I'm already using BackgrounDRb to execute a long-running job on an application, which is ideal because all it needs to do at the end of the job is to e-mail the user telling them the URL to download the results of their query. When they start the job a page telling them to wait for the e-mail is rendered. However, before that stage users will need to do a database search and view the results in the browser, so that they may choose what data they'd like to send to the really long process. That query has taken to running for 2-3 minutes, during which time the browser will time out. I'd like to do something like this:
1. Send the job to a worker whilst rendering the "please wait" message that I currently have. 2. When the job from (1) is complete, have the worker inform the browser so that the user can be re-directed to view the results of their search.
What's the best way of performing step (2)? Would it be some sort of javascript embedded in the "please wait" view that queries the worker, and if so could anyone point me in the direction of an example of how this might be set up? The other thing is that this worker will need access to session to store the id of the models it finds and I'd also have to pass a very large hash of params to it in order for the search to be carried out. Is that possible?
