Patent ID: 7630985

Claim:
A data server which partially constitutes a data management system in cooperation with another data server connected via a network, the data server comprising: a data management section to store a data item; a user authentication section that performs user authentication; a searching section that searches the data management section for a data item requested by a client when a data request is received from a the client; a data providing section to provide the data item requested by the client to the client when the requested data item is found in the data management section; a redirect section that, when the data item requested by the client is not found in the data management section, detects a data server which stores the data item requested by the client in the data management system, receives temporary authentication information from the data server, and sends information to identify the data item requested by the client in the data server and the temporary authentication information to the client; a redirect authentication section that, when a data request is received from a client for which user authentication has not been completed, accents the data request without causing the client to perform a process for user authentication when the redirect authentication section determines that the data request includes the temporary authentication information which is stored in the temporary authentication storage section; a user information receiving section that receives, from the other data server, user identification information of a data-requesting user; and a user information storage section that stores the user identification information received from the other data server in the temporary authentication information storage section in correspondence to temporary authentication information; and wherein the redirect authentication section identifies, when the data request from the client includes temporary authentication information stored in the temporary authentication information storage section, user identification information corresponding to the stored temporary authentication information, and determines that the data request is from the client corresponding to the user identification information.