System and method for building a run-time image from components of a software program

• US 20050278579A1
• Filed: 08/02/2005
• Published: 12/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Beachman, Bruce J., Hill, Timothy J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,484,223 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 714/38
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/63 Image based installation; Cloning; Build to order
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management

Abstract

A system and method for generating run-time images of a software program, such as an operating system, builds a run-time image from a plurality of selected software program components, each of which is a discrete packet of functionality. Each component not only specifies its properties and resources but also provides script for its own build behavior. To build the run-time image, a configuration is constructed to include instances of selected components, and the scripts of the instances are invoked such that each component instance builds itself into the run-time image. A general framework is provided for managing the components and the build process. A prototyping scheme is provided for a component to inherit its properties, resources, and script from other components. Each component may also specify dependency data in terms of component inclusion in the run-time image and the orders in which the components are built into the run-time image. A versioning scheme facilitates the tracking of various revisions and upgrades of components.

Claims

1. A method for building a run-time image of a software program, comprising:

providing a plurality of software program components, each software program component having description data defining properties and resources thereof and providing information defining associated script associated with said each software program component for building said each software program component into the run-time image, the resources of said each software program component including binary code files for providing functionality of said each software program component;

selecting software program components from the plurality of software program components;

generating an instance of each selected software program component, the instance including the script defined by said each selected software program component for building said each selected software program component into the run-time image;

combining instances of the selected software program components in a configuration of the run-time image; and

creating the run-time image by invoking the script included in each of the instances in the configuration to build the corresponding selected software program component into the run-time image, including copying the binary code files of the corresponding selected software program component into the run-time image.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the software program is an operating system.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the script associated with each of the plurality of software program component for building said each software program component includes instructions for copying binary files required by said each software program component into the run-time image and setting parameters for said each software program component.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating an instance of each selected software program component includes:

identifying an inheritance chain for said each selected software program component, the inheritance chain containing a plurality of software program components;

collapsing properties and resources of the software program components in the inheritance chain to form properties and resources of the instance; and

coalescing scripts of the software program components in the inheritance chain to form the script of the instance for building said each selected software program component into the run-time image.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the inheritance chain ends with a default prototype component provided by a platform selected for the run-time image, the default prototype component having script defining default build behavior for software program components belonging to the platform.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

including script for dependency management in the configuration; and

invoking the script for dependency management to check dependencies among the selected software program components.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the script for dependency management includes instructions to automatically include a non-selected software program component required by a selected software program component.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

presenting a user interface for receiving user inputs for selecting the software program components for inclusion in the configuration.

9. A method comprising:

basing component dependency on a group of components, wherein the group defines a dependency type; and

overriding the dependency type if the component specifies any other dependency type.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the dependency type includes the following:

all dependency, zero or one dependency, and none dependency.

11. The method of claim 9 further comprising processing a registry key of the component.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the component dependency type is used in building a run-time image based on inclusion and exclusion of components.

13. A component management interface that generates the method of claim 9.

14. A method comprising:

specifying a list of secondary objects logically contained in a primary object; and

classifying the primary object as to a versioning type.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein secondary objects are resource objects and the primary object is a component object.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein the versioning type is one of the following:

immutable, revisable, or upgradeable.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising providing a version specific identifier to the primary object.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising providing a version independent identifier to the primary object, if the versioning type is upgradeable.

19. The method of claim 17 further comprising providing one or more of the following:

revision value, revision date, released property, and version property.