Abstract: Systems, methods and computer program products are provided for distributed administration of a network environment having defined administrator authorities. A plurality of rules are defined specifying ones of a plurality of entity objects without administrator authority authorized to invoke administration powers to establish properties of target entity objects. In various embodiments, such rules are based on one or more of the properties of the target ones of the entity. An administrator application identifies one of the rules associated with one of the administration powers for one of the properties to be established and obtains a property of the target entity object designated by the identified rule to determine if the action is authorized.

Abstract: Methods, systems and computer program products for tracking network device performance are provided which, in various embodiments, may track device performance by acquiring and storing routing information for communication connections over the network on a scheduled basis during normal operations and responsive to exception events. Network performance measurements may be obtained on a repeated basis, for example, pursuant to a test schedule. The performance measurements may be obtained from either active or passive testing. A traceroute may be initiated for a plurality of connections (for example, client to server) on a repeated basis, for example, a periodic basis, and the performance measurements for each connection for the same time period may be associated with the detected routing information to provide baseline information relating to the performance of one or more routes which support each connection.

Abstract: Methods, systems and computer program products are provided which coordinate operations for a plurality of interrelated tasks executing on a computer using actual state objects and desired state objects. For each event including coordination between two of the plurality of interrelated tasks, a first (or initiator) task initiates operations by a second (or executor) task to carry out a desired sequence of operations. The initiator task sets a desired state object to the desired state and submits a request to the executor task. The executor task, in turn, operates on the request in order to update an actual state object to the desired state stored in the desired state object by the initiator task. Write control over the desired state object is therefore granted to the initiator task while write control over the actual state object is granted to the executor task.

Abstract: A method for configuring a web site tracking program on a computer coupled over a network to a web server whereby the web page or object to be tracked is displayed on a display device within a browser window in synchronicity with the web site tracking criteria selected for that page or object. The web browser is operated on the computer with a configuration program to retrieve a web page or object from the web site server and display it in a browser window and the tracking criteria within a configuration pane or subwindow. The operator selects within the configuration pane or subwindow the web tracking criterion to be configured and the proper URL, FTP or other identifying link to the criteria is automatically generated for and associated with the web page or object displayed.

Abstract: A system, method and storage medium embodying computer-readable code for analyzing traffic data in a distributed computing environment are described. The distributed computing environment includes a plurality of interconnected systems operatively coupled to a server, a source of traffic data hits and one or more results tables categorized by an associated data type. Each results table includes a plurality of records. The server is configured to exchange data packets with each interconnected system. Each traffic data hit corresponds to a data packet exchanged between the server and one such interconnected system. Each traffic data hit is collected from the traffic data hits source as access information into one such record in at least one results table according to the data type associated with the one such results table. Each of the records in the results table corresponds to a different type of access information for the data type associated with the results table.

Abstract: Methods, systems and computer program products for testing the performance of a communication network including a plurality of endpoint nodes executing application programs which utilize the communications network are provided. A console node is provided on the network which may initiate operations by test agents executing on one or more of the plurality of endpoint nodes. The agents may generate network performance information using passive application monitoring and/or active endpoint pair based network testing responsive to scheduling instructions from the console node. Specific application programs may be designated for passive monitoring and active test protocols may be provided based on an expected type of application communication traffic. In another aspect of the present invention, one of a plurality of types of transaction models defining the beginning and ending reference point for a transaction timing measurement may be provided to the endpoint nodes for use in passive application monitoring.

Abstract: A method for tracking and reporting traffic activity on a web site first comprises storing a web page on a first server coupled to a network. When the web page is requested from a visitor computer, the visitor computer is selected (or not selected) for inclusion within a sample group, where the sample group is only a subset of the total traffic to the web site. A selection indicator is stored on the visitor computer associated with this selection. Data mining code within the web site is operated or not operated depending upon the value of the selection indicator. The data mining code is operated, and the activity of the visitor computer on the web site consequently tracked only if the visitor computer is selected as a member within the sample group, otherwise the data mining code is not operated and no traffic activity is generated.

