FIELD OF INVENTION

[0001] The invention generally relates to data communication systems and methods and more particularly to a system and method for maintaining data synchronization among a plurality of user devices.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] Personal Computers and portable electronic devices such as cell phones  personal digital assistants (PDAs)  and wireless email terminals have become an indispensable part of everyday life for many people. It is not uncommon for individuals to employ multiple devices for managing their personal communications  schedules  address books  contact lists  task lists  and the like.

[0003] Typically  each separate device will include provisions for storing data related to the primary functions of the device. However  the data stored on each device may be significantly different. For example  data stored on work computer of a user may be different from data stored in home computer of the user. Nonetheless  there may be significant overlap between the data stored on both computers.

[0004] When data can be added and modified on any one of a plurality of devices it is imperative that such additions and changes made on one device are propagated to the other user devices which store the same or related data. At present there is no system or mechanism available for maintaining the consistency across a plurality of different devices.

[0005] A number of data synchronization protocols have been developed for performing data synchronization between various data storage devices. However  such data synchronization protocols are geared only toward synchronizing data between two devices. They do not provide a mechanism for synchronizing several devices either in parallel or in sequence. Some devices may support multiple synchronization protocols and may be adapted to synchronize with more than one device. Nonetheless  all such devices are adapted for synchronizing data between only two devices at any given time. In cases where an individual has more than two devices sharing common data  the two-way synchronization protocols currently available are insufficient to eliminate data inconsistencies between all of a user""s devices.

[0006] Another problem associated with current computing and/or storage devices is absence of a guaranteed back up mechanism. Many of the back up mechanisms described in the prior art need human intervention for initiating the setup and maintenance thereafter. Further  many of the backup solutions that are described in the art are locally available or through the web and need high level of control and configuration from the user.

[0007] Furthermore  when it comes to existing computing and/or storage devices  there is no mechanism to provide a consolidated view and access to the comprehensive data that exists across multiple connected devices that are placed across different locations. For this purpose  the user is compelled to use cumbersome technical solutions to obtain a single window view of all the data that the user has stored.

[0008] Hence there exists a need for an efficient and reliable system and method of managing user data that is distributed across multiple devices placed in different locations.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The above-mentioned shortcomings  disadvantages and problems are addressed herein which will be understood by reading and understanding the following specification.

[0010] In one embodiment  a system for communicating and managing data in a plurality of user devices is provided. The system comprises a utility computing agent installed in each of the user devices  the utility computing agent configured for managing data synchronization among the plurality of user devices  a central storage unit coupled to each of the user devices via a data communication network  the central storage unit configured for being a master storage repository and a communication agent configured for communicating content from the central storage unit to at least one of the user devices.

[0011] In another embodiment  a data management system for managing data among a plurality of user devices  each adapted to store data of a user is provided. The data management system comprises a server side component comprising a central storage unit adapted to interface with each of the user devices via a data communication network  the central storage unit configured for being a master storage repository. The data management system further comprises a client side component comprising a utility computing agent installed in each of the user devices  the utility computing agent configured for managing data synchronization among the plurality of user devices  and further configured for supporting a plurality of data synchronization protocols for synchronizing data among the plurality of user devices; and a communication agent configured for communicating content from the central storage unit to at least one of the user devices.

[0012] In yet another embodiment  a method of communicating and managing data in a plurality of user devices is provided. The method comprises registering a user device at a central storage unit  maintaining a change log for each registered user device  comparing the change log to a central log  maintained at the central storage unit  to determine the need for synchronizing and synchronizing data on the central storage unit with data on the registered user device upon determining the need for synchronizing.

[0013] Systems and methods of varying scope are described herein. In addition to the aspects and advantages described in this summary  further aspects and advantages will become apparent by reference to the drawings and with reference to the detailed description that follows.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of an environment in which the invention works;

[0015] FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of a system for communicating and managing data  as described in an embodiment;

[0016] FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of a data management system for managing data  as described in another embodiment; and

[0017] FIG. 4 shows a flow diagram depicting a method of communicating and managing data  as described in another embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] In the following detailed description  reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof  and in which is shown by way of illustration specific embodiments  which may be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the embodiments  and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that logical  mechanical  electrical and other changes may be made without departing from the scope of the embodiments. The following detailed description is  therefore  not to be taken in a limiting sense.

