Method and apparatus for providing extended file attributes in an extended attribute namespace
US6789094B2 · kind B2 · utility
169Cited by
6References
7Claims
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Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 24, 2001 |
| Grant date | Sep 7, 2004 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 14, 2022 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S707/99953
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A system for providing extended file attributes is described. Logically, attributes are supported as files within the file system. In this way, the file system is augmented with an orthogonal namespace of file attributes. According, any file (including attribute files) may have an arbitrarily deep attribute tree associated with it. Access to the attribute values is via file descriptors obtained via a special attribute interface. This logical view of “attributes as files” allows the leveraging of existing file system interface functionality to support the construction, deletion, and manipulation of attributes.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.