Controlling access to software component state

• US 8,949,590 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2013
• Issued: 02/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Russell, Christopher D., Traut, Eric P., Pudipeddi, Ravisankar, Stritzel, Adam D., Sinha, Suyash
• Primary Examiner(s): Lim, Krisna
• Application Number:
  US13/866,970
• Publication Number:
  US 20140019954A1
• Time in Patent Office: 655 Days
• Field of Search: 717/170, 717/168, 713/100
• US Class Current: 713/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management

Abstract

A request is received from a software component of a software product to access a value of a public setting of the software component. A check is made as to whether the request conforms to an appropriate format for the public setting. If the request conforms to the appropriate format, then the requested access is performed. However, if the request does not conform to the appropriate format, then the requested access is denied. Multiple values for the public setting can be received and maintained concurrently.

Claims

1. A method implemented by one or more processors of a device, the method comprising:

receiving a setting declaration for state information for a software component;

storing the state information in a discardable portion of a component state store;

accessing the stored state information by the software component;

responsive to receiving a command to delete the information in the discardable portion of the component state store, deleting the state information; and

maintaining continued operation of the software component after the discardable portion is deleted.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising using, by the software component, the discardable portion as a performance cache by the software component.

3. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising:

obtaining, by the software component, information from one or more other software components; and

using the discardable portion to store the information from the one or more other software components.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said accessing comprises directly accessing the discardable portion at a location provided by an operating system.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said accessing comprises accessing the discardable portion via one or more application programming interface (API) methods exposed by operating system.

6. A computer-implemented method comprising:

providing a software component state store with multiple portions, each portion corresponding to a different one of multiple reset levels for an associated software component;

storing settings of state information in one or more of the portions;

receiving a request to reset the state of the software component, the request containing a reset level;

choosing, based on the reset level, which portion of the software component state store to delete; and

deleting the chosen portion.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the multiple portions comprise:

a public setting portion;

a private state portion; and

a discardable state portion.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the deleting comprises deleting the discardable state portion corresponding to the lowest level of reset.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein deleting the discardable portion leaves values stored in the remainder of the private state portion and in the public settings portion accessible to the software component.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the deleting comprises deleting the discardable state portion, the private state portion and the public setting portion corresponding to the highest level of reset.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the deleting the discardable state portion, the private state portion and the public setting portion returns the software component to a default state.

12. The method of claim 6, wherein said storing comprises directly accessing the one or more portions at a location provided by an operating system.

13. The method of claim 6, wherein said storing comprises accessing the one or more portions via one or more application programming interface (API) methods exposed by an operating system.

14. One or more computer storage memories having stored thereon multiple instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the one or more processors to:

install a software component of a software product on the device;

receive a request from the software component to store a value of a setting of the software component;

store the value from the software component of the setting in one of a public setting portion or a private state portion of a software component state store; and

receive an upgrade to be installed for the software component, while maintaining the values stored in the software component state store.

15. The one or more computer storage memories of claim 14, the instructions further executable to:

compare version numbers, comprising a contract version number and a servicing version number, supplied with the upgrade to version numbers of the software component;

responsive to the contract version number of the software component and the upgrade matching;

install the upgrade; and

maintain the public settings and private state of the software component for use by the upgraded software component.

16. The one or more computer storage memories of claim 14, the instructions further executable to:

responsive to the contract version number of the software component and the upgrade not matching;

install the upgrade as a new software component; and

create a new software component state store for the new software component.

17. The one or more computer storage memories of claim 16, wherein the new software component state store comprises a public setting portion, a private state portion and a discardable state portion within the private state portion.

18. The one or more computer storage memories of claim 17, wherein the software component accesses the private state portion directly at a location provided by an operating system.

19. The one or more computer storage memories of claim 17, wherein the software component accesses the private state portion via one or more application programming interface (API) methods exposed by the operating system.

20. The one or more computer storage media of claim 15, wherein the software component can be shared by one or more software products.