[0019] The present invention provides a system and method for maintaining data synchronization across a plurality of user devices adapted to store at least a part of a user’s data. The data may include personal data of the user such as contact lists  phone numbers  address books  email addresses  appointment calendars  task lists  notes  user documents  photographs  audio-video content and so forth.

[0020] FIG. 1 shows a sample universe of various user devices on which a user may store some or all of his or her data. The user desires to maintain consistent data across all of the various user devices. Each user device is a communication device that is capable of communicating data over a public network. In the example shown in FIG. 1  the user has access to multiple user devices such as a cellular phone 102  a personal computer 104  a laptop 106 and a personal digital assistant 108. Each of the user devices are connected to a TCP/IP based network  such as the Internet 112. Each of the communication devices  smart phone 102  personal computer 104  laptop 106 and tablets 108  store data which is at least partially repeated on one or more of the other devices. Further  the data stored on each of the user devices can be accessed using one or more local applications and operating system based file managers.

[0021] System 100 further comprises a utility computing server 110 hosting multiple central storage units similar to the central storage unit 114 shown in FIG. 1. The details about the utility computing server 110 are further explained in conjunction with FIG. 3.

[0022] FIG. 2 shows a system 200 for communicating and managing data in a plurality of user devices 202. The system 200 comprises a utility computing agent 204 installed in each of the user devices 202  the utility computing agent 204 configured for managing data synchronization among the plurality of user devices 202  a central storage unit 206 coupled to each of the user devices 202 via a data communication network 112  the central storage unit 206 configured for being a master storage repository and a communication agent 208 configured for communicating content from the central storage unit 206 to at least one of the user devices 202.

[0023] The utility computing agent 204 is configured for maintaining data synchronization between the central storage unit 206 and each of the user devices represented by 202. The utility computing agent 204 comprises a software module adapted to be executed by a processing unit.

[0024] Prior to the data stored on various user devices 202 can be synchronized  the utility computing agent 204 is configured to identity the user device 202 on which it is installed and appropriate synchronization protocols the user device 202 supports when synchronizing the data stored in the user device 202. Identifying the device  the user and identifying the appropriate synchronization protocols may be accomplished through a one time registration process that occurs when the utility computing agent 204 is installed in the user device 202. Further the utility computing agent 204 is capable of having multiple storage areas on the user registered device corresponding to different users. The system would synchronize with different areas in the central storage unit 206 corresponding to each user.

[0025] The utility computing agent 204 supports data synchronization protocols including at least one of: SYNCML over a remote data protocol; SYNCML over a local data protocol; IRMC; Bluetooth Phonebook Access (PBAP); RSYNC based on native platforms and AT command-based information retrieval. Further  the remote data protocol comprises TCP/IP and the local data protocol comprises Bluetooth. Still further a modified form of web based access commands like WPUT may be used in one or more user devices 202 to function as synchronization protocol.

[0026] In order to exchange and synchronize data  a communication interface is established between the central storage unit 206 and the other user devices 202. The communication interface is one of a wired and a wireless interface. Examples of wireless interface include a Bluetooth wireless interface and a Wi-Fi wireless interface. The interfaces described above are just representative examples. Any other practicable interface may be substituted between the central storage unit 206 and the user devices 202 including the smart phone  the tablets  the personal computer and the laptop.

[0027] In one embodiment  the communication interface is an application that also enables the user to access the central storage unit 206 via the public network. In one exemplary embodiment  the communication interface comprises a web browser such as .MOZILLA FIREFOX®  INTERNET EXPLORER®  AOL®  SAFARI®  CHROME®  and the like.

[0028] In one embodiment  when changes are made to a file stored on one of the user devices 202  the utility computing agent 204 installed on the user device 202 on which the changes are made initiates a synchronization process with the central storage unit 206 over the TCP/IP network using the RSYNCand/or SyncML Remote protocol for example. Subsequently  other user devices 202 storing the file may be synchronized with the central storage unit 206. The utility computing agent 204 associated with the user device 202 does not necessarily synchronize directly with the other user devices 202  but rather with the central storage unit 206.

[0029] Hence  the utility computing agent 204 installed on the user device 202 keeps track of the changes made on data that is commonly stored in the central storage unit 206 and the user device 202. Changes made to a file stored in the user device 202 are automatically synchronized with the file stored in the central storage unit 206 and vice versa.

[0030] Any changes to the data stored on the central storage unit 206 are propagated to one or more of the other user devices 202  through the subsequent synchronization of the other user device 202 with the central storage unit 206.

