Method and system for controlling user access to a resource in a networked computing environment

Claim 2

In a computer network having a plurality of users and comprising a server computer controlling a shareable resource organized as a hierarchy of elements, the hierarchy including a root element at a topmost point in the hierarchy and additional elements that are descendants of the root element in the hierarchy, a method of modifying attributes of the resource, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of: receiving a request to change an attribute of a first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network, the first element being a specified one of the additional elements; in response to the receiving step, determining whether the first element has an associated list of attributes; upon determining that the first element lacks an associated list of attributes, identifying a second element of the hierarchy, the second element having an associated list of attributes and being a proximate ancestor of the first element in the hierarchy; generating a copy of the list of attributes of the second element; modifying the generated copy of the list of attributes to incorporate the requested change into the generated copy; and associating the modified copy of the list of attributes with the first element to establish an updated list of attributes associated with the first element.

Claim 3

The method of claim 1 wherein the step of receiving a request comprises receiving a request to change an attribute of the first element with respect to all users in a user group, the user group comprising a collection of users of the network.

Claim 4

The method of claim 1 wherein: the step of receiving a request to change an attribute of a first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network comprises receiving a request to add an attribute related to said user; and the step of modifying the generated copy of the list of attributes comprises adding an entry to the generated copy of the list of attributes.

Claim 5

The method of claim 1 wherein: the step of receiving a request to change an attribute of a first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network comprises receiving a request to modify an attribute related to said user; and the step of modifying the generated copy of the list of attributes comprises modifying an entry of the generated copy of the list of attributes.

Claim 6

The method of claim 1 wherein: the step of receiving a request to change an attribute of a first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network comprises receiving a request to remove an attribute related to said user; and the step of modifying the generated copy of the list of attributes comprises removing an entry from the generated copy.

Claim 7

The method of claim 1 wherein: the step of receiving a request to change an attribute of a first element of the hierarchy comprises receiving a request to remove an attribute related to all users of the network; and the step of modifying the generated copy of the list of attributes comprises removing all entries from the generated copy of the list of attributes to establish an empty list of attributes associated with the first element.

Claim 8

The method of claim 1 and further comprising the step of: propagating the requested change downwards in the hierarchy from the first element to every element of the hierarchy that is a descendant of the first element in the hierarchy and has an associated list of attributes by merging the requested change into the list of attributes of every such element.

Claim 9

The method of claim 1 and further comprising the steps of: identifying a third element of the hierarchy, the third element having an associated list of attributes and being a descendant of the first element in the hierarchy; and upon identifying the third element, propagating the requested change downwards in the hierarchy from the first element to the third element by merging the requested change into the list of attributes of the third element.

Claim 10

The method of claim 1 wherein the computer network further comprises a client computer and a communications pathway between the client computer and the server computer, and further comprising the steps of: issuing from the client computer a request for a user of the network to access an element of the resource; receiving the issued request in the server computer; and responding to the issued request in a manner consistent with the updated list of attributes.

Claim 11

In a computer network having a plurality of users and comprising a server computer controlling a shareable resource and a user interface for controlling properties of the resource, the resource being organized as a hierarchy of elements, the hierarchy including a root element at a topmost point in the hierarchy and additional elements that are descendants of the root element in the hierarchy, a method of modifying properties of the resource, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of: determining whether a first element of the hierarchy has an associated list of properties, the first element being a specified one of the additional elements; upon determining that the first element lacks an associated list of properties, identifying a second element of the hierarchy, the second element having an associated list of properties and being a proximate ancestor of the first element in the hierarchy; upon identifying the second element, inheriting in the first element the list of properties of the second element by generating a copy of the list of properties of the second element and associating the generated copy with the first element; displaying via the user interface information from an property list comprising a set of associations between selected users of the network and properties with respect to the selected users for the first element; receiving via the user interface a command to modify the properties list; and responsively to the received command: initiating a request to change a property of the first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network; and incorporating the requested change into the generated copy of the list of properties associated with the first element to establish an updated list of properties associated with the first element.

