Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
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METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR IMPLEMENTING A
SOFTWARE INSTALLATION PROCESS
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to software
installation, and more particularly to a method, computer
program product and system for implementing a software
installation process.
[0002] When a new software program is acquired (usually
through licensing rather than outright purchase), it
usually must be installed on the target data processing
system before it can be used. As used herein, the term
"data processing system" is intended to have a broad
meaning, and may include personal computers, laptop
computers, palmtop computers, handheld computers, network
computers, servers, workstations, cellular telephones and
similar wireless devices, personal digital assistants and
other electronic devices on which software programs may be
installed.
[0003] Typically, software programs include as a
component thereof an installer, which is software that
substantially automates the installation process. In
addition, computer operating systems (software which
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coordinates resource use by, and interaction between, other
software) may include an installer for use in installing
drivers or other software.
[0004] In addition, many commercial software programs
are provided with a process by which they may be updated.
Such a process can be included as a component of the
software program itself, or may be provided externally.
The provision of an updating process is desirable because
software programs are frequently modified by end users, for
example by applying bug fixes or enhancements (such as new
versions of the software).
[0005] There are many different processes for installing
and/or updating software programs. Some processes are
entirely automated and substantially invisible to the user,
while others are interactive. Some are complex while
others are simpler. Software programs used to install new
software, to install updates to software, and to uninstall
(remove) software are referred to herein as "installer
applications". The term "installer applications" is
intended to encompass both "standalone" software programs
that can be used to install a variety of software
applications (for example, such as installers that may be
provided with an operating system), as well as software
programs that are adapted to install only a single software
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application (and may be integrated with the installation
file package for that software application). Installer
applications, when run, implement a software installation
process.
[0006] One major issue facing installer applications is
that if a catastrophic failure occurs while a target
product is being installed or while an update is being
applied to a target product, it may be impossible for the
installer application to recover from the failure. The
types of catastrophic failures that may occur during
installation or updating of a software program include CPU
failure, hard drive failure, general hardware failure,
computer reset, inadvertent power down, loss of power,
initiation of a kill process or software failure (which may
or may not occur in the installer application itself).
[0007] In the event of a catastrophic failure, one or
more aspects of the data processing system on which the
installer application was running may be in a corrupted
state. For example, only some of the required files may
have been copied into storage accessible by the data
processing system, or reconfiguration of an aspect of the
data processing system may be incomplete. These problems
are often compounded by the fact that in some failure
scenarios, the user is not aware of the corrupted state and
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the installer application has no way to determine that the
data processing system has been corrupted. If the
installer application is launched again, the corruption of
the data processing system may be further compounded by
adding additional maintenance to the already unstable
system. The system may behave erratically, unpredictably,
and may crash.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] In one aspect, the present invention is directed
to a computer-implemented method of implementing, for a
data processing system, a software installation process for
a software program. The software installation process has
a plurality of sequential steps, and the method includes
recording in recoverable storage, for each sequential step
commenced, step metadata identifying the sequential step so
that the step metadata is associated with the software
program.
[0009] Preferably, the method also includes recording,
in recoverable storage, completion metadata corresponding
to a completed state for the software installation process
following completion of the last sequential step of the
software installation process so that the completion
metadata is associated with the software program. In a
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preferred embodiment, the step metadata corresponding to
each step is recorded prior to commencement of the step to
which the step metadata corresponds.
[0010] Preferably, prior to initiating the software
installation process, the method checks a metadata record
from a most recent previous iteration of the software
installation process to determine whether a failure
occurred during the most recent previous iteration of the
software installation process. If the method determines
that no failure occurred during the most recent previous
iteration of the software installation process, the method
will initiate the software installation process. If the
method determines that a failure occurred during the most
recent previous iteration of the software installation
process, the method will present a user of the data
processing system with one or more options for remedial
action. The one or more options for remedial action
preferably comprise one or more procedures selected from a
plurality of predefined procedures. The method selects the
procedure in response to identification of the sequential
step of the most recent previous iteration of the software
installation process at which the failure occurred.
[0011] In one embodiment of the present invention, the
software installation process is a process for updating a
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software program. In this particular embodiment, the
sequential steps include a first sequential step of
creating a backup record for the software program, the
backup record comprising copies of each file to be affected
by the software installation process and further comprising
metadata sufficient to enable restoration of the software
program, a sequential step of doing at least one of writing
one or more new files, deleting one or more existing files
and overwriting one or more existing files to generate a
modified software program that is usable by the data
processing system, and executing a configuration process to
reconfigure the data processing system to utilize the
modified software program. In one particular instance of
this embodiment, the configuration process is executed
prior to the step of doing at least one of writing one or
more new files, deleting one or more existing files and
overwriting one or more existing files to generate the
modified software program. In another particular instance
of this embodiment, the configuration process is executed
after the step of doing at least one of writing one or more
new files, deleting one or more existing files and
overwriting one or more existing files to generate the
modified software program. In yet another particular
instance of this embodiment, the configuration process
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comprises a first portion that is executed prior to the
step of doing at least one of writing one or more new
files, deleting one or more existing files and overwriting
one or more existing files to generate the modified
software program, and a second portion that is executed
after the step of doing at least one of writing one or more
new files, deleting one or more existing files and
overwriting one or more existing files to generate the
modified software program.
[0012] In another embodiment, the software installation
process is for installing new software. In this
embodiment, the sequential steps include a first sequential
step of creating a backup record for the data processing
system, the backup record comprising copies of each file to
be affected by the software installation process and
further comprising metadata sufficient to enable
restoration of the data processing system to a state that
existed prior to commencement of the software installation
process, a sequential step of doing at least one of writing
one or more new files and overwriting one or more existing
files so as to place the software program in persistent
storage accessible by the data processing system so that
the software program is usable by the data processing
system, and executing a configuration process to
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reconfigure the data processing system to utilize the
software program. In a particular instance of this
embodiment, the configuration process is executed prior to
the step of doing at least one of writing one or more new
files and overwriting one or more existing files to place
the software program in persistent storage accessible by
the data processing system. In another particular instance
of this embodiment, the configuration process is executed
after the step of doing at least one of writing one or more
new files and overwriting one or more existing files to
place the software program in persistent storage accessible
by the data processing system. In yet another particular
instance of this embodiment, the configuration process
comprises a first portion that is executed prior to the
step of doing at least one of writing one or more new files
and overwriting one or more existing file to place the
software program in persistent storage accessible by the
data processing system, and a second portion that is
executed after the step of doing at least one of writing
one or more new files and overwriting one or more existing
files to place the software program in persistent storage
accessible by the data processing system.
