US 11,240,190 B2Granted

Social network communities

Assigneesalesforce.com, inc.

InventorsSanjaya Lai, Aditya Sesha Kuruganti, Kedar Doshi

Life of this patent

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Abstract

Disclosed are methods, apparatus, systems, and computer-readable storage media for providing access to communities of users in an online social network. In some implementations, a server is configured to identify a user identity (ID), received from a computing device, as one of a plurality of first user identities (IDs) of first users belonging to a first community maintained on behalf of a first organization by a social networking system. The computing device can then be provided access to the first community. When a request to access a second community maintained on behalf of a second organization is received from the computing device, the user ID can be identified as one of a plurality of second user IDs of second users belonging to the second community. The computing device can then be provided access to the second community.

Claims20

Dependent claims

An enterprise social networking system for providing restricted communities comprising internal communities for collaboration with users inside of an organization and external communities for collaboration with users outside of an organization, the enterprise social networking system comprising:

a database system implemented using a server system comprising one or more hardware processors, the database system configurable to cause:
identifying a first user associated with a computing device as one of a set of internal users who are inside of a first organization and are members of an internal community maintained on behalf of the first organization using a database;
providing, to the computing device, a first level of access to the internal community responsive to identifying the first user as one of the set of internal users, the first level of access permitting the computing device to access first files stored in a database in association with the internal community and permitting the computing device to access a first forum providing one or more organized discussions associated with the internal community, the first forum maintained for the internal community using a database;
identifying the first user as a member of an external community maintained on behalf of the first organization using a database, the external community membership further comprising an external user who is outside of the first organization;
providing, to the computing device, a second level of access to the external community responsive to identifying the first user as a member of the external community, the second level of access permitting the computing device to access second files stored in a database in association with the external community and permitting the computing device to access a second forum providing one or more organized discussions associated with the external community, the second forum maintained for the external community using a database, the second level of access being restricted with respect to the first level of access, the second level of access restricting the external user from at least:
being a community owner, creating a new community, following in the enterprise social networking system one or more designated people who can be followed according to the first level of access, seeing a public forum, seeing a public or moderated community, seeing a public file, seeing or searching a company directory, seeing the internal community, accessing the first files, and accessing an internal user profile;
and
identifying the first level of access and the second level of access using one or more data objects in a database.

5 more elements

A computer program product comprising computer-readable program code capable of being executed by one or more processors when retrieved from a non-transitory computer-readable medium, the program code comprising instructions configurable to cause:

identifying a first user associated with a computing device as one of a set of internal users who are inside of a first organization and are members of an internal community maintained on behalf of the first organization using a database;
providing, to the computing device, a first level of access to the internal community responsive to identifying the first user as one of the set of internal users, the first level of access permitting the computing device to access first files stored in a database in association with the internal community and permitting the computing device to access a first forum providing one or more organized discussions associated with the internal community, the first forum maintained for the internal community using a database;
identifying the first user as a member of an external community maintained on behalf of the first organization using a database, the external community membership further comprising an external user who is outside of the first organization;
providing, to the computing device, a second level of access to the external community responsive to identifying the first user as a member of the external community, the second level of access permitting the computing device to access second files stored in a database in association with the external community and permitting the computing device to access a second forum providing one or more organized discussions associated with the external community, the second forum maintained for the external community using a database, the second level of access being restricted with respect to the first level of access, the second level of access restricting the external user from at least:
being a community owner, creating a new community, following in an enterprise social networking system one or more designated people who can be followed according to the first level of access, seeing a public forum, seeing a public or moderated community, seeing a public file, seeing or searching a company directory, seeing the internal community, accessing the first files, and accessing an internal user profile;
and
identifying the first level of access and the second level of access using one or more data objects in a database.

4 more elements

A method comprising:

identifying a first user associated with a computing device as one of a set of internal users who are inside of a first organization and are members of an internal community maintained on behalf of the first organization using a database;
providing, to the computing device, a first level of access to the internal community responsive to identifying the first user as one of the set of internal users, the first level of access permitting the computing device to access first files stored in a database in association with the internal community and permitting the computing device to access a first forum providing one or more organized discussions associated with the internal community, the first forum maintained for the internal community using a database;
identifying the first user as a member of an external community maintained on behalf of the first organization using a database, the external community membership further comprising an external user who is outside of the first organization;
providing, to the computing device, a second level of access to the external community responsive to identifying the first user as a member of the external community, the second level of access permitting the computing device to access second files stored in a database in association with the external community and permitting the computing device to access a second forum providing one or more organized discussions associated with the external community, the second forum maintained for the external community using a database, the second level of access being restricted with respect to the first level of access, the second level of access restricting the external user from at least:
being a community owner, creating a new community, following in an enterprise social networking system one or more designated people who can be followed according to the first level of access, seeing a public forum, seeing a public or moderated community, seeing a public file, seeing or searching a company directory, seeing the internal community, accessing the first files, and accessing an internal user profile;
and
identifying the first level of access and the second level of access using one or more data objects in a database.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 16/256,165Filed 24 Jan 2019 · continuation
Priority: 23 Mar 2012
Published: US 2019/0158452 A123 May 2019
Granted: 1 Feb 2022
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification6 codes

H04L 51/52
User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail: for…
G06Q 10/10
Administration; Management: office automation; Time management
G06Q 10/40
Administration; Management: business processes related to social networking or social networking services
H04L 12/1818
For computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms: conference organisation arrangements, e.g. handling schedules, setting up parameters needed by nodes to…

Family

Application61/614,832Us provisional application · filed 23 Mar 2012
Application13/804,246Parent of this continuation · filed 14 Mar 2013
Application15/711,249Parent of this continuation · filed 21 Sep 2017
US 9,832,156 B2Parent of this continuation · filed 28 Nov 2017
US 2019/0158452 A1Pre-grant publication · published 23 May 2019
US 10,218,667 B2Parent of this continuation
US 2013/0254397 A1Published application
US 2018/0109485 A1Published application
US 11,240,190 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.