INTERACTIVE AND VISUAL PLANNING TOOL FOR MANAGING INSTALLS AND UPGRADES

• US 20130055155A1
• Filed: 08/31/2011
• Published: 02/28/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Vmware LLC (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: VMware, Inc. (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: WONG, Karen Natalie, SHUKLA, Manaswi
• Granted Patent: US 9,134,992 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/810
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/453 Help systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45558 Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects

Abstract

A method for generating an upgrade plan for assets included in a virtualized computing environment includes receiving a selection of one or more target assets to receive updates. The method further includes receiving a selection of one or more upgrade packages, determining a first set of target assets that is capable of being upgraded with at least one selected upgrade package, determining a second set of target assets that depend on the first set of target assets, and generating an upgrade plan for the first set of target assets and the second set of target assets.

Claims

1. A method for generating an upgrade plan for assets included in a virtualized computing environment, the method comprising:

receiving a selection of one or more target assets to receive updates;

receiving a selection of one or more upgrade packages;

determining a first set of target assets that is capable of being upgraded with at least one selected upgrade package;

determining a second set of target assets that depend on the first set of target assets; and

generating an upgrade plan for the first set of target assets and the second set of target assets.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a timeline representing a visual layout of the upgrade plan.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein one or more of the target assets comprises a virtual center, a data center, a host computer, or a virtual machine.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a user interface that includes a count for the number of assets that are capable of being upgraded organized by asset type.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a two-tiered selection menu, wherein a selection of an item in a top portion causes corresponding options to be displayed in a bottom portion.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the selection of one or more target assets and/or the selection of one or more upgrade packages is received via the two-tiered selection menu.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the second set of target assets that depend on the first set of target assets is based on a hierarchical tree of the assets in the virtualized computing environment.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving one or more parameters for execution of the upgrade plan, wherein the one or more parameters include at least one of a time to begin execution of the upgrade plan or a time to complete execution of the upgrade plan.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying assets in the virtualized computing environment along a set of concentric rings, wherein each ring is associated with a different asset type.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising displaying a visual indication from a first object associated with a first concentric ring to a second object associated with a second co-centric ring indicating that the second object depends from the first object.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause a computing device to generate an upgrade plan for assets included in a virtualized computing environment, by performing the steps of:

receiving a selection of one or more target assets to receive updates;

receiving a selection of one or more upgrade packages;

determining a first set of target assets that is capable of being upgraded with at least one selected upgrade package;

determining a second set of target assets that depend on the first set of target assets; and

generating an upgrade plan for the first set of target assets and the second set of target assets.

12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, further comprising displaying a timeline representing a visual layout of the upgrade plan.

13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, further comprising displaying a two-tiered selection menu, wherein a selection of an item in a top portion causes corresponding options to be displayed in a bottom portion.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the selection of one or more target assets and/or the selection of one or more upgrade packages is received via the two-tiered selection menu.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, further comprising receiving one or more parameters for execution of the upgrade plan, wherein the one or more parameters include at least one of a time to begin execution of the upgrade plan or a time to complete execution of the upgrade plan.

16. A graphical user interface for a virtualized computing environment for generating an upgrade plan for assets included in the virtualized computing environment, said graphical user interface comprising:

a first portion for receiving a selection of one or more target assets to receive updates; and

a second portion for receiving a selection of one or more upgrade packages, wherein a processor is configured to;

determine a first set of target assets that is capable of being upgraded with at least one selected upgrade package,

determine a second set of target assets that depend on the first set of target assets, and

generate an upgrade plan for the first set of target assets and the second set of target assets.

17. The graphical user interface of claim 16, further comprising a third portion for displaying a timeline representing a visual layout of the upgrade plan.

18. The graphical user interface of claim 16, wherein the first portion and the second portion include a two-tiered selection menu, wherein a selection of an item in a top portion of the two-tiered selection menu causes corresponding options to be displayed in a bottom portion of the two-tiered selection menu.

19. The graphical user interface of claim 18, wherein the selection of one or more target assets and/or the selection of one or more upgrade packages is received via the two-tiered selection menu.

20. The graphical user interface of claim 16, further comprising a parameters portion for receiving one or more parameters for execution of the upgrade plan, wherein the one or more parameters include at least one of a time to begin execution of the upgrade plan or a time to complete execution of the upgrade plan.