[0031] In an alternative embodiment  the utility computing agent 204 upon detecting changes in a file stored in the corresponding user device 202 may seek permission from the user for synchronizing the file with the central storage unit 206. Similarly  the utility computing agent 204 upon detecting changes in a file stored in the central storage unit 206 may seek permission from the user for synchronizing the file with the file stored in the corresponding user device 202.

[0032] Further  the centralized storage unit 206 may be accessed through the communication interface from one or remote devices (not shown) that do not store any of the user data. A remote device (not shown) is a communication device that is not installed with the utility computing agent 204. The remote device (not shown) merely provides access to the user to the central storage unit 206  and each of the user devices 202  where the user stores data.

[0033] When the user accesses content through the user device 202  the content may be opened in the remote device (not shown) and be streamed back to the user thereby eliminating the need for downloading the content on the user device 202. The content prior to being communicated may be transcoded and stored in a cache memory. In one embodiment  the cache memory may be a part of one of the central storage unit 206 and the remote device (not shown).

[0034] The content may comprise audio files  video files and multimedia files or of documents and image files. The user in addition to accessing the content through the communication interface may also be enabled to edit the content.

[0035] The communication agent 208 comprises one or more applications that enable playing the content from the remote device (not shown) through the communication interface. Further  the communication agent 208 may be a part of one of the central storage unit 206 and each of the utility computing agents 204 installed on the user devices 202. Alternatively  the communication agent 208 may be independently installed in one or more of the user devices 202.

[0036] Turning now to FIG. 3  in another embodiment  the invention provides a cloud based managed utility computing solution. In this environment  the user""s computing environment is controlled and managed by a set of applications running at a remote environment. Accordingly  the invention describes a data management system 300.

[0037] The data management system 300 comprises a server side component 302. The server side component 302 comprises a utility computing server 310 provided and maintained by a utility computing service provider. Further  the utility computing server 310 may be a physically hosted  virtually hosted and cloud hosted entity. The utility computing server 310 is configured to host multiple central storage units 312 and 314  each central storage unit 312 and 314 being configured for storing data corresponding to a single user and thereby each of the central storage units 312 and 314 is configured to act as a master storage repository for the associated user.. Skilled artisans shall appreciate that each of the central storage units 312 and 314 may include one or more hardware components and software components to enable the central storage unit 312 to carry out the desired functions.

[0038] The utility computing server 310 allocates a predetermined amount of memory to each of the users. In one embodiment  the amount of memory allocated to each of the users may be different. Further  each of the users may be provided with an identification data and an access code that may be used by the user while accessing the central storage unit 312. This type of authentication ensures secure transmissions between the user and the central storage unit 312.

[0039] Thus  the server side component 302 controls the users who can access the central storage unit 312  the applications used  the storage available and almost all aspects of the user""s computing environment. The user is enabled to access the central storage unit 312 from a communication interface installed in any computing device. The computing device includes a user device and a remote device.

[0040] Further  the data management system 300 comprises multiple client side components 304 and 306 coupled to the central storage unit 312. Each of the client side components 304 and 306 comprise utility computing agents 332 and 334 installed respectively in the user devices 320 and 322. The client side components 304 and 306 further comprise communication agents 336 and 338 respectively installed in the user devices 320 and 322. Though for the sake of simplicity  the invention is explained with respect to the client side component 304  skilled artisans shall appreciate that the invention is applicable to any other client side component represented in the form of the client side component 306.

[0041] The utility computing agent 332 installed in the user device 320 controls  manages and synchronizes at least a part of the data stored in a user""s device to ensure that the user has information and access to his/her files from anywhere across the world using a browser.

[0042] The data management system 300 further comprises a communication agent 336 configured for communicating content from the central storage unit 312 to at least one of the user devices 320 and 322.

[0043] FIG. 4 illustrates a flowchart of a method 400 of communicating and managing data among a plurality of user devices 320 and 322 as described in an embodiment of the invention. The method 400 comprises steps of registering a user device 320 at the central storage unit 312 at step 402  maintaining a change log for each registered user device 320 at step 404  comparing the change log to a central log maintained at the central storage unit 312 to determine the need for synchronizing at step 406 and synchronizing the central storage unit 312 with the registered user device 320 upon determining the need for synchronizing at step 408.

