Repository including exclusion list

• US 8,577,937 B1
• Filed: 08/13/2008
• Issued: 11/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Vmware LLC (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: VMware, Inc. (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Offer, Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Hosain
• Assistant Examiner(s): JOHNSON, JOHNESE T
• Application Number:
  US12/190,995
• Time in Patent Office: 1,910 Days
• Field of Search: 707/821, 717/168, 717/174
• US Class Current: 707/821
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/11 File system administration, e.g. details of archiving or snapshots file system backup G06F11/14
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation

Abstract

Systems and methods of executing and/or provisioning an application in an application specific runtime environment or general runtime environment are disclosed. The application specific runtime environment or general runtime environment are optionally defined by an application environment specification to include a minimal or reduced set of software resources required for execution of the application. These software resources are optionally stored in a resource repository that includes resources associated with a plurality of operating systems and/or executable applications. Various embodiments of the invention include the development of hierarchical resource metadata configured to characterize the various files, packages and file families included in the resource repository. In some embodiments this metadata is used to select between files when provisioning an application specific runtime environment. Various embodiments of the invention include use of an exclusion list to manage conflicts between same named files.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving file information including a file identifier,

using the file identifier to identifying a plurality of files within a resource repository, the plurality of files having same file names;

selecting a first of the plurality of files;

reading repository metadata associated with the selected file, the read repository metadata including an identity of a file package of which the selected file is a member;

identifying a file package of the selected file;

determining if the identified file package is on an installation specific conflict list, wherein the installation specific conflict list includes one or more identities of packages with which there is a conflict because of a file included in an installation of an executable application or an operating system;

if the identified file package is on the installation specific conflict list, then selecting another of the plurality of files and repeating the identifying a file package of the selected file and

the determining if the identified file package is on the installation specific conflict list using an exclusion list to identify any file packages that conflict with the file package of the selected file, the exclusion list including identifiers of file packages within a file family having same file names; and

adding any packages identified using the exclusion list to the installation specific conflict list.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the exclusion list is associated with a particular file family.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the exclusion list includes identifiers of file packages having same file names and different content.

4. The method of claim 1, further including adding the selected file to an application specific runtime environment or a general runtime environment.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving provisioning metadata, and comparing the repository metadata to the provisioning metadata.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising generating the exclusion list using a metadata generator.

7. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium containing instructions for controlling a computer system to be operable to:

receive file information including a file identifier;

use the file identifier to identifying a plurality of files within a resource repository, the plurality of files having same file names;

select a first of the plurality of files;

read repository metadata associated with the selected file, the read repository metadata including an identity of a file package of which the selected file is a member;

identify a file package of the selected file;

determine if the identified file package is on an installation specific conflict list, wherein the installation specific conflict list includes one or more identities of packages with which there is a conflict because of a file included in an installation of an executable application or an operating system;

if the identified file package is on the installation specific conflict list, then select another of the plurality of files and repeating the identifying a file package of the selected file and the determining if the identified file package is on the installation specific conflict list use an exclusion list to identify any file packages that conflict with the file package of the selected file, the exclusion list including identifiers of file packages within a file family having same file names; and

adding add-any packages identified using the exclusion list to the installation specific conflict list.

8. The computer readable medium of claim 7, wherein the exclusion list includes identifiers of file packages having same file names and different content.