System for automated session resource clean-up by determining whether server resources have been held by client longer than preset thresholds
View Patent ↗A system and method of automatic session resource clean-up resulting from a client-server session wherein the client has requested use of server resources during the session. During each session, a list of the resources allocated to that session and associated with the client is maintained and, when the session terminates, either naturally or unnaturally, the allocated resources are released or freed up, allowing later use of the same resources by a different session, either with the same client or with a different client. Because unnatural terminations do not normally provide a farewell message from the client to the server there is no way for the server to release the resource and no naturally occurring message to the server that the client is not present. The present invention overcomes these disadvantages by determining when a session has ended and releasing the resources associated with the client.
1. A method of controlling the use of resources at a server by clients which are coupled to the server to use the resources, the steps of the method comprising:
identifying a client which is using the server and the resources of the server which are associated with the client;
detecting when the client is no longer using the resources of the server; and
in response to the detecting that the client is no longer using resources of the server, automatically releasing the resources at the server without further client communication which had been associated with the client;
wherein the detecting step includes determining a combination of whether the resources have been held by the remote client for a period longer than a first preset threshold based on the time when the use of the resource staffed and current time and whether the resources have been held by the client without use of the resources for a period longer than a second preset threshold.
2. The method of controlling the use of resources at a server by a client including the steps of claim 1 and farther including the step of detecting that the client has become disconnected from the server.
3. The method of controlling the use of resources at a server by a client including the steps of claim 1 and farther including the step of maintaining a list of the resources being used by each client using the server.
4. A method of controlling use of a resource at a server by a client, the steps of the method comprising:
when a client requests use of a resource at a server, entering the identity of the client, the resource and the time into a listing of resources used;
when a client subsequently uses the resource, entering the time of last use of the resource into the resources used listing;
permitting a client to control a resource while the client is connected and using the resource; and
determining whether a client has been using a resource by determining whether the resource has been held by the client for a period longer than a preset threshold based on the time when the use of the resource started and current time and comparing a period of last use with a present amount of allowable time and, if not, automatically releasing the resource without further client communication.