[0044] The user wishing to subscribe to the utility computing service provider may select one or more user devices storing at least a part of the user data. The user data may comprise user’s personal communications  schedules  address books  contact lists  task lists  document  audio-video files  images and the like. In addition  the user data may include personal data such as contact information  address books  calendars  task lists  memos  and other information. In general  the user data may include any data that the user wishes to store in the user device 320.

[0045] Following the subscription and selection of the user devices 320 and 322  a utility computing agent 332 is automatically downloaded and installed in each of the selected user devices 320 and 322. According to this embodiment the utility computing agent 332 initiates a registration process using the communication interface available at the user device 320 for interaction with the central storage unit 312.

[0046] The method 400 of registering the user device 320 comprises identifying the user device 320 through a device identifier  determining an appropriate synchronization protocol for performing data synchronization with the user device 320 and storing the device identifier and an associated synchronization protocol identifier.

[0047] The utility computing agent 332 interrogates the associated user device 320 to determine its identification and to determine which synchronization protocols the user device 320 supports and which protocol is the most appropriate for synchronizing data between the user device 320 and the central storage unit 312. This information is utilized for registering the user device 320 at the central storage unit 312.

[0048] In addition to identifying the user device 320  the registration process identifies the interface by which the corresponding user device 320 is to communicate with the central storage unit 312. For example  hand-held portable devices may be accessed directly via a Bluetooth wireless link. Subsequent to the completion of registration process  the data stored on the associated user device 320 may be synchronized with the data stored on the central storage unit 312 or vice versa.

[0049] In one embodiment  synchronization may occur upon receiving user commands for initiating synchronization. For each synchronization  the utility computing agent 332 employs synchronization protocols that were identified when the utility computing agent 332 was installed at the user device 320. Subsequent to the synchronization process  the utility computing agent 332 determines whether the data synchronization was successful. If not  the process is repeated and the user device 320 and the central storage unit 312 are synchronized again. When the data synchronization is successful the central storage unit 312 stores new data received from the user device 320 in non-volatile memory and the user device 320 does the same with data received from the central storage unit 312.

[0050] The central storage unit 312 maintains a change log for each of the registered user device 320 along with a central log indicating the number of registered devices that have been synchronized. Following the process of synchronizing with a registered user device 320  the change logs associated with the registered user device 320 are updated and further the value of the central log is incremented. The central storage unit 312 determines whether the current value of the central log equals the total number of registered user devices. If not  the data synchronization process begins anew for the succeeding registered device. In case where the value stored in the central log is equal to the total number of registered devices  indicating the central storage unit 312 has been synchronized with all of the registered devices  the change logs updated during the data synchronization with each registered device are compared.

[0051] The change logs are compared in order to determine whether additional data synchronizations are necessary to ensure that all of the user data stored on all of the various registered devices is consistent across all of the devices. This is required because the central storage unit 312 synchronizes data with each registered device sequentially as and when the devices are reachable rather than synchronizing with each device simultaneously. If changes are made to the data stored on the central storage unit 312 as a result of synchronizing with the preceding device  these changes will not be reflected on all of the previouslysynchronized devices.

[0052] If discrepancies in the change logs are found  indicating that additional synchronization is necessary  the central log is reset to one and the process returns to where the entire synchronization process begins. However  this time through the synchronization process  the changes in the data stored on the central storage unit 312 resulting from synchronizing with the later devices will be propagated to the devices that are synchronized earlier in the process.

[0053] Thus  when the central storage unit 312 re-synchronizes with the user devices the second time  the data across all of the registered devices will be consistent. After the second pass through the synchronization process  comparing the change logs will indicate that there are no inconsistencies in the data stored on any of the registered devices or on the central storage unit 312. At this point the synchronization process ends and the utility computing agent 332 then waits for a subsequent ‘synchronize data’ command to be entered by the user.

[0054] In one embodiment  at least one local replica of the central storage unit 312 can be maintained in at least one of the user devices. The local replica can play the role of a central backup unit. For the purpose of maintaining data consistency in both the central storage unit 312 and the central backup unit  the utility computing agent 332 is configured for synchronizing the central storage unit 312 with the central back up unit on a periodical basis.

[0055] When changes are encountered in a file that is stored in both the central storage unit 312 and the central backup unit  the utility computing agent 332 is configured to request the user to resolve the conflict.

