Techniques for conditional deployment of application artifacts

• US 8,806,475 B2
• Filed: 09/13/2010
• Issued: 08/12/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/13/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Xie, Nan
• Primary Examiner(s): Dao, Thuy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Smith, Cheneca
• Application Number:
  US12/881,028
• Publication Number:
  US 20120066674A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,429 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 717/174
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/60 Software deployment

Abstract

Techniques for conditionally deploying artifacts of a software application (e.g., a SOA application). In one set of embodiments, a deployment plan can be generated that specifies a list of artifacts to be deployed for the application. At a time of deployment, the deployment plan can be retrieved and processed by an installation module to carry out the deployment process. As part of this processing, the installation module can determine, for each artifact in the deployment plan, whether the artifact is associated with a user-defined condition. If such an association is found, the installation module can evaluate the user-defined condition and execute conditional deployment logic for the artifact based on the outcome of the evaluation. In this manner, the deployment activities to be carried out for the application can be dynamically modified at the time of deployment.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a computer system, a deployment plan for a software application, the deployment plan specifying a plurality of artifacts for the software application and default deployment logic for the plurality of artifacts, the software application comprising a Service Oriented Architecture application, the deployment plan generated based at least in part by;

storing a functional representation of the Service Oriented Architecture application in a shared data store;

collecting metadata pertaining to software services used by the Service Oriented Architecture application; and

generating the deployment plan based at least in part on the functional representation and the metadata; and

processing, by the computer system, the deployment plan, the processing comprising;

determining, for each artifact in the plurality of artifacts, whether the artifact is associated with a user-defined condition, the user-defined condition including variables provided by a user for modifying the deployment plan, the deployment plan modified by conditional deployment logic based at least in part on the user-defined condition; and

if the artifact is associated with a user-defined condition;

evaluating the user-defined condition; and

executing the deployment plan with the conditional deployment logic for the artifact based at least in part on the evaluation of the user-defined condition.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the processing further comprises:

if the artifact is not associated with a user-defined condition, executing the default deployment logic for the artifact.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the conditional deployment logic is distinct from the default deployment logic.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the user-defined condition and the conditional deployment logic are specified in an executable script associated with the artifact.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the executable script is a Shell script or an Ant script.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the user-defined condition and the conditional deployment logic are stored in a rule engine.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the user-defined condition or the conditional deployment logic is expressed using one or more variables whose values are input via a user interface prior to the processing.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the user-defined condition or the conditional deployment logic is expressed using one or more variables whose values are derived from a deployment history of another software application.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the user-defined condition or the conditional deployment logic is expressed using one or more variables whose values are set by a user-defined script.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the user-defined condition and the conditional deployment logic are specified by a developer of the software application.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the user-defined condition and the conditional deployment logic are specified by a customer installing the software application.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the conditional deployment logic includes logic for undeploying the artifact or taking no action with respect to the artifact.

13. A non-transitory, computer-readable medium having stored thereon program code executable by a computer system, the program code comprising:

code that causes the computer system to receive a deployment plan for a software application, the deployment plan specifying a plurality of artifacts for the software application and default deployment logic for the plurality of artifacts, the software application comprising a Service Oriented Architecture application, the deployment plan generated based at least in part by;

storing a functional representation of the Service Oriented Architecture application in a shared data store;

collecting metadata pertaining to software services used by the Service Oriented Architecture application; and

generating the deployment plan based at least in part on the functional representation and the metadata; and

code that causes the computer system to process the deployment plan, the processing comprising;

determining, for each artifact in the plurality of artifacts, whether the artifact is associated with a user-defined condition, the user-defined condition including variables provided by a user for modifying the deployment plan, the deployment plan modified by conditional deployment logic based at least in part on the user-defined condition; and

if the artifact is associated with a user-defined condition;

evaluating the user-defined condition; and

executing the deployment plan with the conditional deployment logic for the artifact based at least in part on the evaluation of the user-defined condition.

14. A system comprising:

a storage device configured to store a deployment plan for a software application, the deployment plan specifying a plurality of artifacts for the software application and default deployment logic for the plurality of artifacts, the software application comprising a Service Oriented Architecture application, the deployment plan generated based at least in part by;

storing a functional representation of the Service Oriented Architecture application in a shared data store;

collecting metadata pertaining to software services used by the Service Oriented Architecture application; and

generating the deployment plan based at least in part on the functional representation and the metadata; and

a processor configured to process the deployment plan by;

determining, for each artifact in the plurality of artifacts, whether the artifact is associated with a user-defined condition, the user-defined condition including variables provided by a user for modifying the deployment plan, the deployment plan modified by conditional deployment logic based at least in part on the user-defined condition; and

if the artifact is associated with a user-defined condition;

evaluating the user-defined condition; and

executing the deployment plan with the conditional deployment logic for the artifact based at least in part on the evaluation of the user-defined condition.