[0013] In still another embodiment, the software
installation process is a process for uninstalling a
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software program. In this embodiment, the plurality of
sequential steps includes doing at least one of writing one
or more files, overwriting one or more existing files and
deleting one or more existing files so as to return an
aspect of a persistent storage accessible to the data
processing system to a state that existed prior to
installation of the software program, and executing a
configuration process to reconfigure an aspect of the data
processing system to a configuration that existed prior to
installation of the software program.
[0014] The present invention is also directed to a
computer program product for implementing the above-
described method on a data processing system, and to a data
processing system on which the above-described method is
implemented.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] The novel features believed characteristic of the
invention are set forth in the appended claims. The
invention itself, however, as well as a preferred mode of
use, further objectives and advantages thereof, will best
be understood by reference to the following detailed
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description of certain illustrative embodiments when read
in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
[0016] Figure 1 is a pictorial representation of an
exemplary data processing system in which aspects of the
present invention may be implemented;
[0017] Figure 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary data
processing system in which aspects of the present invention
may be implemented;
[0018] Figure 3 is a flow chart showing an exemplary
software installation process according to an aspect of the
present invention.
[0019] Figure 4 is a flow chart showing an exemplary
method for implementing a first software installation
process according to an aspect of the present invention.
[0020] Figure 5 is a flow chart showing an exemplary
method for implementing a second software installation
process according to an aspect of the present invention.
[0021] Figure 6 is an exemplary interface for presenting
a user with a first remedial option in accordance with an
aspect of the present invention.
[0022] Figure 7 is an exemplary interface for presenting
a user with a second remedial option in accordance with an
aspect of the present invention.
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[0023] Figure 8 is an exemplary interface for presenting
a user with a third remedial option in accordance with an
aspect of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0024] With reference now to the figures and in
particular with reference to Figures 1-2, exemplary
diagrams of data processing environments are provided in
which aspects of the present invention may be implemented.
It should be appreciated that Figures 1-2 are only
exemplary and are not intended to assert or imply any
limitation with regard to the environments in which aspects
or embodiments of the present invention may be implemented.
Many modifications to the depicted environments may be made
without departing from the spirit and scope of the present
invention as defined by the appended claims.
[0025] Figure 1 is a pictorial representation of a data
processing system in which aspects of the present invention
may be implemented. A computer 100 is depicted which
includes system unit 102, video display terminal 104,
keyboard 106, storage devices 108, which may include floppy
drives and other types of permanent and removable storage
media, and mouse 110. Additional input devices may be
included with personal computer 100, such as, for example,
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a joystick, touchpad, touch screen, trackball, microphone,
and the like.
[0026] Computer 100 may be implemented using any
suitable computer, such as an IBM eServerTm computer or
IntelliStation computer, which are products of
International Business Machines Corporation, located in
Armonk, New York. Although the depicted representation
shows a personal computer, exemplary aspects of the present
invention may be implemented in other types of data
processing systems, such as laptop computers, palmtop
computers, handheld computers, network computers, servers,
workstations, cellular telephones and similar wireless
devices, personal digital assistants and other electronic
devices on which software programs may be installed.
Computer 100 also preferably includes a graphical user
interface (GUI) that may be implemented by means of systems
software residing in computer readable media in operation
within computer 100.
[0027] With reference now to Figure 2, a block diagram
of a data processing system is shown in which aspects of
the present invention may be implemented. Data processing
system 200 is an example of a computer, such as personal
computer 100 in Figure 1, in which code or instructions
implementing the processes of the exemplary aspects may be
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located. In the depicted example, data processing system
200 employs a hub architecture including a north bridge and
memory controller hub (MCH) 202 and a south bridge and
input/output (I/0) controller hub (ICH) 204. Processor
206, main memory 208, and graphics processor 210 are
connected to north bridge and memory controller hub 202.
Graphics processor 210 may be connected to the MCH 202
through an accelerated graphics port (AGP), for example.
[0028] In the depicted example, local area network (LAN)
adapter 212 connects to south bridge and I/0 controller hub
204 and audio adapter 216, keyboard and mouse adapter 220,
modem 222, read only memory (ROM) 424, universal serial bus
(USB) ports and other communications ports 232, and
PCI/PCIe devices 234 connect to south bridge and I/O
controller hub 204 through bus 238. Hard disk drive (HDD)
226 and CD-ROM drive 230 connect to south bridge and I/0
controller hub 204 through bus 240. PCI/PCIe devices may
include, for example, Ethernet adapters, add-in cards, and
PC cards for notebook computers. PCI uses a card bus
controller, while PCIe does not. ROM 224 may be, for
example, a flash binary input/output system (BIOS). Hard
disk drive 226 and CD-ROM drive 230 may use, for example,
an integrated drive electronics (IDE) or serial advanced
technology attachment (SATA) interface. A super I/0 (SIO)
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device 236 may be connected to south bridge and I/0
controller hub 204.
[0029] A bus system may be comprised of one or more
buses, such as a system bus, an I/0 bus and a PCI bus. Of
course the bus system may be implemented using any type of
communications fabric or architecture that provides for a
transfer of data between different components or devices
attached to the fabric or architecture. A communications
unit may include one or more devices used to transmit and
receive data, such as a modem or a network adapter.
[0030] An operating system runs on processor 206 and
coordinates and provides control of various components
within data processing system 200 in Figure 2. The
operating system may be a commercially available operating
system such as Microsoft Windows XP (Microsoft and
Windows are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the
United States, other countries, or both). An object
oriented programming system, such as the JavaTM programming
system, may run in conjunction with the operating system
and provides calls to the operating system from Java
programs or applications executing on data processing
system 200. (Java and all Java-based trademarks are
trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States,
other countries, or both.)
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[0031] Instructions for the operating system, the
object-oriented programming system, and applications or
programs are located on storage devices, such as hard disk
drive 226, and may be loaded into main memory 208 for
execution by processor 206. The processes of the present
invention are performed by processor 206 using computer
implemented instructions, which may be located in a memory
such as, for example, main memory 208, read only memory
224, or in one or more peripheral devices.
