SOFTWARE SERVICE NOTIFICATIONS BASED UPON SOFTWARE USAGE, CONFIGURATION, AND DEPLOYMENT TOPOLOGY

• US 20130042230A1
• Filed: 08/11/2011
• Published: 02/14/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Little, Rodney A., Nigul, Leho
• Granted Patent: US 10,067,754 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/64 Retargetable
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57

Abstract

Software configuration information and topological information associated with a group of software program instances installed on at least one computing device are tracked. An available software update is identified for at least one of the group of software program instances. At least one software update suggestion rule that specifies a target software configuration and a target topological dependency to which the available software update applies is evaluated against the tracked software configuration information and topological information. A determination is made as to whether the available software update is targeted to the tracked software configuration information and topological information based upon the evaluation of the at least one software update suggestion rule. A notification of the available software update is provided in response to determining that the available software update is targeted to the tracked software configuration information and topological information.

Claims

1-8. -8. (canceled)

9. A system, comprising:

a memory; and

a processor programmed to;

track, within the memory, software configuration information and topological information associated with a plurality of software program instances installed on at least one computing device;

identify an available software update for at least one of the plurality of software program instances;

evaluate at least one software update suggestion rule that specifies a target software configuration and a target topological dependency to which the available software update applies against the tracked software configuration information and topological information;

determine whether the available software update is targeted to the tracked software configuration information and topological information based upon the evaluation of the at least one software update suggestion rule; and

provide a notification of the available software update in response to determining that the available software update is targeted to the tracked software configuration information and topological information.

10. The system of claim 9, where the processor is further programmed to postpone the notification of the available software update in response to determining that the available software update is not targeted to the tracked software configuration information and topological information.

11. The system of claim 9, where, in being programmed to track the software configuration information and the topological information associated with the plurality of software program instances installed on the at least one computing device, the processor is programmed to:

instruct each of the at least one computing device to send the software configuration information and the topological information in response to any change in at least one of the software configuration information and the topological information; and

receive at least one of changed software configuration information and changed topological information from at least one of the at least one computing device.

12. The system of claim 9, where, in being programmed to track the software configuration information and the topological information associated with the plurality of software program instances installed on the at least one computing device, the processor is programmed to:

query each of the at least one computing device for the software configuration information and the topological information associated with at least one installed instance of the plurality of software program instances; and

receive at least one of changed software configuration information and changed topological information from at least one computing device in response to querying each of the at least one computing device.

13. The system of claim 12, where, in being programmed to query each of the at least one computing device for the software configuration information and the topological information, the processor is programmed to query each of the at least one computing device in response to each expiration of a pre-configured time interval.

14. The system of claim 9, where, in being programmed to identify the available software update for at least one of the plurality of software program instances, the processor is programmed to receive a notification of the available software update from a software update server.

15. The system of claim 9, where, in being programmed to evaluate the at least one software update suggestion rule that specifies the target software configuration and the target topological dependency to which the available software update applies against the tracked software configuration information and topological information, the processor is programmed to, for each of the at least one computing device:

compare the target software configuration with the tracked software configuration information associated with the plurality of software program instances installed on the at least one computing device;

compare the target topological dependency with the tracked topological information associated with each of the plurality of software program instances installed on the at least one computing device; and

determine whether the target software configuration matches the tracked software configuration information and whether the target topological dependency matches the tracked topological information.

16. The system of claim 9, where the at least one software update suggestion rule further specifies a target software usage pattern to which the available software update applies, and where the processor is further programmed to:

track user software usage information associated with the plurality of software program instances installed on the at least one computing device;

evaluate the at least one software update suggestion rule that further specifies the target software usage pattern to which the available software update applies against the tracked user software usage information;

determine whether the available software update is targeted to the user software usage information based upon the evaluation of the at least one software update suggestion rule; and

where, in being programmed to provide the notification of the available software update in response to determining that the available software update is targeted to the tracked software configuration information and topological information, the processor is programmed to provide the notification of the available software update in response to determining that the available software update is targeted to the tracked software configuration information, topological information, and user software usage information.

17. A computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium including computer readable program code, where the computer readable program code when executed on a computer causes the computer to:

track software configuration information and topological information associated with a plurality of software program instances installed on at least one computing device;

identify an available software update for at least one of the plurality of software program instances;

evaluate at least one software update suggestion rule that specifies a target software configuration and a target topological dependency to which the available software update applies against the tracked software configuration information and topological information;

determine whether the available software update is targeted to the tracked software configuration information and topological information based upon the evaluation of the at least one software update suggestion rule; and

provide a notification of the available software update in response to determining that the available software update is targeted to the tracked software configuration information and topological information.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, where the computer readable program code when executed on the computer further causes the computer to postpone the notification of the available software update in response to determining that the available software update is not targeted to the tracked software configuration information and topological information.

19. The computer program product of claim 17, where in causing the computer to track the software configuration information and the topological information associated with the plurality of software program instances installed on the at least one computing device, the computer readable program code when executed on the computer causes the computer to:

instruct each of the at least one computing device to send the software configuration information and the topological information in response to any change in at least one of the software configuration information and the topological information; and

receive at least one of changed software configuration information and changed topological information from at least one of the at least one computing device.

20. The computer program product of claim 17, where in causing the computer to track the software configuration information and the topological information associated with the plurality of software program instances installed on the at least one computing device, the computer readable program code when executed on the computer causes the computer to:

query each of the at least one computing device for the software configuration information and the topological information associated with at least one installed instance of the plurality of software program instances; and

receive at least one of changed software configuration information and changed topological information from at least one computing device in response to querying each of the at least one computing device.

21. The computer program product of claim 20, where in causing the computer to query each of the at least one computing device for the software configuration information and the topological information, the computer readable program code when executed on the computer causes the computer to query each of the at least one computing device in response to each expiration of a pre-configured time interval.

22. The computer program product of claim 17, where in causing the computer to identify the available software update for at least one of the plurality of software program instances, the computer readable program code when executed on the computer causes the computer to receive a notification of the available software update from a software update server.

23. The computer program product of claim 17, where in causing the computer to evaluate the at least one software update suggestion rule that specifies the target software configuration and the target topological dependency to which the available software update applies against the tracked software configuration information and topological information, the computer readable program code when executed on the computer causes the computer to, for each of the at least one computing device:

compare the target software configuration with the tracked software configuration information associated with the plurality of software program instances installed on the at least one computing device;

compare the target topological dependency with the tracked topological information associated with each of the plurality of software program instances installed on the at least one computing device; and

determine whether the target software configuration matches the tracked software configuration information and whether the target topological dependency matches the tracked topological information.

24. The computer program product of claim 17, where the at least one software update suggestion rule further specifies a target software usage pattern to which the available software update applies, and where the computer readable program code when executed on the computer further causes the computer to:

track user software usage information associated with the plurality of software program instances installed on the at least one computing device;

evaluate the at least one software update suggestion rule that further specifies the target software usage pattern to which the available software update applies against the tracked user software usage information;

determine whether the available software update is targeted to the user software usage information based upon the evaluation of the at least one software update suggestion rule; and

where, in causing the computer to provide the notification of the available software update in response to determining that the available software update is targeted to the tracked software configuration information and topological information, the computer readable program code when executed on the computer causes the computer to provide the notification of the available software update in response to determining that the available software update is targeted to the tracked software configuration information, topological information, and user software usage information.