[0056] The method 400 further comprises streaming content from the central storage unit 312 to a computing device. The computing device may be a registered user device 320 or a remote device (non- registered). The method 400 of streaming comprises transcoding at least a part of the content that is to be communicated  storing transcoded content in a cache memory  communicating the transcoded content from the cache memory to the computing device. The content that is streamed over the data communication channel through the communication interface is transcoded to enable the process of streaming to function on a reduced bandwidth. The decision for transcoding and the type of streaming to be done may be based on the capability of the user end device 320 and the network the user device 320 is on.

[0057] In an exemplary embodiment  a high resolution video content may be transcoded and stored in the cache memory that is a part of one of the central storage unit 312  user devices 320 and 322  and the remote device. Upon receiving a request from the user for accessing the content at the central storage unit 312  a lower resolution video content is streamed to the user. Based on user’s subscription  the transcoded content may be maintained along with the original content oronly the transcoded content may be maintained. Alternatively  the transcoding may be performed upon receiving the user request  in which case the a waiting period for the user may be present.

[0058] The user may choose to retain one or both of the high and low resolution versions of content. However  the user may not be entitled to one or more of the features that the central storage unit 312 provides. The reasons for this may range from the user optionally disabling the service  the configurations of the user device 320 not permitting the user to use the service or the utility computing service provider being unable to provide the services to the user for some other reason.

[0059] In one exemplary embodiment  the user device 320 may comprise a low resolution monitor that does not support a high resolution video being streamed. Accordingly  the communication agent 336 may be configured to choose the low resolution video content to be streamed to the user. Further  in this scenario  if the user chooses not to use the transcoding mechanism and thus not have the lower resolution video content then the access the video content may not be provided to the user.

[0060] The method 400 further comprises indexing at least a part of the data that is stored in at least one of the user devices. The process of indexing may include data that is not shared with the central storage unit 312.
[0061] The utility computing agent 332 is further configured to index the data stored in the user device 320 on which the utility computing agent 332 is installed. The data that is indexed may comprise one or more files that are not shared with the central storage unit 312 in addition to the files that are shared with the central storage unit 312. The details of the data that is indexed in the user device 320 is sent to the central storage unit 312 for storage. The index thus generated is used by the user to search for data among the multitude of user devices that the user uses.

[0062] In one embodiment  the utility computing agent 332 is configured for being a storage gateway for the user. The user is enabled to search data that is stored among the multitude of user devices. It is to be noted that data that is stored in one of the user device 320 and not shared with the central storage unit 312 can as well be searched using the index that is stored in the central storage unit 312.

[0063] The user gaining access to the central storage unit 312 from the remote device may access and modify one or more files that are stored in the user device 320 registered for the utility computing service  provided the user device 320 is connected through the data communication network 112. Further  the user may add  modify or delete files from the remote device. The one or more files that the user gains access to may not be shared with the central storage unit 312.

[0064] The systems and methods described herein may support any user device 320 such as any standard computer such as a minicomputer  a microcomputer  a UNIX® machine  LINUX® machine  mainframe machine  super computer  personal computer (PC) such as INTEL®.  APPLE®  or SUN®. based processing computer or clone thereof  personal digital assistant (PDA)  wearable computer  cellular phone with wide area network access capability  tablets (such as iPad®  ANDROID® based tablets  etc.)  MP3 player or other portable entertainment device having wide are network access capability (e.g.  iPod  available from Apple  Cupertino  Calif.)  laptop  notebook  or other appropriate computer  such as home appliances  televisions  stereos  audio and/or video recording devices  security devices and other devices having an embedded processor capable of wide area network access.

[0065] Further  each of the user device 320 may include typical computer components (not shown)  such as a motherboard  central processing unit (CPU)  memory in the form of random access memory (RAM)  hard disk drive  display adapter  other storage media such as diskette drive  CD-ROM  DVD-ROM  CD-RW  DVD-RW  flash-ROM  tape drive  PCMCIA cards and/or other removable media  a monitor  keyboard  mouse and/or other user interface  a modem  network interface card (NIC)  Bluetooth.®. and/or other conventional input/output devices. In many embodiments  user devices comprise conventional desktop or "tower" machines  but can alternatively comprise portable or "laptop" computers  notebook computers  handheld personal digital assistants (PDAs) or "palm-top" computers  tablet computers  cellular phones capable of browsing Web pages  "dumb terminals" capable of browsing Web pages  internet terminals capable of browsing Web pages such as WEBTV®  or other Web browsing or network-enabled devices.