Claim 12

In a computer network having a plurality of users and comprising a server computer controlling a shareable resource and a user interface for controlling properties of the resource, the resource being organized as a hierarchy of elements, the hierarchy including a root element at a topmost point in the hierarchy and additional elements that are descendants of the root element in the hierarchy, a method of modifying properties of the resource, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of: determining whether a first element of the hierarchy has an associated list of properties, the first element being a specified one of the additional elements; upon determining that the first element lacks an associated list of properties, identifying a second element of the hierarchy, the second element having an associated list of properties and being a proximate ancestor of the first element in the hierarchy; upon identifying the second element, inheriting in the first element the list of properties of the second element by generating a copy of the list of properties of the second element and associating the generated copy with the first element; displaying via the user interface information from an property list comprising a set of associations between selected users of the network and properties with respect to the selected users for the first element; receiving via the user interface a command to modify the properties list; and responsively to the received command: initiating a request to change a property of the first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network; and incorporating the requested change into the generated copy of the list of properties associated with the first element to establish an updated list of properties associated with the first element.

Claim 13

The method of claim 10 wherein the step of displaying information from the property list comprises displaying information from the generated copy of the list of properties.

Claim 14

The method of claim 10 wherein the displaying step includes displaying information from a property list including an association between a user group comprising a collection of users and a property with respect to the users of the user group.

Claim 15

The method of claim 10 wherein the computer network further comprises a remote computer that includes the user interface and a communications pathway between the remote computer and the server computer, and wherein the initiating step comprises sending a communication between the remote computer and the server computer via the communications pathway.

Claim 16

The method of claim 10 and further comprising the steps, performed responsively to the received command, of: identifying a third element of the hierarchy, the third element having an associated list of properties and being a descendant of the first element in the hierarchy; and upon identifying the third element, propagating the requested change downwards in the hierarchy from the first element to the third element by merging the requested change into the list of properties of the third element.

Claim 17

The method of claim 10 wherein the computer network further comprises a client computer and a communications pathway between the client computer and the server computer, and further comprising the steps of: issuing from the client computer a request for a user of the network to access an element of the resource; receiving the issued request in the server computer; and responding to the issued request in a manner consistent with the updated list of properties.

Claim 18

In a computer network having a plurality of users and comprising a server computer controlling a shareable resource organized as a hierarchy of elements, the hierarchy including a root element at a topmost point in the hierarchy and additional elements that are descendants of the root element in the hierarchy, a method of modifying attributes of the resource, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of: receiving a request to change an attribute of a first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network, the first element being a specified one of the additional elements; associating the first element with a list of attributes by inheriting in the first element a list of attributes from an element that is a proximate ancestor of the first element in the hierarchy; identifying a second element of the hierarchy, the second element having an associated list of attributes and being a descendant of the first element in the hierarchy; and upon identifying the second element, propagating the requested change downwards in the hierarchy from the first element to the second element by merging the requested change into the list of attributes of the second element.

Claim 19

In a computer network having a plurality of users and comprising a server computer controlling a shareable resource organized as a hierarchy of elements, the hierarchy including a root element at a topmost point in the hierarchy and additional elements that are descendants of the root element in the hierarchy, a method of modifying attributes of the resource, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of: receiving a request to change an attribute of a first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network, the first element being a specified one of the additional elements; associating the first element with a list of attributes by inheriting in the first element a list of attributes from an element that is a proximate ancestor of the first element in the hierarchy; identifying a second element of the hierarchy, the second element having an associated list of attributes and being a descendant of the first element in the hierarchy; and upon identifying the second element, propagating the requested change downwards in the hierarchy from the first element to the second element by merging the requested change into the list of attributes of the second element.

Claim 20

The method of claim 16 wherein the step of receiving a request comprises receiving a request to change an attribute of the first element with respect to all users in a user group, the user group comprising a collection of users of the network.

Claim 21

The method of claim 16 wherein the computer network further comprises a client computer and a communications pathway between the client computer and the server computer, and further comprising the steps of: issuing from the client computer a request for a user of the network to access an element of the resource; receiving the issued request in the server computer; and responding to the issued request in a manner consistent with the propagated requested change.

Claim 22

The method of claim 16 wherein the step of associating the first element with a list of attributes comprises inheriting in the first element a list of attributes from an ancestor element of the hierarchy, the ancestor element being located above and proximately to the first element in the hierarchy.

