user account to use the online service where the account is associated with an electronic mail address that belongs to an owner of a domain name service domain. Based on detecting the attempt, the online service prompts the particular personal user account to join a team of user accounts. Upon receiving an acceptance of the particular personal user account to join the team, the personal user account is offered an option between converting the personal user account to a team user account that is a member of the team or changing the electronic mail address associated with the personal user account to a different electronic mail address that is not owned.

Techniques for domain capture

Techniques for invite enforcement. In one embodiment, for example, a method comprises: receiving an acceptance of an invitation to join a team of one or more team user accounts held with the online service; based on receiving the acceptance and based on determining that an owned domain name service domain of an owned electronic mail address is associated with the team, offering a personal user account an option between at least: (a) converting the personal user account to a team user account that is a member of the team, and (b) changing an electronic mail address associated with the personal user account from the owned electronic mail address to one that has a different domain name service domain than the owned domain name service domain associated with the team.

Techniques for invite enforcement

Techniques for domain capture. In one embodiment, for example, a method comprises detecting an attempt to create a personal user account with an online service that uses an electronic mail address that belongs to an owner of a particular domain name service domain. Based on the detecting, the online service prompts a user associated with the attempt to create a team account with the online service that is under management of the owner of the particular domain name service domain. Also based on the detecting the online service offers the user an option of creating a personal user account with the online service using an unowned electronic mail address.

Techniques for invite enforcement and domain capture. In one embodiment, for example, a method performed in an online service computing environment comprises the operations of: storing, in a database, an association between a team of one or more user accounts and a domain name service domain; receiving a request to invite an e-mail address belonging to the domain name service domain to join the team; creating, in a database, a placeholder user account that is a member of the team; associating, in a database, the e-mail address with the placeholder user account; and after an invitation for the e-mail address to join the team is accepted, converting, in a database, the individual user account to a team account that is (a) a member of the team and (b) associated with the e-mail address.

Techniques for invite enforcement and domain capture

A content management system implementing methodologies providing retroactive shared content item links is disclosed. The content management system and methodologies allow a team administrator of a team to configure a team-wide shared link policy that determines whether non-team members can access content items associated with team accounts using shared links generated for the content items by team members. The team shared link policy has two settings. In a first setting, the content management system allows non-team members to use shared links generated by team members to access content items associated with team accounts. In a second setting, the content management system blocks access to the content items by non-team members. Shared links are retroactive in the sense they do not need to be regenerated after the team shared link policy has been changed from the second setting back to the first setting.

Retroactive shared content item links

Shared content items are migrated between accounts on a content management system. Users store content items synchronized between one or more client devices and the content management system. A user may have multiple accounts including personal and organization accounts. Content items may be shared with accounts belonging to other users to enable those other users to view or manipulate the content items. A user initiates a migration of content items between accounts of different categories via a user interface, e.g., by dragging and dropping a folder from one account to another. The content management system recognizes that the user has deleted the folder from the user's first account and determines that an identical folder has been created in another account belonging to the same user. In response the content management system joins the second account to the shared folder, and removes the first account from the shared folder.

Migrating shared content items between accounts

Nested namespaces for selective content sharing are provided. In a content management system, content is stored for a plurality of users. The content includes a plurality of content items and a plurality of folders arranged in a plurality of hierarchies. A plurality of root namespaces is established. Each root namespace is rooted to a root folder of an account. A first namespace rooted to a first folder selected from the plurality of folders is established. First permissions are maintained for the first namespace, granting access to a first set of users. A request to share a second folder is received. The second folder is a child of the first folder in a particular hierarchy. A second namespace rooted to the second folder is established. Second permissions are maintained for the second namespace, granting access to a second set of users.

Techniques are described herein for managing unsynchronized content items when the personal computing devices storing the unsynchronized content items are unlinked from a content item synchronization service. The techniques involve treating synchronized content items differently from unsynchronized content items. For example, after a personal computing is unlinked from the service, synchronized content items may be removed or deleted from the personal computing device and unsynchronized content items encrypted and/or moved to another data storage location.

Growing community of inventors

Redwood City, CA, United States of America

Emil Ibrishimov