[0066] Each user device 320 may comprise  loaded in its memory  an operating system 300 (not shown) such as UNIX®  WINDOW®  LINUX®.  Apple OS®.  PALM OS.®  ANDROID® or the like  or a proprietary operating system 300. Each user device 320 may further have loaded in the memory a Web Browser program such as MOZILLA FIREFOX®  NETSCAPE NAVIGATOR®.  INTERNET EXPLORER®.  AOL®  SAFARI®  CHROME®  or like browsing software for the computers.

[0067] The utility computing server 310  provided by the utility computing service provider  that hosts the central storage unit 312 may be any standard data processing device or computer  including a minicomputer  a microcomputer  a UNIX® or LINUX® machine  a mainframe machine  super computer  a personal computer (PC) such as an INTEL® based processing computer or clone thereof  an APPLE® computer or clone thereof or  a SUN® workstation  wearable computer  or other appropriate computer. Utility computing server 310 may include conventional components (not shown) such as a motherboard  central processing unit (CPU)  random access memory (RAM)  hard disk drive  display adapter  other storage media such as diskette drive  CD-ROM  DVD-ROM  CD-RW  DVD-RW  flash-ROM  tape drive  PCMCIA cards and/or other removable media  a monitor  keyboard  mouse and/or other user interface means  a modem  network interface card (NIC)  and/or other conventional input/output devices. Multiple utility computing servers may be used  as described further below.

[0068] The utility computing server 310 has stored in its memory a server operating system 300 (not shown) such as UNIX®  WINDOWS® NT  NOVELL®  SOLARIS®  LINUX®. or other server operating system 300  or a proprietary sever operating system 300 (e.g.  NEC or other proprietary system 300). The utility computing server 310 also has loaded in its memory web server software such as Apache-TOMCAT®  IBM WEBSPHERE®  Oracle WEBLOGIC®  NETSCAPE®  INTERNET INFORMATION SERVER®. (IIS)  or other appropriate web server software loaded for handling HTTP (hypertext transfer protocol) or Web page requests from user devices. The utility computing server 310 may also comprise a connection handler array configured to establish and maintain a plurality of network connections between a plurality of clients and one or more network-enabled devices.

[0069] The present arrangement permits access and sharing of data to and from any location throughout the world which is accessible through a network that the devices /computers can communicate over. Although the Internet is the most ubiquitous and common network to be mentioned here  the present invention is not limited to only use over the Internet  as other networks  private as well as public may also employ this functionality. Using the example of the internet  a user on a laptop or other portable computer  who is traveling  for example  can access any of the other devices shown  including home computer and office system 300 to obtain current  up-to-date files that may be needed  which perhaps the user forgot to take on the trip  or which may have been edited or updated since the time of the user""s departure. Further  the present invention allows collaboration  so the remotely located user can collaboratively work with files in other locations  with other users.
[0070] Thus  for example  a user who is away from his or her main stores of data may access  use and even download files with a device such as a tablet  PDA  MP3 player or cell phone having wireless network access capability. It is noted that the present invention is not limited to the computers/devices shown  but may be used by any network-accessible devices for communicating data files over a network  examples of which include cameras  video and/or audio recording equipment  televisions  factory equipment  instruments  office equipment such as printers  fax machines  scanners  home security equipment  home appliances and others  including those listed above in the specification.

[0071] Many of the advantages provided by the system and method of communicating and managing data among the plurality of user devices described in various embodiments are listed below.

[0072] The user subscribes to the utility computing service provider for the services and subsequently  the utility computing agent is automatically downloaded  installed and configured on each of the user device selected by the user. This eliminates the need for human intervention.

[0073] The user can store data that he/she wishes to gain access to  from a remote location. The central storage unit stores multiple copies of one or more designated files that the user wishes to manipulate. Further  the central storage unit supports various types of operating systems (OS) and user devices (from smart phones to computers).

[0074] The system and method described herein combines centralized cloud based storage with backup and browser based access. Further it extends to being a storage gateway for the user. Hence  the system and method described herein enable the user to access most of the user data available on multiple user devices that are connected to the data communication network.

[0075] This written description uses examples to describe the subject matter herein  including the best mode  and also to enable any person skilled in the art to make and use the subject matter. The patentable scope of the subject matter is defined by the claims  and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they have structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims  or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal language of the claims.