[0032] Those of ordinary skill in the art will
appreciate that the hardware in Figures 1-2 may vary
depending on the implementation. Other internal hardware
or peripheral devices, such as flash memory, equivalent
non-volatile memory, or optical disk drives and the like,
may be used in addition to or in place of the hardware
depicted in Figures 1-2. Also, the processes of the
present invention may be applied to a multiprocessor data
processing system.
[0033] In some illustrative examples, data processing
system 200 may be a personal digital assistant (PDA), which
may be configured with flash memory to provide non-volatile
memory for storing operating system files and/or user-
generated data. A memory may be, for example, main memory
208 or a cache such as found in north bridge and memory
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controller hub 202. A processing unit may include one or
more processors. The depicted examples in Figures 1-2 and
above-described examples are not meant to imply
architectural limitations. For example, data processing
system 200 also may be a tablet computer, laptop computer,
or telephone device in addition to taking the form of a
PDA.
[0034] As was noted above, distinctions can be made
between "installation" of a software program which does not
already reside in a usable state in storage accessible to a
data processing system, "updating" a software program where
an (earlier) version of that software program already
resides in storage accessible to the data processing
system, and "uninstalling" (deleting) a software program
from storage accessible to a data processing system. As a
practical matter, these three processes are quite similar
and the terms "install", "installation" and "software
installation process" shall be used herein to refer to each
of the above cases. For clarity, the terms "new install"
and "new installation" shall be used to refer to the case
where the relevant software program does not already reside
in storage accessible to the data processing system, and
the terms "update" and "updating" shall be used to refer to
cases where modifications are made to a software program
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that already resides in storage accessible to the data
processing system. The term "uninstall" shall be used
where a software program is being removed from storage
accessible to the data processing system.
[0035] In accordance with an aspect of the present
invention, a software installation process is organized
into distinct sequential steps where only certain
operations are permitted during each step, and each step
completes prior to commencement of the next step. In one
exemplary embodiment directed to a new installation or an
update, the software installation process comprises three
distinct steps: (1) back up all current files that are to
be updated (Backup Step); (2) install new files and/or
overwrite existing files and/or delete existing files
(Install Step); and (3) apply configuration actions or run
scripts that make modifications to the configuration of the
data processing system (Configuration Step). Generally, the
"delete existing files" portion of step (2) is only
relevant for updating existing software, and existing files
are usually not deleted when installing new software.
Existing files may or may not be deleted when uninstalling
software, depending on the specific scenario.
[0036] After all steps have been completed successfully,
the operation is complete. With reference to Figure 3, the
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preceding sequential steps are illustrated by way of a flow
chart for an exemplary software installation process 300.
[0037] First, the software installation process creates
a backup record for the data processing system (step 302).
Although the backup creation step 302 is not strictly
necessary for installation of the software program, it is
highly desirable because it may enable system recovery in
the event that the installation process fails, and may also
allow the relevant software program to be uninstalled if
the user later wishes to do so. Typically, the backup
record will include copies of each file that would be
affected by the software installation process, and will
also include metadata sufficient to enable restoration of
the data processing system to the state that existed prior
to commencement of the software installation process.
Preferably, a complete backup of all components is made
before a single file on the data processing system is
modified, installed, deleted or overwritten, as this will
provide better remedial options if a catastrophic failure
occurs (i.e. backup step 302 completes before the next step
304 commences). Where this is not the case, for example
where a software installation process alternates between
creating backup copies of files and updating files for each
component, then failure recovery may become more difficult.
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Preferably, the backup package created when installing an
update is a "mirror image" of the installation or update
package, which allows for the new software program or
update to be later uninstalled by applying the backup
package (i.e. "undoing" what was done by the installation
or update).
[0038] Once the backup record has been created (or if
the software installation process does not create a backup
record), the software installation process 300 will then
write one or more new files, or overwrite one or more
existing files, or both, into a persistent storage that is
accessible by the data processing system (step 304). (In
the case of an update, the step 304 may also involve
deleting some existing files.) Step 304 is the process
that will place the files for the target software program
into a storage location where they can be accessed by the
data processing system so that the data processing system
can use those files to execute the target program.
[0039] Typically, simply writing (and/or overwriting)
the desired files is not sufficient to enable the data
processing system to use the files so as to effectively
execute the target program. In addition, the data
processing system must usually be reconfigured to enable it
to use the files and run the target software program.
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Therefore, a software installation process typically
executes a configuration process to reconfigure the data
processing system to utilize the software program (step
306). As will be discussed further below, the
configuration process may comprise one or more steps.
[0040] In the case of a new installation, the software
installation process 300 will, upon successful completion,
result in a new software program residing in storage
accessible to the data processing system so that the data
processing system can execute the new software program. In
the case of an update, the result of successful completion
of the software installation process 300 is that an
existing software program (already residing in storage
accessible to the data processing system) is modified,
instead of a new software program being installed. It will
be appreciated that in certain instances, an installation
process may consist of fewer steps (as would be the case
with omission of the backup step 302 or configuration step
306) or additional steps. One particular example of an
instance in which the software installation process may
include additional steps is where the configuration process
comprises a first portion (pre-configuration) that is
executed prior to writing and/or overwriting the targeted
files, and a second portion (post-install configuration)
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that is executed after the targeted files are written
and/or overwritten. Each of these portions may be
considered a separate sequential step. In some
embodiments, only pre-configuration may be necessary, that
is, the entire configuration process is executed prior to
the step of writing one or more new files and/or
overwriting one or more existing files and/or deleting one
or more existing files. In other embodiments, only post-
install configuration may be necessary, that is, the entire
configuration process is executed after the step of writing
one or more new files and/or overwriting one or more
existing files and/or deleting one or more existing files.
As indicated above, in some instances, it may be necessary
to carry out both pre-configuration and post-install
configuration, and in other instances no configuration may
be necessary. Thus, in the case of both a new installation
and an update, the software installation process that is
executed on the data processing system has a plurality of
sequential steps. In a particular embodiment, each step of
the software installation process alters an aspect of the
data processing system. Creation of a backup record (step
302) alters an aspect of the data processing system by
placing a backup record in storage accessible by the data
processing system. Writing and/or overwriting and/or
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deleting files (step 304) alters an aspect of the data
processing system by placing new files into storage
accessible by the data processing system and/or replacing
files that were already in storage accessible by the data
processing system with new files and/or deleting files that
were in storage accessible by the data processing system.