Claim 23

In a computer network providing a shareable resource comprising components and having a first set of attributes for a first component of the resource, a method of modifying attributes of the resource, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of: designating a second component of the resource for which no set of attributes has been established; making a copy of the first set of attributes; generating a second set of attributes by modifying the copy of the first set of attributes; associating the second set of attributes with the second component of the resource; and merging the second set of attributes with a third set of attributes for a third component of the resource.

Claim 24

In a computer network providing a shareable resource comprising components and having a first set of attributes for a first component of the resource, a method of modifying attributes of the resource, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of: designating a second component of the resource for which no set of attributes has been established; making a copy of the first set of attributes; generating a second set of attributes by modifying the copy of the first set of attributes; associating the second set of attributes with the second component of the resource; and merging the second set of attributes with a third set of attributes for a third component of the resource.

Claim 25

The method of claim 20 wherein components of the resource are organized in a hierarchy, wherein the designating step comprises designating a second component that is a descendant of the first component in the hierarchy, and wherein the merging step comprises merging the second set of attributes with a third set of attributes for a third component of the resource that is a descendant of the second component in the hierarchy.

Claim 26

A computer network system for use by a plurality of users, comprising: a shareable resource comprising a hierarchy of elements; a server computer mediating user access to the resource; a client computer; communications means for operatively coupling the client computer to the server computer; resource control means for controlling attributes for the resource; means for designating an element of the hierarchy; means for indicating a set of attributes for the designated element; means for conveying a request to the resource control means, the request communicating the designated element and the indicated set of attributes for the designated element to the server computer; and means for responding to the conveyed request, comprising: means for locating an established set of attributes, the established set most preferentially being associated with the designated element, the established set less preferentially being associated with a nearest ancestor element located above the designated element in the hierarchy; means for generating a modified version of the established set responsively to the indicated set of attributes; and means for associating the modified version of the established set with the designated element to establish a new set of attributes for the designated element.

Claim 27

A computer network system for use by a plurality of users, comprising: a shareable resource comprising a hierarchy of elements; a server computer mediating user access to the resource; a client computer; communications means for operatively coupling the client computer to the server computer; resource control means for controlling attributes for the resource; means for designating an element of the hierarchy; means for indicating a set of attributes for the designated element; means for conveying a request to the resource control means, the request communicating the designated element and the indicated set of attributes for the designated element to the server computer; and means for responding to the conveyed request, comprising: means for locating an established set of attributes, the established set most preferentially being associated with the designated element, the established set less preferentially being associated with a nearest ancestor element located above the designated element in the hierarchy; means for generating a modified version of the established set responsively to the indicated set of attributes; and means for associating the modified version of the established set with the designated element to establish a new set of attributes for the designated element.

Claim 28

The system of claim 22 and further comprising: means for accessing the resource from the client computer consistently with the new set of attributes established for the designated element.

Claim 29

The system of claim 22 wherein the means for responding to the conveyed request further comprises: means for locating an additional established set of attributes, the additional established set being associated with a selected element that is a descendant of the designated element in the hierarchy; means for generating a modified version of the additional established set responsively to the indicated set of attributes; and means for associating the modified version of the additional established set with the selected element to establish a new set of attributes for the selected element.

Claim 30

The system of claim 22 wherein the shareable resource comprises a hierarchical file system.

Claim 31

The system of claim 25 wherein the hierarchical file system comprises files and folders, and the designated element comprises a folder.

Claim 32

The system of claim 25 wherein the shareable resource includes a configuration database.

Claim 33

The system of claim 22 and further comprising an additional shareable resource.

Claim 34

The system of claim 28 wherein the additional shareable resource includes a printer.

Claim 35

The system of claim 28 wherein the additional shareable resource includes a modem.

Claim 36

The method of claim 10 wherein the receiving step includes the step of receiving via the user interface a command to add to the attributes list an association between a user not displayed in the displaying step and attributes with respect to that user.

Claim 37

The method of claim 10 wherein the receiving step includes the step of receiving via the user interface a command to modify attributes associated with an identified user, the command generated in response to receiving from the user interface a command to identify the user.

Claim 38

The method of claim 10 wherein the receiving step includes the step of receiving via the user interface a command to delete an association between an identified user and attributes with respect to the identified user, the command generated in response to receiving via the user interface a command to identify the identified user.

