Application restore points

• US 8,332,842 B2
• Filed: 11/14/2008
• Issued: 12/11/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/14/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Bauer, Elizabeth, Chartrand, Doug, Kirkeby, Kevin, Patel, Sanjay A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Khatri, Anil
• Application Number:
  US12/271,123
• Publication Number:
  US 20100125841A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,488 Days
• Field of Search: 717120-122, 717168-178, 709/203
• US Class Current: 717/174
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1433 during software upgrading
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1451 by selection of backup contents
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1469 Backup restoration techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/84 Using snapshots, i.e. a logical point-in-time copy of the data

Abstract

Techniques are disclosed for creating an application restore point when an application is installed or updated and for restoring the application and other elements of a computing system modified by the installation and update processes to a state as they exist at the application restore point. The application restore point captures information about which files are modified, created, or deleted by the installation and update processes. In one embodiment, a user invokes an installer process to install or update the application. When the installer process modifies or creates a file, an original copy of the file, or a reference to the file is placed into the application restore point. To restore the application, files of the computing system having original copies in the application restore point are replaced with the original copies while all new files referred to in the application restore point are deleted.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for creating an application restore point for an application executable on a computing system, comprising:

invoking an installer process configured to apply an install package, wherein the installer process is invoked to perform at least one of;

(i) installing the application, (ii) upgrading the application, (iii) patching the application, and (iv) removing the application;

generating, by operation of a processor, an application restore point data structure configured to store a new component list and an unmodified copy of each of one or more components of the application to be modified when the install package is applied by the installer process;

when the install package is applied by the installer process;

monitoring activity of the installer process in the computing system to identify components;

(i) modified by the installer process, (ii) added by the installer process, and (iii) deleted by the installer process;

for each component of the application identified as modified by the installer process, storing an unmodified copy of the component in the application restore point data structure;

for each component of the application identified as deleted by the installer process, storing a copy of the component in the application restore point data structure; and

for each new component identified as added to the computing system by the installer process, adding a reference to the new component to the new component list; and

storing the new component list in the application restore point data structure.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein each component of the application modified by the installer process is identified using a copy-on-write mechanism, wherein the components are identified using a process ID (PID) associated with the installer process, wherein each component is identified subsequent to the installer process requesting a file system to alter the respective component and prior to the file system effecting the alteration responsive to the request, wherein altering the respective component comprises at least one of:

(i) adding the respective component, (ii) modifying the respective component, and (iii) deleting the respective component; and

wherein the activity of the installer process is monitored by a restore point generator comprising one of;

(i) an application separate from the installer process, and (ii) a predefined component of the installer process.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein one or more of the modified components and the new components added to the computing system are a file stored at a specified location in a file system.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the new component list comprises a list of filenames and a list of path locations of a respective file on the new component list in the computing system.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the modified components or the new components added to the computing system is a registry key, a configuration file setting, and a system setting.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the installer process is configured to access a file system mechanism to identify each component modified by the installer process and to obtain the unmodified copy of each modified component.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the application is an operating system and wherein the install package is an upgrade or patch of the operating system.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

creating a snapshot of the computing system;

obtaining, from the snapshot, each unmodified component of a component modified by applying the install package; and

upon successfully completing the install process, deleting the created snapshot.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

removing at least one entries from the from the new component list corresponding to a component first installed, and subsequently removed, by the installer process as part of the applying the install package.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium containing a program which, when executed, performs an operation for creating an application restore point for an application executable on a computing system, comprising:

invoking an installer process configured to apply an install package to the application, wherein the installer process is invoked to perform at least one of;

(i) installing the application, (ii) upgrading the application, (iii) patching the application, and (iv) removing the application;

generating an application restore point data structure configured to store a new component list and an unmodified copy of each of one or more components of the application to be modified when the install package is applied by the installer process;

when the install package is applied by the installer process;

monitoring activity of the installer process in the computing system to identify components;

(i) modified by the installer process, (ii) added by the installer process, and (iii) deleted by the installer process;

for each component of the application identified as modified by the installer process, storing an unmodified copy of the component in the application restore point data structure;

for each component of the application identified as deleted by the installer process, storing a copy of the component in the application restore point data structure; and

for each new component identified as added to the computing system by the installer process, adding a reference to the new component to the new component list; and

storing the new component list in the application restore point data structure.

11. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein each component of the application modified by the installer process is identified using a copy-on-write mechanism, wherein the components are identified using a process ID (PID) associated with the installer process, wherein each component is identified subsequent to the installer process requesting a file system to alter the respective component and prior to the file system effecting the alteration responsive to the request, wherein altering the respective component comprises at least one of:

(i) adding the respective component, (ii) modifying the respective component, and (iii) deleting the respective component; and

wherein the activity of the installer process is monitored by a restore point generator comprising one of;

(i) an application separate from the installer process, and (ii) a predefined component of the installer process.

12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein one or more of the modified components and the new components added to the computing system are files stored at a specified location in a file system.

13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the new component list comprises a list of filenames and a list of path locations of a respective file on the new component list in the computing system.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein at least one of the modified components or the new components added to the computing system is a registry key, a configuration file setting, and a system setting.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the installer process is configured to access a file system mechanism to identify each component modified by the installer process and to obtain the unmodified copy of each modified component.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the application is an operating system and wherein the install package is an upgrade or patch of the operating system.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the operation further comprises:

creating a snapshot of the computing system;

obtaining, from the snapshot, each unmodified component of a component modified by applying the install package; and

upon successfully completing the installer process, deleting the created snapshot.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the operation further comprises:

removing at least one entries from the from the new component list corresponding to a component first installed, and subsequently removed, by the installer process as part of the applying the install package.

19. A system, comprising:

one or more computer processors; and

a memory storing an application installer process, which, when executed by the one or more computer processors is configured to perform an operation for creating an application restore point for an application executable on the system, the operation comprising;

invoking an installer process configured to apply an install package, wherein the installer process is invoked to perform at least one of;

(i) installing the application, (ii) upgrading the application, (iii) patching the application, and (iv) removing the application;

generating an application restore point data structure configured to store a new component list and an unmodified copy of each of one or more components of the application to be modified when the install package is applied by the installer process;

when the install package is applied by the installer process;

monitoring activity of the installer process in the computing system to identify components;

(i) modified by the installer process, (ii) added by the installer process, and (iii) deleted by the installer process;

for each component of the application modified by the installer process, storing an unmodified copy of the component in the application restore point data structure;

for each component of the application identified as deleted by the installer process, storing a copy of the component in the application restore point data structure; and

for each new component identified as added to the system by the installer process, adding a reference to the new component to the new component list; and

storing the new component list in the application restore point data structure.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein each component of the application modified by the installer process is identified using a copy-on-write mechanism, wherein the components are identified using a process ID (PID) associated with the installer process, wherein each component is identified subsequent to the installer process requesting a file system to alter the respective component and prior to the file system effecting the alteration responsive to the request, wherein altering the respective component comprises at least one of:

(i) adding the respective component, (ii) modifying the respective component, and (iii) deleting the respective component; and

wherein the application installer process comprises one of;

(i) an application separate from the installer process, and (ii) a predefined component of the installer process.

21. The system of claim 19, wherein one or more of the modified components and the new components added to the system are a file stored at a specified location in a file system.

22. The system of claim 19, wherein the new component list comprises a list of filenames and a list of path locations of a respective file on the new component list in the system.