Execution of the configuration process (step 306) alters an
aspect of the data processing system by changing its
configuration. Other steps by which an aspect of the data
processing system is altered may also be possible.
[0041] In accordance with an aspect of the present
invention, for each sequential step of the software
installation process, step metadata corresponding to the
step is recorded in storage that is recoverable in the case
of a catastrophic failure. Thus, the selected storage
should be of a type that would not be erased in the case of
a catastrophic failure. Preferably, the storage in which
the metadata resides should be directly accessible by the
data processing system, but this is not strictly necessary
so long as the metadata may be recovered in the event of a
catastrophic failure. For example, a software installation
process may be carried out by a first data processing
system so as to remotely install software on a second data
processing system, and the first data processing system may
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record the relevant metadata in its own storage, which may
not be directly accessible by the second data storage
system. Nonetheless, in the event of a catastrophic
failure during a software installation process, the
metadata stored in the first data processing system's
storage could be recovered.
[0042] The step metadata is stored in such a way that it
is associated with the software program in respect of which
the software installation process operates, so that the
metadata can be retrieved for subsequent iterations of the
software installation process. For example, where the
software installation process is used only to install a
single software program, the step metadata may be stored in
a file that also contains the filename for the software
installation process. Alternatively, for a software
installation process which may be used to install more than
one software program (such as a software installation
process used by an operating system to install drivers for
many different peripheral devices), the step metadata may
be stored in a database so that it is associated with the
particular software program to which it relates.
[0043] In subsequent discussions, there is reference to
various operations being carried out by a "process",
"method" or "step". This terminology is used for
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convenience and ease of understanding. One skilled in the
art will appreciate that the respective process, method or
step is implemented by a data processing system, and that
the operations referred to herein as being carried out by
the "process", "method" or "step" are in fact carried out
by various components (e.g. processor, memory, storage,
etc.) of the data processing system on which the method is
implemented.
[0044] Referring now to Figure 4, an exemplary method
for implementing a software installation process according
to an aspect of the present invention is shown generally at
400.
[0045] The software installation process itself is
denoted by reference numeral 401, and comprises sequential
steps 410, 414 and 418. Step 410 is the step of creating a
backup record, which will consist of copies of each file
that would be affected by the software installation process
as well as metadata that is sufficient to enable
restoration. Step 414 is the step of writing one or more
new files, overwriting one or more existing files, or (in
the case of an update process) deleting one or more
existing files, or some combination thereof, and step 418
is the step of executing a configuration process to
reconfigure the data processing system.
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[0046] The software installation process 401 shown in
Figure 4 may be either a software installation process for
installing new software or a software installation process
for modifying (e.g. updating) existing software.
[0047] Where the software installation process 401 is
one for installing new software, the backup record created
at step 418 would be created so as to enable restoration of
the data processing system to a state that existed prior to
commencement of the software installation process 401, the
writing/overwriting step 414 would place a software program
in persistent storage accessible by the data processing
system so that the software program is usable by the data
processing system, and the configuration step 418 would
reconfigure the data processing system to utilize the new
software program.
[0048] Where the software installation process 401 shown
in Figure 4 is one for modifying existing software (i.e.
updating), the backup record created at step 418 would be
created so as to enable restoration of the software program
to the form in which it existed prior to commencement of
the software installation process 401, the
writing/overwriting/deleting step 414 would generate a
modified software program that is usable by the data
processing system, and the configuration step 418 would
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reconfigure the data processing system to utilize the
modified software program.
[0049] The steps of exemplary method 400 will now be
described. Upon initiation, the method 400 first checks to
see whether a tracking file for the software installation
process already exists (step 402). If no such file exists,
the method 200 concludes that the software installation
process 401 has not previously been run on that particular
data processing system (or for that particular software
program, in the case of a generic software installation
process), and creates a new tracking file (step 403), and
then proceeds to record step metadata for the pre-backup
state of the data processing system in the tracking file
(step 408). If the method 400 determines that a tracking
file already exists, the method 400 then checks to see if
the tracking file is marked as "complete" (step 404) . if
the tracking file is marked as "complete", this indicates
that the software installation process 401 has previously
been run and that it successfully completed its most recent
previous iteration. Thus, according to an aspect of the
present invention, the method 400 checks the tracking file
from the most recent previous iteration of the software
installation process 401 prior to executing the software
installation process 401, to determine whether a failure
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occurred during the most recent previous iteration of the
software installation process 401. In response to a
determination that no failure occurred during the most
recent previous iteration of the software installation
process 401 (i.e. the tracking file is marked as
"complete"), the method 400 will execute the first step of
the software installation process 401. Thus, following a
determination that the tracking file is marked "complete",
the method 400 proceeds to record (step 408) step metadata
for the backup step (step 410) in the tracking file, in
preparation for executing the first step (step 410) of the
software installation process 401.
[0050] If the tracking file is not marked as "complete",
this indicates that the software installation process 401
has previously been run but did not successfully complete
its most recent iteration on that data processing system,
and that the data processing system may therefore be in a
corrupted state. Accordingly, the method 400 proceeds to
initiate a recovery process (step 406) in which the method
400 preferably presents recovery options to a user. Thus,
in response to a determination that a failure occurred
during the most recent previous iteration of the software
installation process 401 (i.e. the tracking file is not
marked as "complete", the method 400 presents a user of the
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data processing system with one or more options for
remedial action (this will be discussed further below). In
an exemplary embodiment of a method according to an aspect
of the present invention, the remedial actions are
predefined procedures, and a plurality of such predefined
procedures is available. Within this plurality, certain
procedures would be appropriate remedial actions for
failures that occurred during a certain step. For example,
one particular procedure may be appropriate where a failure
occurred during the backup step (e.g. step 410), and
another procedure may be appropriate where a failure
occurred during the write/overwrite/delete step (e.g. step
414). The method 400 will select the appropriate
procedure(s) in response to identification of the
sequential step of the most recent previous iteration of
the software installation process 401 at which the failure
occurred. Examples of such procedures for remedial action
are discussed further below.
[0051] At step 408, the method 400 records "backup" step
metadata in the tracking file prior to commencement of the
step of creating the backup record (step 410). Thus, the
method 400 records step metadata corresponding to the
backup step in recoverable storage. Once the step metadata
has been recorded (step 408), the method 400 executes the
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first step in the software installation process 401, that
of creating the backup record (step 410).
