Method for configuring an application

• US 8,910,150 B2
• Filed: 09/25/2008
• Issued: 12/09/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/25/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: RingCentral Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Unify GmbH & Co. KG (Atos SE)
• Inventors: Lederer, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Teixeira Moffat, Jonathan C
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dinh, Lynda
• Application Number:
  US13/120,040
• Publication Number:
  US 20110179411A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,266 Days
• Field of Search: 717/178
• US Class Current: 717/178
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/955 using information identifiers, e.g. uniform resource locators [URL]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44505 Configuring for program initiating, e.g. using registry, configuration files
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0806 for initial configuration or provisioning, e.g. plug-and-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/141 Setup of application sessions admission control or resource allocation in data switching networks H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/00 Network arrangements, protocols or services independent of the application payload and not provided for in the other groups of this subclass networks security protocols H04L9/40; wireless communication networks H04W

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for automatically configuring an application after downloading the same via a website. An example of an area of application of the present invention is enterprise web applications that are installed on a server in a customer network. The proposed “one-touch configuration” method simplifies the initial configuration of the application to be installed, and makes manual entries after installation unnecessary. The method according to the invention is further applicable to obtaining applications from the Internet, wherein a customer has an account with a provider. The customer logs in using the customer login thereof at the website of the company. The company is aware of which applications the customer has purchased, by means of the customer account information, and can proved corresponding supplementary downloads, including a licensing key. The licensing key can then be transmitted to the installed application in a simple manner using the method presented.

Claims

1. A method for configuring an application having a server-side portion of the application installed on a server computer system having a non-transitory storage device and a client-side portion of the application which is to be installed and configured on a client computer system having a non-transitory storage device, the method comprising:

accessing, by the client computer system, a web server application assigned to the server-side portion of the application installed on the server computer system,

generating a download page by the web server application, wherein the download page comprises configuration data to configure the client-side portion of the application to be installed on the client computer system, the configuration data being comprised of at least one license key;

loading the generated download page into a browser of the client computer system;

transferring-the client-side portion of the application from the server computer system to the client computer system;

installing the client-side portion of the application on the client computer system, and

configuring the client-side portion of the application by the client computer system after the client-side portion of the application is installed on the client computer system, the client computer system using the configuration data from the download page loaded into the browser of the client computer system to perform the configuring of the client-side portion of the application after the client-side portion of the application is installed on the client computer system.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the download page loaded into the browser of the client computer system contains a control element and the method further comprising starting the configuring of the client-side portion of the application installed on the client computer system after activation of the control element.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring of the client-side portion of the application by the client computer system after the client-side portion of the application is installed on the client computer system occurs automatically via a script-controlled sequence control after the client-side portion of the application is installed on the client computer system.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring of the client-side portion of the application by the client computer system after the client-side portion of the application is installed on the client computer system occurs via entry of the configuration data within source code of the generated download page loaded into the browser in at least one of a registry database on the client computer system and a configuration file on the client computer system.

5. The method of claim 1, comprising authenticating the client computer system at the web server application prior to configuration of the client-side portion of the application installed on the client computer system.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the authenticating occurs via login.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the authenticating occurs via transfer of authorization data.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuration data of the generated download page loaded into the browser of the client computer system is comprised of source code identifying the configuration data, and the method further comprises:

the client computer system saving the configuration data received from the generated download page in the non-transitory storage device of the client computer system such that the configuring of the client-side portion of the application by the client computer system after the client-side portion of the application is installed on the client computer system results in the configuration data saved in the storage device of the client computer system being accessed for user account information to be utilized during the configuration of the of the client-side portion of the application installed on the client computer system.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the generated download page loaded into a browser of the client computer system results in first and second control elements being activatable, the first control element being activatable to initiate the installation of the client-side portion of the application on the client computer system, the second control element being activatable to initiate the configuring of the client-side portion of the application on the client computer system after the client-side portion of the application on the client computer system is installed on the client computer system.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuring of the client-side portion of the application by the client computer system after the client-side portion of the application is installed on the client computer system is performed such that no manual user input is provided during the configuration of the client-side portion of the application by the client computer system.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the configuration data is comprised of a user identification and a password.

12. A method for configuring an application having a server-side portion of the application installed on a server computer system having a non-transitory storage device and a client-side portion of the application which is to be installed and configured on a client computer system having non-transitory storage memory, the method comprising:

accessing, by the client computer system, a web server application assigned to the server-side portion of the application;

generating a download page by the web server application, wherein the download page contains configuration data to configure the client-side portion of the application to be installed on the client computer system;

loading the generated download page into a browser of the client computer system;

transferring the client-side portion of the application from the server computer system via the browser;

installing the client-side portion of the application as well as a configuration component on the client computer system;

starting the configuration component installed on the client computer system;

establishing a local client-server connection between the browser and the configuration component installed on the client computer system wherein the configuration component is set up as a server and the browser is set up as a client for the established local client-server connection;

transmitting configuration data from the generated download page loaded in the browser to the configuration component installed on the client computer system via the local client-server connection, the configuration data being comprised of at least one license key; and

configuring the client-side portion of the application installed on the client computer system by the configuration component installed on and being run by the client computer system using the configuration data from the generated download page the configuration component received from the browser.

13. The method of claim 12, comprising setting up the local client-server connection as a member of the group consisting of an HTTP connection and an HTTPS connection.

14. The method of claim 12, comprising deleting the configuration component from the client computer system after successfully configuring the client-side portion of the application installed on the client computer system.

15. A communication system comprising:

a server computer system having a non-transitory storage device; and

a client computer system communicatively connectable to the server computer system, the client computer system having non-transitory storage memory; and

wherein configuration data of a user associated with the client computer system is stored in the non-transitory storage device of the server, the configuration data being comprised of at least one license key;

the client computer system configured to access a web server application of the server computer system;

the server computer system configured to generate a download page by the web server application that contains the configuration data of the user,

the client computer system configured to load the download page generated by the server computer system into a browser of the client computer system;

the server computer system configured to transfer a client-side portion of an application from the server computer system via the browser;

the client computer system configured to install the client-side portion of the application on the client computer system;

the client computer system configured to configure the client-side portion of the application after the client-side portion of the application is installed on the client computer system, the client computer system configured to use the configuration data from the download page loaded into the browser of the client computer system to perform the configuring of the client-side portion of the application after the client-side portion of the application is installed on the client computer system.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the client computer system is configured so that no manual user input is provided during the configuration of the client-side portion of the application installed on the client computer system.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the configuration data is comprised of user identification for the user and a password of the user.