Discovery, qualification, and activation of software add-in components

• US 20070083512A1
• Filed: 10/12/2005
• Published: 04/12/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Quinn, Thomas, Miller, James, Richter, Jeffrey, Pepin, Brian
• Granted Patent: US 7,698,685 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44526 Plug-ins; Add-ons

Abstract

The present invention extends to methods, systems, and computer program products for discovering, qualifying, and activating software add-in components. An add-in components manager discovers one or more add-in components at the computer system are of a specified type of add-in component requested by an application. The add-in component manager qualifies at least one discovered add-in component based on the at least one discovered add-in component satisfying one or more qualification constraints. The one or more qualification constraints are representative of functionality that is to be associated with an add-in component for the add-in component to interoperate with the application in a desired manner. The add-in component manager activates a qualified add-in component in accordance with the one or more qualification constraints for use with the application.

Claims

1. A computer program product for use at a computer system including an add-in component manager, the computer program product for implementing a method for determining if an add-in component available to an application is qualified for use with the application, the computer program product comprising one or more computer-readable storage media having stored thereon computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the computer system to perform the following:

access one or more identified properties for a candidate add-in component that is available to an application, the one or more identified properties indicative of functionality associated with the candidate add-in component, the add-in component represented in an add-in component entry of an add-in component index that also includes add-in component entries for other add-in components of the computer system;

receive a request from the application for add-in components that satisfy one or more qualification constraints, each qualification constraint representing functionality that is to be associated with an add-in component for the add-in component to appropriately operate with the application;

compare the one or more qualification constraints and the one or more identified properties; and

act of determining if the candidate add-in component is qualified for use with the application based on the results of comparing the one or more qualification constraints to the one or more identified properties.

2. The computer program product as recited in claim 1, further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to perform the following prior to comparing the one or more qualification constraints and the one or more identified properties:

receive a request for available add-in components from an application prior to accessing the one or more identified properties for the candidate add-in component, the request including a selectable add-in component property indicative of a specified type of add-in component the application is requesting;

compare the selectable add-in component property to the contents of the add-in component entry for the candidate add-in component;

discover that the candidate add-in component is of the specified type requested by the application based on the results of the comparison; and

indicate to the application that the candidate add-in component is an add-in component of the specified type prior to accessing the one or more identified properties for the candidate add-in component.

3. The computer program product as recited in claim 1, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to receive a request from the application for add-in components that satisfy one or more qualification constraints comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to receive a request for add-in components of a specified type.

4. The computer program product as recited in claim 1, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to determine if the candidate add-in component is qualified for use with the application comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to determine that the candidate add-in component is qualified for use with the application.

5. The computer program product as recited in claim 4, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to determine that the candidate add-in component is qualified for use with the application comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to formulate a list of candidate add-in components that satisfy the qualification constraints based the results of the comparison.

6. The computer program product as recited in claim 1, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to determine if the candidate add-in component is qualified for use with the application comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to determine the candidate add-in component has an entry point protocol that is compatible with the application.

7. The computer program product as recited in claim 1, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to determine if the candidate add-in component is qualified for use with the application comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to determine the candidate add-in component has the appropriate permissions to interoperate with the application.

8. The computer program product as recited in claim 1, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to determine if the candidate add-in component is qualified for use with the application comprises computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to determine the candidate add-in component can run in an application domain requested by the application.

9. The computer program product as recited in claim 1, further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to perform the following:

receive a component selection from the application indicating the that the candidate add-in component is to be activated for use with the application; and

activate the candidate add-in for use with the application in accordance with the qualification constraints.

10. The computer program product as recited in claim 1, further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to perform the following:

receive a request from the candidate add-in that the application satisfy one or more other qualification constraints, each other qualification constraint representing functionality that is to be associated with the application for the application to appropriately operate with the add-in component;

compare the one or more other qualification constraints to properties of the application; and

determining if the application is qualified for use with the candidate add-in component based on the results of comparing the one or more other qualification constraints to the properties of the application.

11. The computer product as recited in claim 1, further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to perform the following:

access the candidate add-in component during installation of the candidate add-in component at the computer system;

analyze the candidate add-in to determine the functionality included in the candidate add-in component;

create the add-in component entry for the candidate add-in component, the add-in component entry including the one or more identified properties indicative of the functionality of the candidate add-in component; and

store the add-in component entry in the add-in component index.

12. The computer product as recited in claim 1, further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to perform the following:

sort add-in component entries of the component index based on a subset of add-in component properties used for add-in discovery.

13. The computer program product as recited in claim 1, wherein the add-in component index is stored in a data repository selected from among a system registry, a shared SQL server, an XML file, an Active Directory server, the Internet and a file system directory.

14. At a computer system including an add-in component manager, a method for determining if an add-in component available to an application is qualified for use with the application, the method comprising:

an act of accessing one or more identified properties for a candidate add-in component that is available to an application, the one or more identified properties indicative of the functionality of the candidate add-in component, the one or more identified properties accessed from an add-in component entry in an add-in component index that also includes add-in component entries for other add-in components of the computer system;

an act of receiving a request from the application for add-in components that satisfy one or more qualification constraints, each qualification constraint representing add-in component functionality that is to be associated with an add-in component for the add-in component to appropriately operate with the application;

an act of comparing the one or more qualification constraints and the one or more identified properties; and

act of determining if the candidate add-in component is qualified for use with the application based on the results of comparing the one or more qualification constraints to the one or more identified properties.

15. A computer program product for use at a computer system including an add-in component manager and an add-in component index, the add-in component index including one or more add-in component entries, each add-in component entry including one or more properties indicative of the functionality of an add-in component at the computer system, the computer program product for implementing a method for loading an add-in component for use with an application based on requested add-in component functionality, the computer program product comprising one or more computer-readable storage media having stored thereon computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the computer system to perform the following:

discover one or more add-in components at the computer system are of a specified type of add-in component requested by an application;

qualify at least one discovered add-in component based on the at least one discovered add-in component satisfying one or more qualification constraints, the one or more qualification constraints representative of functionality that is to be associated with an add-in component for the add-in component to interoperate with the application in a desired manner; and

activate a qualified add-in component in accordance with the one or more qualification constraints for use with the application.

16. The computer program product as recited in claim 15, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to discover one or more add-in components at the computer system are of a specified type of add-in component requested by an application comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to query the add-in component index for add-in component entries having a static property indicative of a specified type of add-in component.

17. The computer program product as recited in claim 15, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to qualify at least one discovered add-in component based on the at least one discovered add-in component satisfying one or more qualification constraints comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to qualify at least one discovered add-in component based on the at least one discovered add-in component having an entry point protocol that is compatible with the application.

18. The computer program product as recited in claim 15, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to qualify at least one discovered add-in component based on the at least one discovered add-in component satisfying one or more qualification constraints comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to qualify at least one discovered add-in component based on the at least one discovered add-in component having appropriate permissions to interoperate with the application.

19. The computer program product as recited in claim 15, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to qualify at least one discovered add-in component based on the at least one discovered add-in component satisfying one or more qualification constraints comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to qualify at least one discovered add-in component based on the at least one discovered add-in component being able to run in an application domain requested by the application.

20. The computer program product as recited in claim 15, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to activate a qualified add-in component in accordance with the one or more qualification constraints for use with the application comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to construct a pipeline between the application and the qualified add-in component.