[0052] After the method has created the backup record
(step 410), the method 200 writes "write/overwrite/delete"
step metadata into the tracking file (step 412). Thus, the
method 400 records step metadata corresponding to the
write/overwrite/delete step 414 in recoverable storage. In
the illustrated embodiment, the method 400 carries out this
step of writing step metadata 412 before any files are
written, deleted or overwritten (step 414). After the
method 400 has recorded the step metadata (step 412), the
method 400 executes the next sequential step in the
software installation process 401, that of writing and/or
overwriting the targeted files (step 414).
[0053] Once the software installation process 401 has
completed all necessary writing, deleting and overwriting
of files (step 414), the method 200 will then write
"configuration" step metadata to the tracking file (step
416) prior to the next sequential step of the software
installation process 401, that of reconfiguring the data
processing system (step 418). Accordingly, the method 400
records step metadata corresponding to the reconfiguration
step 418 in recoverable storage (step 416). Analogously to
the previous metadata recordation steps 408 and 412, in the
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illustrated embodiment, the method 400 carries out the step
of recording step metadata (step 416) corresponding to the
reconfiguration step 418 prior to execution of the
reconfiguration step 418. Once the method 400 has recorded
the step metadata (step 416), the method 400 executes the
next sequential step in the software installation process
401, that of reconfiguring the data processing system (step
418).
[0054] Once the software installation process 401 has
reconfigured the data processing system (step 418), the
software installation process 401 is substantially
complete. Accordingly, the method 400 records completion
metadata (step 420) corresponding to the "completed" state
of the software installation process 401.
[0055] As described above, in accordance with a method
according to an aspect of the present invention (such as
the exemplary method 400) there will be a tracking file
containing step metadata corresponding to each sequential
step (such as steps 410, 414 and 418) attempted by the
software installation process 401. Where the software
installation process 401 completes successfully, the
tracking file will also preferably include "completion"
metadata. The tracking file constitutes a metadata record,
and is stored in recoverable storage so that it may be
CA 02539407 2006-03-13
accessed following a catastrophic failure. Accordingly,
the software installation process 401 is structured in
distinct steps, and the current step of the software
installation process 401 is tracked and step metadata is
recorded while the software installation process 401 is
ongoing.
[0056] As shown in Figure 4, for each of steps 410, 414
and 418 of the software installation process 401, the
method 400 records the corresponding step metadata prior to
commencement of the respective step. Thus, in general, in
accordance with an aspect of the present invention, a
method according to the present invention preferably
records step metadata corresponding to each step prior to
commencement of the step to which the step metadata
corresponds. While it is possible to record the step
metadata during or even after the step to which the step
metadata corresponds, such an approach suffers from a risk
that a catastrophic failure may occur before the step
metadata is recorded, such that the step metadata would not
accurately represent the step during which the failure
occurred.
[0057] It will be appreciated that the software
installation process 401 (consisting of steps 410, 414 and
418) shown in association with the method 400 is exemplary
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only, and that many other software installation processes
may be implemented in accordance with the present
invention. For example, a software process according to an
aspect of the present invention may include a pre-
configuration step (not shown) and a method according to an
aspect of the present invention would include a step of
writing step metadata corresponding to the pre-
configuration step (not shown) prior to executing the pre-
configuration step.
[0058] In certain instances, it is desirable to
"uninstall" a software program from a data processing
system. For example, a particular software program may
make substantial demands on the resources of a data
processing system so that performance of the data
processing system is degraded, or a particular software
program may be incompatible with other software programs
used by the data processing system so as to inhibit the
overall effectiveness of the data processing system.
Moreover, in some instances a software program may simply
fail to function in accordance with its specifications so
as to be of little or no value to a user.
[0059] A software installation process in accordance
with an aspect of the present invention may be used to
uninstall a particular software program from a data
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processing system. Generally, the process of uninstalling
software comprises installing previously saved backup
copies of relevant files reflecting the state of the data
processing system prior to installation of the software
program that is to be uninstalled. For example, if a data
processing system had files A, B and C, and installation of
a given software program replaced files B and C with files
B1 and C1, respectively, and added file D, then
uninstalling that software program would involve replacing
files Bl and Cl with the backup copies of files B and C,
respectively, and deleting file D from the data processing
system. The backup copies of files B and C would have been
made during a backup step (such as backup step 408 in
Figure 4) when installing the software program.
(Reconfiguration of the data processing system may also be
required.) Accordingly, a software uninstall process may
be viewed as a software installation process, and the term
"software installation process", as used herein, shall be
deemed to encompass an uninstall process as well.
[0060] With reference now to Figure 5, an exemplary
method for use in uninstalling software, in accordance with
an aspect of the present invention, is shown generally at
500. The software installation process used to uninstall
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the software program is denoted by reference numeral 501
and consists of steps 512 and 516.
[0061] More particularly, at step 512 the software
installation process 501 shown in Figure 5 will carry out
at least one of writing one or more new files, overwriting
one or more existing files and deleting one or more
existing files so as to return an aspect of a persistent
storage accessible to the data processing system to a state
that existed prior to installation of a target software
program. At step 516, the software installation process
501 shown in Figure 5 will execute a configuration process
to reconfigure an aspect of the data processing system to a
configuration that existed prior to installation of the
target software program.
[0062] Upon initiation, the method 500 first checks to
see whether a tracking file for the software installation
process 501 already exists (step 502). If no such file
exists, the method 500 concludes that it is the first time
that the software installation process 501 has been run on
that particular data processing system (or at least the
first time that it has been run for the purpose of
uninstalling the targeted software program). The method
500 then creates a new tracking file (step 508), and
records step metadata corresponding to the step of
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CA 02539407 2006-03-13
reconfiguring the data processing system (step 510). If
the method 500 determines that a tracking file already
exists, the method 500 then checks to see if the tracking
file is marked as "complete" (step 504). If the tracking
file is marked as "complete", this indicates that the
software installation process 501 successfully completed
its most recent previous iteration. Thus, according to an
aspect of the present invention, the method 500 checks the
tracking file from a most recent previous iteration of the
software installation process 501 prior to executing the
software installation process 501, to determine whether a
failure occurred during the most recent previous iteration
of the software installation process 501. In response to a
determination that no failure occurred during the most
recent previous iteration of the software installation
process 501 (i.e. the tracking file is marked as
"complete"), the method 500 prepares to execute the first
step of the software installation process 501. Thus, after
finding that the tracking file is marked as "complete", the
method 500 proceeds to record step metadata corresponding
to the reconfiguration step in the tracking file (step 510)
in preparation for executing the first step (step 512) of
the software installation process 501. If the tracking
file is not marked as "complete", this indicates that the
CA 02539407 2006-03-13
software installation process 501 did not successfully
complete its most recent iteration on that data processing
system, and that the data processing system may therefore
be in a corrupted state. Accordingly, the method 500
proceeds to initiate a recovery process (step 506) . Thus,
in response to a determination that a failure occurred
during the most recent previous iteration of the software
installation process 501 (i.e. the tracking file is not
marked as "complete"), the method 500 presents a user of
the data processing system with one or more options for
remedial action. These options are discussed in greater
detail below.
