Dynamic handling of multiple software component versions for device management
First Claim
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1. A method for managing versions of a plurality of software components on a network, comprising:
- detecting a version change to a first software component associated with a network device out of the plurality of the software components;
automatically identifying a second software component out of the plurality of the software components that needs to be changed to be compatible with the first software component, wherein the second software component depends on the first software component;
assessing the software dependencies and compatibilities of at least the first and second software components;
downloading upgrades of the first and second software components from a network device;
storing the upgrades of the first and second software components in a computer cache;
a version manager maintaining version information of the upgrades of the first and second software components;
checking the version information of the upgrades of the first and second software components stored in the computer cache;
storing the version manager in the component cache;
wherein the step of assessing the software dependencies and compatibilities is performed by a component manager which is directly connected to the component cache, and reads from the writes to the component cache;
the version manager maintaining the version information of the first and second software components of the network device including requesting the version information from the network device;
the version manager passing the version information to the component manager;
determining whether the component cache contains a current copy of the version manager;
requesting and receiving a current copy of the version manager from the network device; and
retrieving a current copy of the version manager from the component cache.
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Abstract
A method and an apparatus are disclosed for managing multiple software component versions. The method and apparatus detect a version change to one software component on a network. Then, the method and apparatus automatically identify other software components that both need to be changed to remain compatible with the changed software component and also depend on the changed software component.
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Citations
32 Claims
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1. A method for managing versions of a plurality of software components on a network, comprising:
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detecting a version change to a first software component associated with a network device out of the plurality of the software components; automatically identifying a second software component out of the plurality of the software components that needs to be changed to be compatible with the first software component, wherein the second software component depends on the first software component; assessing the software dependencies and compatibilities of at least the first and second software components; downloading upgrades of the first and second software components from a network device; storing the upgrades of the first and second software components in a computer cache; a version manager maintaining version information of the upgrades of the first and second software components; checking the version information of the upgrades of the first and second software components stored in the computer cache; storing the version manager in the component cache; wherein the step of assessing the software dependencies and compatibilities is performed by a component manager which is directly connected to the component cache, and reads from the writes to the component cache; the version manager maintaining the version information of the first and second software components of the network device including requesting the version information from the network device; the version manager passing the version information to the component manager; determining whether the component cache contains a current copy of the version manager; requesting and receiving a current copy of the version manager from the network device; and retrieving a current copy of the version manager from the component cache. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A method for managing versions of a plurality of software components on a network, comprising:
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detecting a version change to a first software component out of the plurality of the software components; automatically identifying a second software component out of the plurality of the software components that needs to be changed to be compatible with the first software component, wherein the second software component depends on the first software component; assessing the software dependencies and compatibilities of at least the first and second upgrades of software components; collecting attributes of the second software component; and automatically manipulating the second software component according to the attributes, wherein the manipulating step further comprises downloading a copy of an upgrade of the second software component and storing it within a component cache; a version manager maintaining version information of upgrades of the first and second software components; storing the upgrades of the first and second software components in a component cache; and storing the version manager in the component cache; wherein the step of assessing the software dependencies and compatibilities is performed by a component manager which is directly connected to the component cache, and reads from and writes to the component cache; the version manager maintaining the version information of the first and second software components of a network device including requesting the version information from the network device; the version manager passing the version information to a component manager; determining whether the component cache contains a current copy of the version manager; and requesting and receiving a current copy of the version manager from the network device; and retrieving a current copy of the version manager from the component cache; - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. An apparatus for managing versions of a plurality of software components on a network, comprising:
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at least one processor and a memory; a user interface; and a processing engine, coupled to the user interface, wherein the processing engine further comprises; an event manager that detects a version change to a first software component out of the plurality of the software components; a component manager that in response obtains version information of first software component from a version manager and automatically identifies an upgrade to a second software component out of the plurality of the software components that needs to be changed to be compatible with the first software component, wherein the second software component depends on the first software component; wherein the component manager automatically downloads the upgrade of the second software component and stores a copy of the upgrade of the second software component in a component cache, wherein the component manager is directly connected to the component cache and reads from and writes to the component cache; a version manager maintaining version information of the upgrade of the second software component of a network device including requesting the version information from the network device; checking the version information of the upgrade of the second software component stored in the component cache; storing the version manager in the component cache; the version manager passing the version information to the component manager; determining whether the component cache contains a current copy of the version manager; requesting and receiving a current copy of the version manager from the network device; and retrieving a current copy of the version manager from the component cache. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A computer-readable medium storing one or more sequences of instructions for managing a plurality of network devices on a network, which instructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to:
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detect a version change to a first software component out of the plurality of the software components; and automatically identify a second software component out of the plurality of the software components that needs to be changed to be compatible with the first software component, wherein the second software component depends on the first software component; assess the software dependencies and compatibilities of at least the first and second upgrades of software components performed by a component manager which is directly connected to the component cache, and reads from and writes to the component cache; download a copy of an upgrade of the second software component; and store a copy of the upgrade of the second software component in a component cache; a version manager maintaining version information of the upgrades of the first and second software components of a network device including requesting the version information from the network device; check the version information of the upgrades of the first and second software components stored in the component cache; and store the version manager in the component cache, pass the version information to the component manager; determine whether the component cache contains a current copy of the version manager;
request and receive a current copy of the version manager from the network device; and
retrieve a current copy of the version manager from the component cache. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25)
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26. An apparatus for managing versions of a plurality of software components on a network, comprising:
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at least one processor and a memory; a user interface means; and a processing means, coupled to the user interface, wherein the processing means further includes; a detection means for detecting a version change to a first software component out of the plurality of the software components; and a component manager means, stored within a component cache, for assessing the software dependencies and compatibilities for upgrades of the plurality of software components wherein the component manager means is directly connected to the component cache, reads from and writes to the component cache, and assesses the software dependencies and compatibilities of the software components; a compatibility verification means for automatically identifying a second software component out of the plurality of the software components that needs to be changed to be compatible with the first software component, wherein the second software component depends on the first software component; a version manager means for maintaining version information of the upgrade of the second software component of a network device including requesting the version information from the network device and passing the version information to the component manager; checking the version information of the upgrade of the second software component stored in the component cache; storing the version manager in the component cache; determining whether the component cache contains a current copy of the version manager; requesting and receiving a current copy of the version manager from the network device; and retrieving a current copy of the version manager from the component cache. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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Specification