Abstract: The operation of multimedia applications, such as Macromedia's Flash, embedded within a web page and downloaded by a visitor computer is tracked by using data mining code operating within the multimedia application, or by such code in conjunction with an interface within the web page. Each operation of the web page triggers a URL page request to a data tracking server that is coupled over a wide area network to the visitor computer and to the server from which the web page is downloaded. An example of such a trigger is a getURL command which, when activated, can be used to track such items as multimedia functions used within the multimedia application, pages viewed, scenes viewed, etc. The URL page request includes within the request data that is compiled by the data mining code at the visitor computer and arranged so that the raw data can be reconstituted at the data tracking server and compiled into reports accessible to the web page operator.

Abstract: Communications network performance is tested utilizing a test scenario simulating actual communications traffic on the network to be tested. The test scenario includes an endpoint node specific test protocol between an endpoint node pair including a first and associated second endpoint node on the network to be tested. A partner endpoint node test protocol is determined from the endpoint node specific test protocol and communicated to from the first endpoint node to the associated second endpoint node of the endpoint node pair. A plurality of endpoint node pairs may executed different endpoint node specific test protocols under a test scenario. A console node is provided on the network for establishing the test scenario and assigning the test scenario to endpoint node pairs and initiating execution of the test scenario. Performance data may be monitored at one of the endpoint nodes of each endpoint node pair and reported to the console node either as it is generated or after completion of the test.

Abstract: Methods, systems and computer program products are provided which test network performance by defining test schedules including test protocols to be implemented and when the protocols should be executed for a plurality of defined connections on a network. A connection may be defined between two endpoint nodes on the network. At times specified in the test schedule, the endpoint node pair executes the test protocol and measures the performance of the network connection between the two nodes without requiring any involvement of application software which may or may not be installed on the computer hardware supporting the endpoint node. The test protocol may define the type of network layer protocol to utilize (for example, TCP), and the test script or scripts to be communicated using the appropriate stack on the computer hardware supporting the endpoint node.

Abstract: Hit records are retrieved from a log file of network traffic data. Visit information is recognized from the hit records, and stored in a database. The visit information can then be analyzed to determine the success of a business's web site.

Abstract: A method is provided for signaling and acknowledging events associated with resource objects organized in a foldable object tree displayed by a GUI. When an event occurs on a resource object, an event indicator is placed not only on the resource object's icon in the object tree, but also on all the icons of the parent resource objects of that resource object to ensure that the event indicator is visible even when the object tree is folded. Events occurring on a resource object may be acknowledged by clicking on the resource object icon. When an event is acknowledged, the event indicator is removed not only from the resource object's icon but also from all of the icons of the parent resource objects for that resource object to ensure that the acknowledgment is always accurately reflected by the GUI display even the object tree is folded.

Abstract: A method is provided for enabling a user to select and manipulate resource objects of a given type by selecting a program of a type compatible with the type of the resource objects via the graphical user interface of a computer system. This is achieved by first controlling a cursor control device of the computer system to drag a program icon onto a resource object icon. Then, a type of the program is compared to a type of the resource object to determine whether the program can manipulate the resource object. If the program can manipulate the resource object, a visual display of the resource object icon is modified to indicate to the user that the program can manipulate the resource object. In response to the visual display, the user has the option of either electing to manipulate the object using the program by dropping the program icon onto the resource object icon, or of terminating the operation by dragging the program icon away from the resource object icon.

Abstract: A method is provided for signalling and acknowledging events associated with resource objects organized in a foldable object tree displayed by a GUI. When an event occurs on a resource object, an event indicator is placed not only on the resource object's icon in the object tree, but also on all the icons of the parent resource objects of that resource object to ensure that the event indicator is visible even when the object tree is folded. Events occurring on a resource object may be acknowledged by clicking on the resource object icon. When an event is acknowledged, the event indicator is removed not only from the resource object's icon but also from all of the icons of the parent resource objects for that resource object to ensure that the acknowledgment is always accurately reflected by the GUI display even the object tree is folded.

Abstract: The present invention provides an improved method and apparatus for performing database updates in a distributed system having an originating database stored in a server and a partial or complete copy of the database stored in a client. In one embodiment, a database update system includes a server having a database, a network, and a client having a storage and software for accessing the database over the network. The client maintains the last update time of each table stored in its storage. The server maintains the modification time as an integral field of each record in the database. The modification time of a record indicates the last time at which the record was modified in the database. The client software requests copies of all records of a table stored in the client's storage that have a modification time that is later than the last update time of the table. In another embodiment, the server also maintains a modification table that includes a record for each table in the database.