Intelligent patch checker

• US 20050193386A1
• Filed: 04/20/2005
• Published: 09/01/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/25/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dell Marketing LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Everdream Corporation (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: McCaleb, Jed, Rive, Russel
• Granted Patent: US 7,853,943 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99953 Recoverability
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99954 Version management

Abstract

A method for remotely updating software in a plurality of computer systems is disclosed. In one embodiment, a client computer sends application information about a software application to a server system. The server system performs a comparison between the application information about the software application and the most-updated upgrade package for the software application. The most-updated upgrade package for the software application is stored in a part database. The most-updated upgrade package for the software application is received by the client system automatically when the comparison indicates that the most-updated upgrade package has not been installed on the client system. A client database stores a plurality of configuration files for a plurality of client systems. A first configuration file provides the sever system with the knowledge of the software applications installed on the client system. The application information about the software application comprises version information of the software applications and is stored in a database in the client system.

Claims

1. A method of monitoring for updates relating to a plurality of software applications on a client system, the method including:

receiving a file from a server system, the file including commands for execution on the client system and pertaining to the plurality of software applications on the client system;

parsing the file to identify the commands; and

executing the commands on the plurality of software applications.

2. The method of claim 1, in which the commands are executed to collect information pertaining to the plurality of software applications installed on the client system.

3. The method of claim 2, which includes:

communicating the information to the server system; and

receiving at least one update file for at least one software application of the plurality of software applications.

4. The method of claim 3, which includes updating the at least one software application using the update file.

5. The method of claim 4, which includes:

receiving an update file for each software application requiring updating; and

processing each update file individually.

6. The method of claim 3, in which the at least one update file is compressed and the method includes expanding the update file received at the client system.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein the at least one update file is identified from a comparison between the information sent by the client system and one of a plurality of configuration files for a plurality of client systems, the plurality of configuration files each having knowledge of the plurality of software applications stored on an associated client system.

8. The method of claim 3, in which the at least one update file is an upgrade package, the method including receiving the upgrade package automatically when the upgrade package has not been installed on the client system.

9. The method of claim 2, which includes communicating a unique identification for the client system with the information to the server system, the unique identification being is stored in a registry in the client system and wherein the unique identification is recognizable by the server system to identify the client system.

10. The method of claim 2, which includes:

communicating the information to the server system; and

receiving at least one Uniform Resource Locator (URL) link that provides at least one download for a software application of the plurality of software applications requiring updating.

11. The method of claim 2, which includes:

communicating the information to the server system; and

receiving at least one download file in response to the information communicated to the server system, the at least one download file including at least one command selected from the group including;

Delete a file;

Shell Execute;

ShellExecute with wait;

Registry Change;

Add message to a tool bar;

Kill a particular process;

Ask for reboot;

Force reboot;

Ask user to install now or later; and

Ask user to close all programs.

12. The method of claim 1, in which the commands include self-check functions including at least one parameter selected from the group including:

get a file'"'"'s version;

get a file'"'"'s modified date;

get an amount of free disk space;

get a value of a specified registry key; and

get a size of a file.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the file is a script file and the client system includes a utility application to execute the commands included in the script file.

14. The method of claim 1, which includes sending a request from the client system to the server system for the file.

15. The method of claim 1, in which the file received from the server identifies the software applications on the client system that are known to the server system.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the client system is one of a plurality of client systems managed by the server system via the Internet.

17. The machine-readable medium embodying instructions which, when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform the method of claim 1.

18. A system to monitor updates relating to a plurality of software applications on a client system, the system including:

an interface to receive a file from a server system, the file including commands for execution on the client system and pertaining to the plurality of software applications on the client system;

a parser to parse the file to identify the commands; and

a worker module to execute the commands on the plurality of software applications.

19. A system to monitor updates relating to a plurality of software applications on a client system, the system including:

means for receiving a file from a server system, the file including commands for execution on the client system and pertaining to the plurality of software applications on the client system;

means for parsing the file to identify the commands; and

means for executing the commands on the plurality of software applications.

20. A method of monitoring for updates relating to a plurality of software applications on a plurality of client systems, the method including:

receiving requests from the plurality of client systems, each request relating to a request for a file corresponding to the client system sending the request;

investigating a client database identifying software applications installed on each of the plurality of client systems to identify the software applications on the client system from which the request was received;

creating a file including commands for execution on the client system and pertaining to the plurality of software applications identified as being on the client system; and

communicating the file to the client system.

21. The method of claim 20, which includes:

receiving information from the client system collected by the client system in response to the commands;

comparing the information received from the client system with associated information in the client database corresponding to client system to determine if the software applications on the client system are up to date; and

communicating update information to the client system based on the comparison.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein a unique identification for the client system is recognizable by the server system as being associated with the client system, the unique identification identifying the software applications installed on each of the plurality of client systems.