[0063] At step 510, the method 500 will write step
metadata corresponding to the step of reconfiguring the
data processing system (step 512) into the tracking file.
Accordingly, the method 500 records step metadata
corresponding to the reconfiguration step 512 in
recoverable storage (step 510). The method 500 carries out
the step of recording step metadata (step 510)
corresponding to the reconfiguration step 512 prior to
execution of the reconfiguration step 512. Once the method
500 has recorded the step metadata (step 510), the method
500 executes the first step of the software installation
36
CA 02539407 2006-03-13
process 501, that is, reconfiguration of the data
processing system (step 512).
[0064] After the method 500 has reconfigured the data
processing system (step 512), the method 500 writes step
metadata (step 514) corresponding to the next step of the
software installation process 501, that of writing and/or
overwriting one or more files from backup and/or deleting
one or more existing files (step 516). Thus, the method
500 records step metadata corresponding to the
write/overwrite step 516 in recoverable storage. The
method 500 carries out the step of writing step metadata
514 before permitting the software installation process 501
to write or overwrite any files (step 516). After the
method 500 has recorded the step metadata (step 514), the
software installation process 501 will write and/or
overwrite the targeted files from the corresponding backup
files (step 516). Step 516 may also include deleting some
existing files.
[0065] Once the software installation process 500 has
written and/or overwritten the appropriate files from
backup and deleted any files requiring deletion (step 516),
the software installation process 501 is substantially
complete. Accordingly, the method 500 writes completion
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metadata (step 518) corresponding to the "completed" state
of the software installation process 501.
[0066] By reference to the exemplary method 500 shown in
Figure 5, it is seen that the exemplary software
installation process 501 for uninstalling software that is
shown therein comprises a plurality of sequential steps
(steps 512 and 516), and that the method 500 records step
metadata corresponding to each step in a tracking file.
[0067] It will be appreciated that the method 500 for
implementing the software installation process 501 for
uninstalling a software program is exemplary only, and that
many other software installation processes for use in
uninstalling software programs may be implemented in
accordance with an aspect of the present invention. For
example, a software installation process in accordance with
the present invention and useful for uninstalling software
may include an additional configuration step to be executed
after the targeted files are written and/or overwritten,
and a method according to an aspect of the present
invention would include an additional step of recording
step metadata corresponding to the additional configuration
step.
[0068] It will be appreciated that the primary
difference between a software installation process that
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installs or updates a software program (such as the
software installation process shown in Figure 4) and a
software installation process that uninstalls a software
program (such as the software installation process shown in
Figure 5) is that where a software program is being
uninstalled, a backup record is usually not generated.
This is because the files needed to "un-uninstall" (that
is, to reinstall) the software program would generally be
available from the same source (such as a floppy disk, CD-
ROM or Internet download) as was used to install the
software program originally. In some instances, however, a
backup step may be provided in a software installation
process used for uninstalling a software program. For
example, such a step could back up data files that were
created by the software program that is to be uninstalled.
A corresponding method according to an aspect of the
present invention would include a step of recording step
metadata for the backup step.
[0069] Advantageously, the provision of a metadata
record (such as the above-described tracking files) in
accordance with an aspect of the present invention may
facilitate failure recovery steps in the event of a failure
during a software installation process such as the software
installation processes 401, 501 shown in Figures 4 and 5,
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CA 02539407 2006-03-13
respectively. A method according to an aspect of the
present invention preferably updates the tracking file
prior to commencement of each sequential step of the
software installation process. Accordingly, if a failure
occurs at any time during the software installation
process, the tracking file will reflect the step during
which the failure occurred.
[0070] As noted above, a method according to the present
invention preferably checks at initialization to determine
whether a tracking file for the software installation
process 401, 501 exists (steps 402, 502) and if so whether
the tracking file is marked as "complete" (steps 404, 504).
If a tracking file exists but is not marked "complete",
this indicates that a failure occurred during the most
recent previous iteration of the software installation
process 401, 501. Because the method 400, 500 records step
metadata for each sequential step in the software
installation process 401, 501, the tracking file will
indicate the step of the software installation process 401,
501 during which the failure occurred. This information
may facilitate the generation of a suitable failure
recovery response, especially in cases where the most
appropriate response depends on the sequential step during
which failure occurred. Thus, the creation of a tracking
CA 02539407 2006-03-13
file, updated for each sequential step of the software
installation process 401, 501, may permit detection of the
fact that a failure has occurred, identification of the
step of the software installation process 401, 501 during
which the failure occurred, and determination of
appropriate potential remedial actions.
[0071] In general, and without limitation, possible
remedial actions may include one or more of the following:
(a) automatically repairing the product and resetting the
system status; (b) allowing the failed update to be
reattempted (either from the first sequential step or
beginning at the sequential step during which failure
occurred); (c) preventing the user from applying additional
maintenance until the corrupted software program is
recovered (e.g. further corruption may be blocked while in
failure recovery mode); (c) warning the user that the
product is corrupted and that customer support must be
contacted; (d) if the failure occurred during an uninstall
process, allowing the user to re-attempt to uninstall the
update and preventing the user from uninstalling other
updates. Optionally, the software installation process may
automatically notify a customer support center and/or
transmit the tracking file to the customer support center.
The information contained in the tracking file may
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CA 02539407 2006-03-13
facilitate problem resolution by human customer support
technicians as well.
