Patent ID: 7370334

Claim:
An information processing method between a first information processing apparatus as one of a plurality of network connected information processing apparatuses and a second information processing apparatus as another one of the plurality of network connected information processing apparatuses, the method comprising: selecting a first plan to handle a user request, the first plan including a sequence of sub-goals, wherein the sub-goals are achieved by a plurality of program-components corresponding thereto, each program-component including authority standard information relating to a component function of whether the program-component communicates with an external device or reads/writes private information in a device; generating an agent containing the plurality of program-components in the first information processing apparatus; storing, in the second information processing apparatus, restriction information used for selecting authorized program-components contained in the agent, of which executions are authorized within the second information processing apparatus, the restriction information including at least one of a creation source, an authentication source, quality of a program-component capable of running on the second information processing apparatus, authority standard by which the program-components are authorized, and processing content performed by the program-component; transferring the restriction information from the second information processing apparatus to the first information processing apparatus before the agent moves from the first information processing apparatus to the second information processing apparatus; modifying, in the first information processing apparatus, the agent by removing at least one program-component from the plurality of program-components, of which execution is not authorized within the second information processing apparatus, when the authority standard information does not match the authority standard included in the restriction information transferred from the second information processing apparatus; moving the modified agent from the first information processing apparatus to the second information processing apparatus if the first plan is executable by the modified agent; and selecting a second plan when the first plan is not executable by the modified agent.