Patent ID: 8818971

Claim:
A computer-implemented method for deleting non-key values from an index distributed over a plurality of computing devices, the method comprising: maintaining, in a memory, a non-key master list that includes the non-key values that are stored on each of the plurality of computing devices; receiving a list of non-key values to delete; intersecting, by one or more processors, the list of non-key values to delete with the non-key master list; creating a first delete list for a first one of the plurality of computing devices and a second delete list for a second one of the plurality of computing devices based on the intersecting, the first delete list including non-key values to be deleted that are stored on the first computing device and the second delete list including non-key values to be deleted that are stored on the second computing devices; transmitting the first delete list to the first computing device and the second delete list to the second computing device; and updating the non-key master list based on the list of non-key values to delete.