Techniques for ephemeral messaging with a message queue

A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause a system to:

• receive an incoming update at a messaging server from a sending messaging client on a sending client device;
• queue the incoming update in an update queue on the messaging server, the update queue associated with a user of the sending messaging client, wherein the messaging server maintains a plurality of delay-action queues in addition to the update queue, each of the delay-action queues specifying a predetermined amount of delay associated with the respective delay-action queues;
• periodically scan chronologically forward through the update queue to discover a delay-action update having a delay-action indicator and a delay-action time indicating a delay from a creation time of the delay-action update when a delay-action indicated by the delay-action indicator is to be performed;
• select one of the delay-action queues whose amount of delay corresponds to the delay-action time;
• move the delay-action update from the update queue to the selected delay-action queue while maintaining a chronological ordering of the selected delay-action queue based on the creation time of the delay-action update;
• and
• set a wake timer for a delay-action worker module specifying a wake time based on the creation time and the delay-action time.

A system comprising:

• a processor;
• memory, coupled to the processor, the memory containing software that, when executed by the processor, cause the system to:
• receive an incoming update at a messaging server from a sending messaging client on a sending client device;
• queue the incoming update in an update queue on the messaging server, the update queue associated with a user of the sending messaging client, wherein the messaging server maintains a plurality of delay-action queues in addition to the update queue, each of the delay-action queues specifying a predetermined amount of delay associated with the respective delay-action queues;
• periodically scan chronologically forward through the update queue to discover a delay-action update having a delay-action indicator and a delay-action time indicating a delay from a creation time of the delay-action update when a delay-action indicated by the delay-action indicator is to be performed;
• select one of the delay-action queues whose amount of delay corresponds to the delay-action time;
• move the delay-action update from the update queue to the selected delay-action queue while maintaining a chronological ordering of the selected delay-action queue based on the creation time of the delay-action update;
• and
• set a wake timer for a delay-action worker module specifying a wake time based on the creation time and the delay-action time.