[0072] As has been described above, according to an
aspect of the present invention, a preferred method tracks
the current sequential step of the software installation
process, and persists this tracking data in a tracking
file. The method maintains this tracking file to track the
current sequential step, as well as identification of the
target software being installed (which may be a new
installation, an update, or an installation from backup as
part of an uninstall). In one embodiment, this tracking
file is called install.status.xml.
[0073] In one particular embodiment, the
install.status.xml file contains the following metadata:
<maintenancefilename>
<maintenancename>
<mode>
[0074] In a particular embodiment, the metadata <mode>
may be one of INSTALLBACKUP, INSTALLUPDATE, INSTALLCONFIG,
UNINSTALLCONFIG, UNINSTALLUPDATE, or COMPLETE.
[0075] In a preferred embodiment, the method dynamically
maintains the install.status.xml tracking file while the
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CA 02539407 2006-03-13
software installation process is executing to preserve the
current operational step. The method will update the mode
prior to commencement of each respective phase
(INSTALLBACKUP, INSTALLUPDATE, INSTALLCONFIG,
UNINSTALLCONFIG, UNINSTALLUPDATE, COMPLETE). The method
will set the COMPLETE mode at the end of any successful
install or uninstall. In the event of a catastrophic
failure, the tracking file will contain the last phase
executed, and the maintenance package filename and ID. The
method will detect this state the next time the method is
carried out and, based on the information, the method will
initiate a failure recovery process that may provide the
user with appropriate options and instructions to recover,
or may in some instances recover automatically.
[0076] An exemplary install.status.xml tracking file is
shown below:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<update maintenancefilename="6Ø1.0-AS-MIS-
SoftwareCoIA32-RP0000002.pak" maintenancename="FP8002"
mode="installbackup"/>
[0077] In this example, the tracking file indicates that
the relevant software installation process is currently
43
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executing the backup step. If a catastrophic failure were
to occur during this step, a method according to an aspect
of the present invention would detect the failure upon
reading the tracking file after being restarted, and would
determine appropriate recovery actions based on this
information (the step at which failure occurred).
[0078] An alternate embodiment of an install.status.xml
tracking file may contain the following metadata:
<maintenancefilename>
<maintenancename>
<INSTALLBACKUP>
<INSTALLUPDATE>
<INSTALLCONFIG>
<UNINSTALLCONFIG>
<UNINSTALLUPDATE>
<COMPLETE>
[0079] This file structure provides for entry of
specific data for each step of a software installation
process. Thus, instead of overwriting a single <mode>
metadata entry, a method according to the present invention
could record specific metadata for each entry. For
example, where the software installation process was the
44
CA 02539407 2006-03-13
software installation process 401 shown in Figure 4, an
exemplary install.status.xml file could be:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<updatemaintenancefilename="6Ø1.0-AS-MIS-
SoftwareCoIA32-RP0000002.pak" maintenancename="FP8002"
INSTALLBACKUP="DONE" INSTALLUPDATE="INPROGRESS"
INSTALLCONFIG= NOTSTART" UNINSTALLCONFIG="NOTDO"
UNINSTALLUPDATE="NOTDO" COMPLETE="NO" />
[0080] The metadata contained in the above exemplary
install.status.xml file shows that the software
installation process 401 has successfully completed the
backup step 410, as indicated by the metadata "DONE" for
INSTALLBACKUP. The above exemplary install.status.xml file
also shows that the software installation process 401 is
presently carrying out the write/overwrite/delete step 414
(as indicated by the metadata "INPROGRESS" for
INSTALLUPDATE) and has not commenced the configuration
process 418 (as indicated by the metadata "NOTSTART" for
"INSTALLCONFIG"). Because the software installation
process 401 has not yet completed successfully, the
metadata for COMPLETE is set to "NO". In addition, it
should be noted that because the software installation
CA 02539407 2006-03-13
process 401 is not an uninstall, the metadata for both
UNINSTALLCONFIG and UNINSTALLUPDATE are set to "NOTDO". An
install.status.xml file such as that shown above may be
useful where it is desired to retain a chronology of
completed steps of a software installation process. it
will be appreciated that after a method according to the
present invention has checked to confirm that the COMPLETE
metadata for an install.status.xml such as that shown above
is set to "YES" (indicating successful completion of the
most recent iteration), the method would then reinitialize
the install.status.xml file by setting the relevant
metadata to "NOTSTART" and setting the COMPLETE metadata to
"NO". The initialization actions taken by the method would
also set the metadata corresponding to a software
installation process not then being implemented (such as
the UNINSTALLCONFIG and UNINSTALLUPDATE metadata in the
case of a new installation) to "NOTDO".
[0081] In addition to the two exemplary tracking files
shown above, other types of tracking files may also be used
in accordance with the present invention. More
particularly, as much detail as is desired may be included
in the metadata structure for the relevant tracking file.
More detail may be desirable when installing some
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particular types of software programs than when installing
other types of software programs.
[0082] As was noted above, in the event of a
catastrophic failure, the tracking file will contain an
identification of the last known phase of the software
installation process. The tracking file is read whenever
software implementing a method according to the present
invention is initialized. Optionally, a particular software
program installed in accordance with the present invention
could be configured to read the tracking file for that
software program each time that software program is
initialized (for example, in the case of WAS, the relevant
tracking file would be read before a WAS server started).
[0083] If the tracking file indicates a previous failure
(e.g. the <mode> metadata in the first exemplary
update.status.xml file is not set to COMPLETE), then the
method may propose one or more remedial actions to the user
(or may undertake the remedial actions automatically), with
the precise remedial action(s) depending on the step during
which the failure occurred. Possible remedial actions for
each phase are outlined below.
[0084] Where the tracking file indicates that the
failure occurred during the backup step (e.g. <mode> in the
first exemplary update.status.xml file is set to
47
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INSTALLBACKUP), generally no updates will yet have been
applied to the system, and the system will usually not be
in a corrupted state. In this instance, the method will
preferably present the user with an option to autorecover
the system, as shown in Figure 6. A dialogue box is shown
generally at 600, and text 602 informs the user of the
failure condition. In the particular embodiment shown, the
text message reads "A failure from a previous install
attempt has been detected during the backup phase. The
failed maintenance package file name is AX3257-3009B. Click
RECOVER to initiate automated recovery, or contact support
for assistance." By selecting the "RECOVER" box 604, the
user can initiate an automated recovery process.
