Method and apparatus for performing online application upgrades in a java platform

• US 7,370,322 B1
• Filed: 04/11/2001
• Issued: 05/06/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Oracle America, Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Krishnan, Sanjeev, Mortazavi, Masood, Sharma, Rahul, Matena, Vladimir
• Primary Examiner(s): Dam; Tuan
• Assistant Examiner(s): YIGDALL, MICHAEL J
• Application Number:
  US09/833,845
• Time in Patent Office: 2,582 Days
• Field of Search: 717/168, 717/169, 717/170
• US Class Current: 717/171
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57

Abstract

An invention is disclosed for performing online upgrades using a control module, executed as part of an application, that includes application-specific strategies for the application, yet can be coded using the JAVA programming language. An application is executed that includes an original service module and an original control module. The original control module includes application-specific policies for the application. To upgrade the application, an upgraded control module is generated. Then, the upgraded control module is used to create an upgraded service module. Both the upgraded control module and the upgraded service module can be generated using class files for the original modules, which are loaded from a system repository. In this manner, the original control module and the original service module are upgraded.

Claims

1. A method for performing an online upgrade to a JAVA application, the method comprising:

executing an application on a server without remote client execution, the execution being in a middle-tier between a client browser and databases, the application having an original service module and an original control module, wherein the original control module includes application-specific policies for the application defining application-specific strategies and policies for the application, and the original service module includes actual code for the application;

generating an upgraded control module defining upgraded application-specific policies relative to the original control module, the upgraded control module being defined by upgraded class files loaded from a system repository that is part of the databases, the upgraded control module generated in place while the application is providing online execution services; and

creating an upgraded service module using the upgraded control module, the upgraded service module is generated using upgraded class files for the upgraded service module loaded from the system repository;

upgrading the original control module and original service module while the application is providing online execution services, the upgrading performed in place with no disruption in service, wherein the original control module and the upgraded control module respectively supervise a life cycle of the original control module and the upgraded control module, such that the application-specific strategies and policies for the application are maintained during execution and wherein a recoverable state of the upgraded control module is maintained in a state server.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the operation of disabling requests to the original service module.

3. A method as recited in claim 2, further comprising the operation of enabling requests to the upgraded service module.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the operation of upgrading a child application using the upgraded control module.

5. A method as recited in claim 4, further comprising the operation of passing the application-specific policies to a control module of the child application.

6. A JAVA platform capable of performing online software upgrades, the JAVA platform comprising:

an application being executed on a server without remote client execution, the execution being in a middle-tier between a client browser and databases, the application having an original service module and an original control module, wherein the original control module includes application-specific policies for the application defining application-specific strategies and policies for the application, the original service module includes actual code for the application; and

a system repository that is part of the databases having upgraded class files for the original control module and upgraded class files for the original service module,

wherein the original control module is upgraded by generating an upgraded control module defining upgraded application-specific policies relative to the original control module, the upgraded control module generated in place while the application is providing online execution services, the upgraded control module being defined by upgraded class files loaded from the system repository that is part of the databases, and wherein the original service module is upgraded by creating an upgraded service module using the upgraded control module, the upgraded service module created in place while the application is providing online execution services, the upgraded service module is generated using upgraded class files for the upgraded service module loaded from the system repository, the application providing online execution services when upgrading the original control module and original service module, the upgrading performed in place with no disruption in service, wherein the original control module and the upgraded control module respectively supervise a life cycle of the original control module and the upgraded control module, such that the application-specific strategies and policies for the application are maintained during execution and wherein a recoverable state of the upgraded control module is maintained in a state server.

7. A JAVA platform as recited in claim 6, wherein requests to the original service module are disabled during upgrade of the original service module.

8. A JAVA platform as recited in claim 7, wherein requests to the upgraded service module are enabled during upgrade of the original service module.

9. A JAVA platform as recited in claim 6, wherein the upgraded control module is capable of initiating the upgrade of a child application.

10. A JAVA platform as recited in claim 9, wherein the application-specific policies are passed to a control module of the child application during the upgrade of a child application.