COMPONENT-BASED SOFTWARE INSTALLATION

• US 20090249328A1
• Filed: 03/27/2008
• Published: 10/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Iyer, Chandrasekharan, Llewellyn, Bryn, Wetherell, Charles
• Granted Patent: US 8,239,855 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/175
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management

Abstract

A system and method for automated management of a multi-component software installation. The software product comprises multiple components that can operate independently, but which may operate better (e.g., with more or different functionality) if able to call another component (a “supplying” component). A persistent data store records the installation status of the components (e.g., as static Boolean values). Each installed component that depends on another component (i.e., can benefit from calling an element of the other component) is coded to compile conditionally, based on whether the supplying component is installed. If installed, the supplying component can be linked at compile time; if the supplying component is not installed, the installed component compiles and runs without the benefit of the supplying component.

Claims

1. An automated method of managing installation of a multi-component software product on a computer system, the method comprising:

during installation of a first component of the software product;

creating a persistent data store, wherein the data store is a component of the software product;

creating entries in the data store for the first component and one or more supplying components of the software product the first component depends on;

setting the entry in the data store for the first component to indicate the first component is installed; and

setting the entries for each said supplying component the first component depends on to indicate said component is not installed;

wherein said data store is examined during compilation of the first component, to determine the installation statuses of the supplying components the first component depends on.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

during installation of a second component of the software product;

setting an entry in the data store for the second component to indicate the second component is installed; and

for each supplying component the second component depends on, other than the data store;

if an entry for said supplying component does not exist in the data store, creating said entry and setting said entry to indicate said component is not installed; and

recompiling the data store.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein one component is dependent on another component if the one component is configured to reference an element of the other component.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

recompiling the data store each time it is modified; and

after said recompiling, when a functional component other than the data store is invoked, automatically recompiling the functional component if said recompiling occurred more recently than a most recent compilation of the functional component.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said data store comprises:

for each component installed on the computer system, a corresponding static constant configured to indicate that the component is installed;

wherein each installed component of the software product that references a supplying component is configured to invoke said corresponding static constant for the supplying component when the installed component is compiled.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein if the corresponding static constant of the supplying component indicates the supplying component is installed, the supplying component is linked during compilation of the installed component.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein if the corresponding static constant of the supplying component does not indicate the supplying component is installed, compilation of the installed component completes without attempting to link the supplying component.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

during uninstallation of a component of the software product, setting an entry in the data store for the component being uninstalled to indicate the component is uninstalled; and

recompiling the data store.

9. A computer readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform a method of managing installation of a multi-component software product on a computer system, the method comprising:

during installation of a first component of the software product;

creating a persistent data store, wherein the data store is a component of the software product;

creating entries in the data store for the first component and one or more supplying components of the software product the first component depends on;

setting the entry in the data store for the first component to indicate the first component is installed; and

setting the entries for each said supplying component the first component depends on to indicate said component is not installed;

wherein said data store is examined during compilation of the first component, to determine the installation statuses of the supplying components the first component depends on.

10. An automated method of managing installation of a multi-component software product on a computer system, the method comprising:

(a) installing a first functional component of the software product, wherein the first functional component comprises references to elements of one or more other functional components of the software product;

(b) configuring a master data store component with an entry indicating the first functional component is installed;

(c) creating a first component-specific data store associated with the first functional component, wherein said first component-specific data store is configured to comprise;

(1) for each of the one or more other functional components, a corresponding entry configured to indicate the installation status of the other functional component; and

(d) during compilation of the first functional component;

(1) accessing the entries in said first component-specific data store; and

(2) for a subset of the one or more other functional components indicated in the entries as being installed, linking referenced elements of the subset of the other functional components.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

(e) repeating (a)-(d) for a second functional component of the software product;

(f) examining said first component-specific data store associated with the first functional component; and

(g) if said first component-specific data store comprises an entry corresponding to the second functional component, configuring said entry to indicate the second functional component is installed.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

(h) recompiling said master data store and said first component-specific data store.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

(e) uninstalling an installed functional component of the software product;

(f) deleting from said master data store an entry corresponding to the uninstalled functional component;

(g) searching one or more component-specific data stores; and

(h) modifying any entries found in the one or more component-specific data stores corresponding to the uninstalled functional component, to indicate that the functional component is uninstalled.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

(i) recompiling said master data store and each of the component-specific data stores in which an entry was modified.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein said (cl) comprises:

setting the installation status for each of the one or more other functional components identified in said master data store to indicate said identified functional component is installed; and

setting the installation status for any of the one or more other functional components not identified in said master data store, to indicate said other functional component is not installed.

16. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

each time a functional component of the software product is to be executed, determining whether said master data store has been compiled more recently than the functional component; and

if said master data store has been compiled more recently than the functional component, recompiling the functional component.

17. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

each time a functional component of the software product is to be executed, determining whether the functional component'"'"'s component-specific data store has been compiled more recently than the functional component; and

if said component-specific data store has been compiled more recently than the functional component, recompiling the functional component.

18. A computer readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform a method of managing installation of a multi-component software product on a computer system, the method comprising:

(a) installing a first functional component of the software product, wherein the first functional component comprises references to elements of one or more other functional components of the software product;

(b) configuring a master data store component with an entry indicating the first functional component is installed;

(c) creating a first component-specific data store associated with the first functional component, wherein said first component-specific data store is configured to comprise;

(1) for each of the one or more other functional components, a corresponding entry configured to indicate the installation status of the other functional component; and

(d) during compilation of the first functional component;

(1) accessing the entries in said first component-specific data store; and

(2) for a subset of the one or more other functional components indicated in the entries as being installed, linking referenced elements of the subset of the other functional components.

19. A computer system configured to execute a multi-component software product, comprising:

a plurality of functional components of the multi-component software product;

a data store component of the multi-component software product, configured to store installation statuses of said functional components;

an installation module configured to;

install a first functional component configured to reference an element of a second functional component; and

record the installation status of the first functional component in said data store component; and

a compiler configured to compile the first functional component by;

examining said data store component;

linking the second functional component if said installation status of the second functional component within the data store component indicates that the second functional component is installed; and

completing compilation of the first functional component without attempting to link the second functional component if said installation status of the second functional component within the data store component indicates that the second functional component is not installed.

20. The computer system of claim 19, wherein the multi-component software product is written in a language that supports automatic dependency checking.