Content search mechanism that uses a deterministic finite automata (DFA) graph, a DFA state machine, and a walker process

A method comprising:

• parsing one or more regular expressions describing patterns for searching an input stream for at least one pattern;
• generating a data structure, from the one or more regular expressions parsed, to enable a search, by at least one processor, for a match of the at least one pattern in the input stream, by traversing, with characters from the input stream, the data structure generated;
• including at least one node having an intelligent node structure in the data structure generated, the intelligent node structure providing information on a next node to traverse and enabling the at least one processor to perform at least one task upon reaching the at least one node and to qualify the match, of the at least one pattern in the input stream, determined at the intelligent node, by comparing at least one offset, of at least one character of the at least one pattern in the input stream, to a given range limit;
• and
• storing the data structure generated in at least one memory operatively coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the data structure generated is a Deterministic Finite Automata (DFA) graph.

A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a sequence of instructions which, when loaded and executed by a processor, causes the processor to:

• parse one or more regular expressions describing patterns for searching an input stream for at least one pattern;
• generate a data structure, from the one or more regular expressions parsed, to enable a search, by at least one processor, for a match of the at least one pattern in the input stream, by traversing, with characters from the input stream, the data structure generated;
• include at least one node having an intelligent node structure in the data structure generated, the intelligent node structure providing information on a next node to traverse and enabling the at least one processor to perform at least one task upon reaching the at least one node and to qualify validity of the match, of the at least one pattern in the input stream, determined at the at least one node, by comparing at least one offset, of at least one character of the at least one pattern matching in the input stream, to a given range limit;
• and
• store the data structure generated in at least one memory operatively coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the data structure generated is a Deterministic Finite Automata (DFA) graph.

A method comprising:

• parsing one or more regular expressions describing patterns for searching an input stream for at least one pattern;
• generating a data structure, from the one or more regular expressions parsed, to enable a search, by at least one processor, for a match of the at least one pattern in the input stream, by traversing, with characters from the input stream, the data structure generated;
• including at least one node having an intelligent node structure in the data structure generated, the intelligent node structure providing information on a next node to traverse and enabling the at least one processor to perform at least one task upon reaching the at least one node by storing commands packed as a stream of instructions representing commands for interpretation by a walker process being executed by the at least one processor for the traversing, by storing commands compiled into processor-native binaries for direct execution by the at least one processor as a subroutine in the walker process, or by storing a combination thereof;
• and
• storing the data structure generated in at least one memory operatively coupled to the at least one processor.

A method comprising:

• parsing one or more regular expressions describing patterns for searching an input stream for at least one pattern;
• generating a data structure, from the one or more regular expressions parsed, to enable a search, by at least one processor, for a match of the at least one pattern in the input stream, by traversing, with characters from the input stream, the data structure generated;
• including at least one node having an intelligent node structure in the data structure generated, the intelligent node structure providing information on a next node to traverse and enabling the at least one processor to perform at least one task upon reaching the at least one node and wherein the intelligent node structure enables storing of offsets of characters in the input stream to enable determination and reporting of a start or end offset of the at least one pattern matching in the input stream by a walker process executed by the at least one processor for the traversing;
• and
• storing the data structure generated in at least one memory operatively coupled to the at least one processor.

A method comprising:

• parsing one or more regular expressions describing patterns for searching an input stream for at least one pattern;
• generating a data structure, from the one or more regular expressions parsed, to enable a search, by at least one processor, for a match of the at least one pattern in the input stream, by traversing, with characters from the input stream, the data structure generated;
• including at least one node having an intelligent node structure in the data structure generated, the intelligent node structure providing information on a next node to traverse and enabling the at least one processor to perform at least one task upon reaching the at least one node and wherein the intelligent node structure associates at least one command, with the at least one node, enabling the at least one processor to store a start offset, end offset, and identifier, associated with a regular expression of the one or more regular expressions, in a report data structure based on the at least one pattern matching in the input stream upon reaching the at least one node;
• and
• storing the data structure generated in at least one memory operatively coupled to the at least one processor.