CLAIMS

What is claimed is:
1. A system for communicating and managing data in a plurality of user devices  the system comprising:
a utility computing agent installed in each of the user devices  the utility user device agent configured for managing data synchronization among the plurality of user device;
a central storage unit coupled to each of the user devices via a data communication network  the central storage unit configured for being a master storage repository; and
a communication agent configured for communicating content from the central storage unit to at least one of the user devices.

2. The system of claim 1  wherein each of the user devices is configured for accessing the central storage unit via a communication interface.

3. The system of claim 1  wherein each of the user devices is configured for storing data that can be accessed using one or more local applications and operating system based file managers.

4. The system of claim 1  wherein the central storage unit is configured for allocating a predetermined amount of memory for each user.

5. The system of claim 2  wherein the communication interface is a web browser.

6. A personal information management system for managing data among a plurality of user devices each adapted to store data of a user  the personal information management system comprising:
a server side component comprising:
a central storage unit adapted to interface with each of the user devices via a data communication network  the central storage unit configured for being a master storage repository;
a client side component comprising:
a utility computing agent installed in each of the user devices  the utility computing agent configured for managing data synchronization among the plurality of user devices  the utility computing agent configured for supporting a plurality of data synchronization protocols for synchronizing data with the plurality of user devices; and
a communication agent configured for communicating content from the central storage unit to at least one of the user devices.

7. The personal information management system of claim 6  wherein the communication agent is a part of the utility computing agent.

8. The personal information management system of claim 6  wherein the user device is configured for accessing the central storage unit via a communication interface.

9. The personal information management system of claim 6  wherein the user device comprises multiple storage units  and wherein each of the storage units corresponds to a single user.

10. The personal information management system of claim 9  wherein the utility computing agent is configured to synchronize with multiple areas in the central storage unit  each area in the central storage unit corresponding to a single user.

11. The personal information management system of claim 6  further comprising a central backup unit  the central backup unit configured for storing a replica of the central storage unit.

12. The personal information management system of claim 11  wherein the central backup unit is a part of at least one of the user devices.

13. The personal information management system of claim 6  wherein the user device comprises one of a smart phone  a cellular phone  a notebook  a tablet  a personal computer and a personal digital assistant.

14. The personal information management system of claim 6  wherein the utility computing agent supports data synchronization protocols including at least one of RSYNC over TCP/IP; SYNCML over a remote data protocol; SYNCML over a local data protocol; IRMC; Bluetooth Phonebook Access (PBAP); and AT command-based information retrieval.

15. The personal information management system of claim 14  wherein the remote data protocol comprises TCP/IP.

16. The personal information management system of claim 14  wherein the local data protocol comprises one of Bluetooth and Wireless LAN over TCP/IP.

17. A method of communicating and managing data in a plurality of user devices  the method comprising:
registering a user device at a central storage unit;
maintaining a change log for each registered user device;
comparing the change log to a central log maintained at the central storage unit unit to determine the need for synchronizing; and
synchronizing the central storage unit with the registered user device upon determining the need for synchronizing.

18. The method of claim 17  wherein registering a user devices comprises:
identifying a user device having a device identifier;
determining an appropriate synchronization protocol for performing data synchronization with the user device; and
storing the device identifier and an associated synchronization protocol identifier.

19. The method of claim 17  wherein synchronizing the central storage unit comprises:
initiating a data synchronization function with a registered user device employing a synchronization protocol corresponding to the synchronization protocol identifier stored in association with the device identifier.

20. The method of claim 17  wherein the synchronization protocol is selected from the group comprising RSYNC over TCP/IP; SYNCML over remote data protocol; SYNCML over a local data protocol; IRMC remote Synchronization; IRMC local Synchronization; Bluetooth Phonebook Access; and AT command-based information retrieval.

21. The method of claim 17  further comprising:
indexing at least a part of the data that is stored in at least one of the user devices.

22. The method of claim 17  further comprising:
synchronizing the central storage unit with a central back up unit on a periodical basis.

23. The method of claim 17  further comprising:
streaming content from the central storage unit to a computing device and wherein the computing device comprises a user device registered for utility computing service and a remote device that is not registered for the utility computing service..

24. The method of claim 23  wherein streaming comprises:
transcoding at least a part of the content that is to be communicated;
storing transcoded content in a cache memory; and
communicating the transcoded content from the central storage unit to the computing device.

25. The method of claim 21  further comprising
selecting the process of transcoding and type of streaming to be performed based on the configuration of the user device and a data communication network that networks the user device.