SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ANALYZING CHANGES IN APPLICATION CODE FROM A PREVIOUS INSTANCE OF THE APPLICATION CODE

• US 20110283270A1
• Filed: 05/11/2010
• Published: 11/17/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: smartShift Technologies GmbH (Cambridge Technology Enterprises Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: smartShift Technologies GmbH (Cambridge Technology Enterprises Ltd.)
• Inventors: Gass, Albrecht, Flach, Oliver, Faradouris, Nikolaos, Hetges, Stefan
• Granted Patent: US 8,572,566 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management

Abstract

The present application is directed towards systems and methods for analyzing and transforming changes in customized code of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) application from a previous instance of transformation of the customized code of the ERP application. Customized functions, objects, databases, and code of the application may be analyzed to identify changes in application code from a previous instance of the application code. Changed code may be further analyzed to determine which portions violate a predetermined set of coding rules of the application. Portions that violate the predetermined set of coding rules may be enumerated by one of developer, time, or type of object. Transformation rules may be applied to the code that violates the predetermined coding rules to generate a transformed instance of the application that is in conformance with the coding rules.

Claims

1. A method for analyzing changes in customized code of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) application from a previous instance of transformation of the customized code of the ERP application, the method comprising:

(a) identifying, by an automated maintenance tool, from an instance of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) application previously transformed by the automated maintenance tool, changes to customized code of the ERP application since a previous execution of transformation;

(b) determining, by the automated maintenance tool, which portions of changes to the customized code violate a predetermined set of coding rules, the predetermined set of coding rules used by the automated maintenance tool to generate the instance of the previously transformed ERP application; and

(c) enumerating, by the automated maintenance tool, the portions of changes to the customized code that violate the predetermined set of coding rules by one of developer, time or type of object.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein step (a) further comprises identifying user defined application objects in the changes to the customized code.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein step (b) further comprises determining which objects changed in the customized code.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising determining one or more times of change to each of the changed objects and one or more developers that changed each of the changed objects.

5. The method of claim 1, comprising interfacing, by the automated maintenance tool, to a version control system of the ERP application.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising identifying the changes to the customized code via a change package provided by the version control system.

7. The method of claim 1, determining, by the automated maintenance tool, a number of changes that violate the predetermined set of rules over time.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying, by a user interface of the automated maintenance tool, training information based on a developer'"'"'s changes to the portions of the changed code that violate the predetermined set of coding rules.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein step (b) further comprises detecting, by the automated maintenance tool, existence of one or more obsolete programming constructs in the changes to the customized code.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein step (b) further comprises detecting, by the automated maintenance tool, deviation from one or more naming conventions in the changes to the customized code.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising transforming, by the automated maintenance tool, the changes to the customized code to conform to the predetermined set of coding rules and to provide a second transformed ERP application.

12. A system for analyzing changes in customized code of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) application from a previous instance of transformation of the customized code of the ERP application, the system comprising:

a collection agent of an automated maintenance tool identifying, from an instance of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) application previously transformed by the automated maintenance tool, changes to customized code of the ERP application since a previous execution of transformation;

an analysis agent of the automated maintenance tool determining which portions of changes to the customized code violate a predetermined set of coding rules, the predetermined set of coding used by the automated maintenance tool to generate the instance of the previously transformed ERP application; and

wherein the automated maintenance tool enumerates the portions of changes to the customized code that violate the predetermined set of coding rules by one of developer, time or type of object.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the collection agent identifies user defined application objects in the changes to the customized code.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the collection agent determines which objects changed in the customized code.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein one of the collection agent or the analysis agent determines one or more times of changes to each of the changed objects and one or more developers that changed each of the changed objects.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the automated maintenance tool interfaces to a version control system of the ERP application.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the collection agent identifies the changes to the customized code via a change package provided by the version control system.

18. The system of claim 12, wherein the analysis agent determines a number of changes that violate the predetermined set of rules over time.

19. The system of claim 12, wherein the automated maintenance tool displays, via a user interface, training information based on a developer'"'"'s changes to the portions of the changed code that violate the predetermined set of coding rules.

20. The system of claim 12, wherein the analysis agent detects existence of one or more obsolete programming constructs in the changes to the customized code.

21. The system of claim 12, wherein the analysis agent detects deviation from one or more naming conventions in the changes to the customized code.

22. The system of claim 12, wherein a transformer of the automated maintenance tool transforms the changes to the customized code to conform to the predetermined set of coding rules and to provide a second transformed ERP application.