CLIENT-SIDE HASHSET CHANGE DETECTION

Organization Name

microsoft technology licensing, llc.

Inventor(s)

DAVID Burg of SAMMAMISH WA (US)

SHIVAM Jindal of JAIPUR (IN)

RAMA KRISHNA Rayudu of SAMMAMISH WA (US)

PRAVEEN Srivastava of BENGALURU (IN)

CLIENT-SIDE HASHSET CHANGE DETECTION - A simplified explanation of the abstract

This abstract first appeared for US patent application 20240211443 titled 'CLIENT-SIDE HASHSET CHANGE DETECTION

Simplified Explanation: The patent application describes a method for detecting changes to shared files on a file hosting service using a client-side device. The device periodically collects metadata for each file in a directory and creates a hashset with hash values for each file's metadata. If a file's hash at a current time is not in the previous hashset but is in the one before that, the file is considered to have changed.

**Key Features and Innovation:**

   - Detection of changes to shared files on a file hosting service
   - Client-side device performs the detection
   - Periodic collection of metadata for each file in a directory
   - Generation of hashset with hash values for each file's metadata
   - Determination of file changes based on hash comparison

**Potential Applications:**

   - File version control systems
   - Data backup and synchronization services
   - Security monitoring for file integrity

**Problems Solved:**

   - Efficient detection of file changes in a shared environment
   - Ensuring data integrity and security on file hosting services

**Benefits:**

   - Improved file management and version control
   - Enhanced security measures for shared files
   - Streamlined data synchronization processes

**Commercial Applications:**

   - Data backup and recovery services
   - Cloud storage providers
   - Cybersecurity companies offering file monitoring solutions

**Prior Art:**

   - Prior research on file change detection algorithms
   - Existing methods for monitoring file integrity in networked environments

**Frequently Updated Research:**

   - Ongoing developments in file synchronization technologies
   - Advancements in data security measures for cloud storage services

Questions about File Change Detection: 1. How does the client-side device determine if a file has changed based on the hash comparison? 2. What are the potential implications of false positives or false negatives in file change detection algorithms?

Original Abstract Submitted

the detection of a change to a shared file of a file hosting service communicating only through a file transfer protocol is performed on a client-side device. the client-side device obtains the metadata of each shared file of a directory at each periodic interval. the client-side device generates a hashset for the directory at each periodic interval where the hashset includes a hash value for each file's metadata. if the hash of a file at a current time t is contained in the immediately preceding hashset at t−1 but not in the hashset of t−2 then the file is determined to have changed.