Application and method for transferring information between platforms

• US 7,783,674 B2
• Filed: 07/06/2005
• Issued: 08/24/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Henrickson, David L., Eisen, Eiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Rones; Charles
• Assistant Examiner(s): Khoshnoodi; Fariborz
• Application Number:
  US11/175,871
• Publication Number:
  US 20060010436A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,875 Days
• Field of Search: 707/517, 707/526, 707/10, 707/203, 707/1, 707/103, 707/204
• US Class Current: 707/802
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/63 Image based installation; Cloning; Build to order
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4451 User profiles; Roaming
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44552 Conflict resolution, i.e. enabling coexistence of conflicting executables
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99955 Archiving or backup

Abstract

A method and apparatus for relocating application programs, settings, menus, files and documents from a source computer to a target computer. The method and apparatus function properly regardless of whether the source and target computers have the same hardware or operating system. The method includes scanning the source and target machines for all applications programs, settings, menus, files, and documents in order to create a relocation strategy. The relocation strategy is created in view of pre-programmed selection rules or selection rules created by the user. The strategy is then implemented by copying, replacing or merging data from the source machine to the target machine.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

transferring information between a source computer and a target computer, wherein the information on the source computer includes an information item, the information item comprising a first set of sub-items each representing settings on the source computer to configure an aspect of a plurality of aspects of the source computer;

wherein each setting on the source computer has a type comprising at least one of hardware settings used to configure hardware on the source computer, user specific settings input by a user of the source computer or software specific settings used to configure a software application on the source computer, and the target computer comprising a second set of sub-items each representing settings on the target computer to configure an aspect of the plurality of aspects of the target computer;

the transferring comprising;

receiving at the target computer, at least one sub-item from the first set of sub-items in the source computer;

at the target computer, determining the type of the received sub-item on the source computer; and

at the target computer determining whether a sub-item from said first set is referenced in a repository database stored on the target computer, wherein the repository database specifies actions with respect to referenced sub-items;

selectively replacing a selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item, while leaving one or more sub-items in the second set of sub-items unchanged, the selectively replacing being based on the determined type of the received sub-item,

wherein;

the selected sub-item configures the same aspect of the plurality of aspects as the received sub-item;

when the sub-item from the first set is referenced in the repository database, selectively replacing comprises taking the actions specified by said repository database; and

when the sub-item from the first set is not referenced in the repository database, selectively replacing comprises;

when the received sub-item has a type comprising hardware settings, not replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item,

when the received sub-item has a type comprising user specific settings, replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item, and

when the received sub-item has a type comprising software specific settings, replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item when a software application from the source computer associated with the received sub-item is transferred to the target computer, and not replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item when the software application is not transferred to the target computer.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said information items comprise data items.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said sub-items comprise menus.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said sub-items comprise directories.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said sub-items comprise hardware settings.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said sub-items comprise software settings.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said sub-items comprise a plurality of applications.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the selectively replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item further comprises:

analyzing scripts associated with said first set of sub-items, and said selectively replacing is carried out based upon the analyzed scripts.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the selectively replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item further comprises:

comparing a version number associated with a sub-item on said source computer with a version number associated with corresponding sub-element on said target computer; and

carrying out said selectively replacing based upon comparing the version numbers.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein said source computer and said target computer are electrically connected.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein said source computer and said target computer are connected through an intermediate instrumentality.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said intermediate instrumentality comprises the Internet.

13. A computer system comprising:

a source computer, wherein the information on the source computer includes an information item, the information item comprising a first set of sub-items each representing settings on the source computer to configure an aspect of a plurality of aspects of the source computer, wherein each setting on the source computer has a type comprising at least one of hardware settings used to configure hardware on the source computer, user specific settings input by a user of the source computer or software specific settings used to configure a software application on the source computer;

a target computer comprising a second set of sub-items each representing settings to configure an aspect of the plurality of aspects of the target computer;

the target computer for receiving at least one sub-item from the first set of sub-items, wherein the received sub-item comprises one of the hardware settings, the user specific settings or the software specific settings,

wherein;

the type of the received sub-item on the source computer is identified at the target computer a selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items is selectively replaced at the target computer with the received sub-item, while leaving one or more sub-items in the second set of sub-items unchanged, based on the identified type of the received sub-item;

the selected sub-item configures the same aspect of the plurality of aspects as the received sub-item;

target computer determines whether a sub-item from said first set is referenced in a repository database stored on the target computer, wherein the repository database specifies actions with respect to referenced sub-items;

when the sub-item from the first set is referenced in the repository database, the selected sub-item is selectively replaced by taking the actions specified by said repository database; and

when the sub-item from the first set is not referenced in the repository database, the selected sub-item is selectively replaced by;

when the received sub-item has a type comprising hardware settings, then not replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item, when the received sub-item has a type comprising user specific settings, then replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item, and

when the received sub-item has a type comprising software specific settings, then replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item when a software application from the source computer associated with the received sub-item is transferred to the target computer, and not replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item when the software application is not transferred to the target computer.

14. The computer system of claim 13, wherein said sub-items comprise menus.

15. The computer system of claim 13, wherein said sub-items comprise directories.

16. The computer system of claim 13, wherein said sub-items comprise settings.

17. The computer system of claim 13, wherein, when the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items is selectively replaced at the target computer with the received sub-item, scripts associated with said first set of sub-items are analyzed, and the selected sub-item is replaced based upon the analyzed scripts.

18. The computer system of claim 13, wherein, when the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items is selectively replaced at the target computer with the received sub-item,

a version number associated with a sub-item on said source computer is compared with a version number associated with corresponding sub-element on said target computer;

and

the selected sub-item is replaced based upon the comparing of the version numbers.

19. A computer-readable storage medium encoded with computer-readable instructions which, when executed by at least one processor, perform a method comprising:

receiving information from a source computer at a target computer, wherein the information on the source computer includes an information item, the information item comprising a first set of sub-items each representing settings on the source computer to configure an aspect of a plurality of aspects of the source computer;

wherein each setting on the source computer has a type comprising at least one of hardware settings used to configure hardware on the source computer, user specific settings input by a user of the source computer or software specific settings used to configure a software application on the source computer, and the target computer comprising a second set of sub-items each representing settings on the target computer to configure an aspect of the plurality of aspects of the target computer;

wherein the receiving comprises;

receiving at the target computer, at least one sub-item from the first set of sub-items in the source computer;

the method further comprises;

at the target computer, determining the type of the received sub-item on the source computer; and

at the target computer;

determining whether a sub-item from the first set is referenced in a repository database stored on the target computer, wherein the repository database specifies actions with respect to referenced sub-items;

selectively replacing a selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item, while leaving one or more sub-items in the second set of sub-items unchanged, the selectively replacing being based on the determined type of the received sub-item,

wherein;

the selected sub-item configures the same aspect of the plurality of aspects as the received sub-item;

when the sub-item from the first set is referenced in the repository database, selectively replacing comprises taking the actions specified by the repository database; and

when the sub-item from the first set is not referenced in the repository database, selectively replacing comprises;

when the received sub-item has a type comprising hardware settings, not replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item,

when the received sub-item has a type comprising user specific settings, replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item, and

when the received sub-item has a type comprising software specific settings, replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item when a software application from the source computer associated with the received sub-item is transferred to the target computer, and not replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item when the software application is not transferred to the target computer.

20. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 19, wherein the selectively replacing the selected sub-item from the second set of sub-items with the received sub-item further comprises:

comparing a version number associated with a sub-item on the source computer with a version number associated with corresponding sub-element on the target computer; and

carrying out the selectively replacing based upon comparing the version numbers.