Patent ID: 8195706

Claim:
A method comprising: receiving, from a requestor, a request for a configuration item graph visualization, the request including an identifier of at least one focus configuration item represented in a configuration management database, the at least one focus configuration item being a configuration item from which to generate a configuration item graph visualization, the configuration management database storing data representative of configuration items on a data storage device; retrieving, from the configuration management database, configuration item data of configuration items related to the focus configuration item, the data including configuration item identifiers; executing a process, on at least one processing core of at least one computer processor for each retrieved configuration item identifier to: receive a configuration item identifier; prior to retrieving data of a configuration item: checking a cache for existence of node and edge XML representations needed to fulfill the configuration item graph visualization request with regard to the received configuration item identifier; and when node and edge XML representations needed for the configuration item exist in the cache, retrieving the cached node and edge XML representations without rebuilding the node and edge XML representations; for node and edge XML representations not present in the cache that are needed to fulfill the configuration item graph visualization request: retrieve data of the configuration item from the configuration management database as a function of the received configuration item identifier; build a node XML representation of the configuration item and an edge XML representation of how the configuration item is related to a parent configuration item, when there is such a relation; and cache the built node and edge XML representations; aggregating the node XML and edge XML representations retrieved from the cache and as built into a single XML document; translating the single XML document into a markup language document capable of being rendered in a graphical user interface as a configuration item graph visualization with each node XML represented as a graphical node and the edge XML representation graphically representing relations between graphical nodes; transmitting the markup language document to the requestor.