Claim 39

An article of computer-readable media having contents that cause a computer network having a plurality of users and comprising a server computer controlling a resource sharaeble by users of the network, the resource being organized as a hierarchy of elements, the hierarchy including a root element at a topmost point in the hierarchy and additional elements that are descendants of the root element in the hierarchy, to modify attributes of the resource by performing the computer-implemented steps of: receiving a request to change an attribute of a first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network, the first element being a specified one of the additional elements; determining whether the first element has an associated list of attributes; upon determining that the first element lacks an associated list of attributes, identifying a second element of the hierarchy, the second element having an associated list of attributes and being a proximate ancestor of the first element in the hierarchy; generating a copy of the list of attributes of the second element; modifying the generated copy of the list of attributes to incorporate the requested change into the generated copy; and associating the modified copy of the list of attributes with the first element to establish an updated list of attributes associated with the first element.

Claim 40

An article of computer-readable media having contents that cause a computer network having a plurality of users and comprising a server computer controlling a resource sharaeble by users of the network, the resource being organized as a hierarchy of elements, the hierarchy including a root element at a topmost point in the hierarchy and additional elements that are descendants of the root element in the hierarchy, to modify attributes of the resource by performing the computer-implemented steps of: receiving a request to change an attribute of a first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network, the first element being a specified one of the additional elements; determining whether the first element has an associated list of attributes; upon determining that the first element lacks an associated list of attributes, identifying a second element of the hierarchy, the second element having an associated list of attributes and being a proximate ancestor of the first element in the hierarchy; generating a copy of the list of attributes of the second element; modifying the generated copy of the list of attributes to incorporate the requested change into the generated copy; and associating the modified copy of the list of attributes with the first element to establish an updated list of attributes associated with the first element.

Claim 41

In a computer network having a plurality of users and comprising a server computer controlling a shareable resource and a user interface for controlling attributes for the resource, the resource being organized as a hierarchy of elements, the hierarchy including a root element at a topmost point in the hierarchy and additional elements that are descendants of the root element in the hierarchy, a method of modifying attributes of the resource, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of: determining whether a first element of the hierarchy has an associated list of attributes, the first element being a specified one of the additional elements; upon determining that the first element lacks an associated list of attributes, identifying a second element of the hierarchy, the second element having an associated list of attributes and being a proximate ancestor of the first element in the hierarchy; upon identifying the second element, inheriting in the first element the list of attributes of the second element by generating a copy of the list of attributes of the second element and associating the generated copy with the first element; displaying via the user interface information from an attributes list comprising a set of associations between selected users of the network and attributes with respect to the selected users for the first element; receiving via the user interface a command to modify the attributes list; responsively to the received command, initiating a request to change an attribute of the first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network; incorporating the requested change into the generated copy associated with the first element to establish an updated list of attributes associated with the first element; identifying a third element of the hierarchy, the third element having an associated list of attributes and being a descendant of the first element in the hierarchy; upon identifying the third element, propagating the requested change downwards in the hierarchy from the first element to the third element by merging the requested change into the list of attributes of the third element; displaying via the user interface a prompt enabling a user of the user interface to select whether the requested change should be propagated downward in the hierarchy from the first element; and receiving via the user interface a selection that the requested change should be propagated downward in the hierarchy from the first element, and wherein the propagating step is performed in response to a step of receiving a selection that the requested change should be propagated downward in the hierarchy from the first element.

Claim 42

In a computer network having a plurality of users and comprising a server computer controlling a shareable resource and a user interface for controlling attributes for the resource, the resource being organized as a hierarchy of elements, the hierarchy including a root element at a topmost point in the hierarchy and additional elements that are descendants of the root element in the hierarchy, a method of modifying attributes of the resource, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of: determining whether a first element of the hierarchy has an associated list of attributes, the first element being a specified one of the additional elements; upon determining that the first element lacks an associated list of attributes, identifying a second element of the hierarchy, the second element having an associated list of attributes and being a proximate ancestor of the first element in the hierarchy; upon identifying the second element, inheriting in the first element the list of attributes of the second element by generating a copy of the list of attributes of the second element and associating the generated copy with the first element; displaying via the user interface information from an attributes list comprising a set of associations between selected users of the network and attributes with respect to the selected users for the first element; receiving via the user interface a command to modify the attributes list; responsively to the received command, initiating a request to change an attribute of the first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network; incorporating the requested change into the generated copy associated with the first element to establish an updated list of attributes associated with the first element; identifying a third element of the hierarchy, the third element having an associated list of attributes and being a descendant of the first element in the hierarchy; upon identifying the third element, propagating the requested change downwards in the hierarchy from the first element to the third element by merging the requested change into the list of attributes of the third element; displaying via the user interface a prompt enabling a user of the user interface to select whether the requested change should be propagated downward in the hierarchy from the first element; and receiving via the user interface a selection that the requested change should be propagated downward in the hierarchy from the first element, and wherein the propagating step is performed in response to a step of receiving a selection that the requested change should be propagated downward in the hierarchy from the first element.

