Method and apparatus to guarantee configuration settings in remote data processing systems

• US 20060230263A1
• Filed: 04/12/2005
• Published: 10/12/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/12/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Polozoff, Alexandre, Bhogal, Kulvir Singh
• Application Number:
  US11/104,258
• Publication Number:
  US 20060230263A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/100
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes

Abstract

An improved method, apparatus, and computer instructions for updating configuration settings. In response to starting an application server in the data processing system, a messaging system is contacted to determine whether a configuration change occurred while the application server was unavailable. Configuration data is received to implement the configuration change in response to a determination that the configuration change occurred, wherein the configuration setting for the application server are updated.

Claims

1. A method in a data processing system for updating configuration settings, the method comprising:

responsive to starting an application server in the data processing system, contacting a messaging system to determine whether a configuration change occurred while the application server was unavailable to update configuration settings; and

responsive to a determination that the configuration change occurred, receiving configuration data to implement the configuration change, wherein the configuration setting for the application server are updated.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the messaging system is a durable subscription messaging system.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuration data is located on a remote data processing system.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the data processing system is part of a server cluster.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the contacting step comprises:

sending an indication that the application server is present to the messaging system, wherein the messaging system returns a message indicating that the configuration change has occurred while the application server was inactive.

6. A method in a data processing system for updating configuration settings in an application server in a server cluster, the method comprising:

responsive to a presence of a configuration change, sending messages to a set of application servers;

responsive to an inability to deliver a message to the application server, saving the message to form a saved message;

responsive to subsequently detecting a presence of the application server, sending the saved message to the application server; and

sending configuration data to the application server, wherein the application server uses the configuration data to perform the configuration change, wherein the configuration settings in the application server are updated.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the method is performed by a deployment manager.

8. A computer program product in a computer readable medium for updating configuration settings, the computer program product comprising:

first instructions, responsive to starting an application server in a data processing system, for contacting a messaging system to determine whether a configuration change occurred while the application server was unavailable to update configuration settings; and

second instructions, responsive to a determination that the configuration change occurred, for receiving configuration data to implement the configuration change, wherein the configuration settings for the application server are updated.

9. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the messaging system is a durable subscription messaging system.

10. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the configuration data is located on a remote data processing system.

11. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the data processing system is part of a server cluster.

12. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the first instructions comprises:

sub instructions for sending an indication that the application server is present to the messaging system, wherein the messaging system returns a message indicating that the configuration change has occurred while the application server was inactive.

13. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the first instructions and the second instructions are executed by a deployment manager.

14. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the data processing system is a server data processing system.