Claim 43

A computer-readable medium whose contents cause a computer network to modify attributes of a resource, the computer network having a plurality of users and comprising a server computer controlling a resource shareable by users of the network and a user interface for controlling attributes for the resource, the resource being organized as a hierarchy of elements, the hierarchy including a root element at a topmost point in the hierarchy and additional elements that are descendants of the root element in the hierarchy, by performing the steps of: determining whether a first element of the hierarchy has an associated list of attributes, the first element being a specified one of the additional elements; upon determining that the first element lacks an associated list of attributes, identifying a second element of the hierarchy, the second element having an associated list of attributes and being a proximate ancestor of the first element in the hierarchy; upon identifying the second element, inheriting in the first element the list of attributes of the second element by generating a copy of the list of attributes of the second element and associating the generated copy with the first element; displaying via the user interface information from an attributes list comprising a set of associations between selected users of the network and attributes with respect to the selected users for the first element; receiving via the user interface a command to modify the attributes list; responsively to the received command: initiating a request to change an attribute of the first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network; incorporating the requested change into the generated copy associated with the first element to establish an updated list of attributes associated with the first element; identifying a third element of the hierarchy, the third element having an associated list of attributes and being a descendant of the first element in the hierarchy; upon identifying the third element, propagating the requested change downwards in the hierarchy from the first element to the third element by merging the requested change into the list of attributes of the third element; displaying via the user interface a prompt enabling a user of the user interface to select whether the requested change should be propagated downward in the hierarchy from the first element; and receiving via the user interface a selection that the requested change should be propagated downward in the hierarchy from the first element, and wherein the propagating step is performed in response to a step of receiving a selection that the requested change should be propagated downward in the hierarchy from the first element.

Claim 44

A computer-readable medium whose contents cause a computer network to modify attributes of a resource, the computer network having a plurality of users and comprising a server computer controlling a resource shareable by users of the network and a user interface for controlling attributes for the resource, the resource being organized as a hierarchy of elements, the hierarchy including a root element at a topmost point in the hierarchy and additional elements that are descendants of the root element in the hierarchy, by performing the steps of: determining whether a first element of the hierarchy has an associated list of attributes, the first element being a specified one of the additional elements; upon determining that the first element lacks an associated list of attributes, identifying a second element of the hierarchy, the second element having an associated list of attributes and being a proximate ancestor of the first element in the hierarchy; upon identifying the second element, inheriting in the first element the list of attributes of the second element by generating a copy of the list of attributes of the second element and associating the generated copy with the first element; displaying via the user interface information from an attributes list comprising a set of associations between selected users of the network and attributes with respect to the selected users for the first element; receiving via the user interface a command to modify the attributes list; responsively to the received command: initiating a request to change an attribute of the first element of the hierarchy with respect to a user of the network; incorporating the requested change into the generated copy associated with the first element to establish an updated list of attributes associated with the first element; identifying a third element of the hierarchy, the third element having an associated list of attributes and being a descendant of the first element in the hierarchy; upon identifying the third element, propagating the requested change downwards in the hierarchy from the first element to the third element by merging the requested change into the list of attributes of the third element; displaying via the user interface a prompt enabling a user of the user interface to select whether the requested change should be propagated downward in the hierarchy from the first element; and receiving via the user interface a selection that the requested change should be propagated downward in the hierarchy from the first element, and wherein the propagating step is performed in response to a step of receiving a selection that the requested change should be propagated downward in the hierarchy from the first element.

Claim 49

The method of claim 38, further including the step of, before the step of modifying the access control list of the specified node, copying the access control list of the specified node to each of the immediate descendants of the specified node not selected by the received user input.