Alternatively, a user may select the "CANCEL" box 606 to
instruct the data processing system not to initiate the
automated recovery process.
[0085] In one exemplary embodiment, the automated
recovery process carries out the following steps: (a)
delete any backup files made during the step in which
failure occurred (one or more of these files may not be
valid because the failure occurred during the backup step);
(b) update any relevant product history metadata to reflect
that the software installation process for the relevant
software program was not completed; and (c) reset the step
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metadata in the tracking file (such as install.status.xml)
to indicate "COMPLETE".
[0086] Where the tracking file indicates that the
failure occurred during the write/overwrite step (e.g.
<mode> in the first exemplary update.status.xml file is set
to INSTALLUPDATE) or the reconfiguration step (e.g. <mode>
in the first exemplary update.status.xml file is set to
INSTALLCONFIG) of a new installation process or an update
process, the catastrophic failure occurred while the
software installation process was updating the data
processing system with new files or reconfiguring the data
processing system. The data processing system is therefore
very likely to be corrupted and may require support and/or
service to restore. In order to prevent further corruption
of the data processing system, no further software programs
should be installed on the system.
[0087] In a situation in which a catastrophic failure
occurred during the write/overwrite/delete step or the
reconfiguration step, the data processing system can
usually be recovered by uninstalling the software program
(that is, installing the backup created during the backup
step as described above, using a process such as software
installation process 501 shown in Figure 5). Therefore, in
an exemplary embodiment, the method presents a user of the
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data processing system with the option to uninstall the
software program. Referring now to Figure 7, a dialogue
box is shown generally at 700. Text 702 informs the user
of the failure condition. In the exemplary embodiment
shown in Figure 7, the text 702 reads "A failure from a
previous install attempt has been detected during the
installation and configuration phase. The failed
maintenance package file name is AX3257-3009B. New
maintenance packages cannot be installed until the system
is recovered. Click UNINSTALL to attempt to repair the
system by uninstalling this maintenance package.
Alternatively, contact support for assistance." By
selecting the "UNINSTALL" box 704, the user can cause the
data processing system to execute a software installation
process (such as the software installation process 501
depicted in Figure 5) to uninstall the software program for
which installation failed. Preferably, such an uninstall
process would be executed in accordance with a method
according to an aspect of the present invention (such as
the method 500 in Figure 5). Alternatively, by selecting
the "CANCEL" box 706, a user can instruct the data
processing system not to initiate the uninstall process.
Generally, uninstalling the failed package using the
presumably good backup will allow a user to restore the
CA 02539407 2006-03-13
data processing system to a non-corrupted state without the
need for external assistance.
[0088] Where the tracking file indicates that the
failure occurred during the write/overwrite/delete step
(e.g. <mode> in the first exemplary update.status.xml file
is set to UNINSTALLUPDATE) or the reconfiguration step
(e.g. <mode> in the first exemplary update.status.xml file
is set to UNINSTALLCONFIG) of an uninstall process, the
catastrophic failure occurred while the software
installation process was attempting to uninstall a software
program by installing the files from the backup record for
that software package or reconfiguring the data processing
system based on the backup record. The data processing
system is therefore likely to be corrupted and may require
support and/or service to restore it to a non-corrupted
state. In order to avoid further corruption of the data
processing system, no further software programs should be
installed on the system until the system is recovered.
[0089] Because the backup record will usually not have
been damaged by the catastrophic failure, a user of the
data processing system may make a second attempt to
uninstall the software program for which installation
previously failed (i.e. attempt to install the backup
again). If the second attempt to uninstall the software
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program is successful, then the system will be recovered.
Accordingly, in an exemplary embodiment, if the software
installation process detects that a failure occurred while
the software installation process was attempting to
uninstall a software program by installing the files from
the backup record for that software package or
reconfiguring the data processing system based on the
backup record, the method will present the user with an
option to attempt the uninstall process (installation of
backups) again.
[0090] Referring now to Figure 8, a dialogue box is
shown generally at 800. Text 802 informs the user of the
failure condition. In the exemplary embodiment shown in
Figure 8, the text 802 reads "A failure from a previous
uninstall attempt has been detected during the uninstall
phase. The failed maintenance package file name is AX3257-
3009B. Automated recovery is not possible. New maintenance
packages cannot be installed until the system is recovered.
Click UNINSTALL to attempt to repair the system by
uninstalling this maintenance package again. Alternatively,
contact support for assistance." By selecting the
"UNINSTALL" box 804, the user can cause the data processing
system to re-execute the software installation process for
uninstalling software (such as the software installation
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process depicted in Figure 5) that had previously failed.
Alternatively, by selecting the "CANCEL" box 806, a user
can instruct the data processing system not to retry the
uninstall process. Generally, uninstalling the failed
package using the presumably good backup will allow a user
to restore the data processing system to a non-corrupted
state without the need for external assistance.
Accordingly, if the second attempt to uninstall the
software is successful, the data processing system will
usually be restored to a non-corrupted state.
[0091] The user interface dialogue boxes shown in
Figures 6, 7 and 8 are exemplary only, and many other
dialogue boxes may be implemented within the scope of the
present invention. For example, in some instances the
dialogue boxes (such as dialogue boxes 600, 700 and 800)
may not present the user with buttons (such as buttons 604,
704 and 804) by which the user could automatically initiate
a recovery process. Instead, a dialogue box may direct the
user to manually initiate a recovery process. For example,
a message to the user could be "System is in failure
recovery mode. System must be recovered by uninstalling the
maintenance using the backup. Please go to the backup panel
and choose to uninstall". What is desirable is that the
data processing system should prevent the user from
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installing other software programs or installing different
backups until the system is recovered, since such actions
will usually compound the corruption of the data processing
system. The data processing system may prevent the user
from installing other software programs or installing
different backups by hiding these options from the user, or
by temporarily disabling these options until the data
processing system has been restored to a non-corrupted
state.
[0092] It will be appreciated that the particular
recovery options described herein are merely examples of
recovery options that may be desirable in particular
instances. Other recovery options may be available,
depending on the particular step at which the failure
occurred. The choice of recovery options may also be
influenced by the particular software program that is being
installed or uninstalled, and/or by the nature of the data
processing system. In addition, the level of detail in the
tracking file may also influence the number of recovery
options available and the selection of such recovery
options.
[0093] The present invention can take the form of an
entirely software embodiment or an embodiment containing
both hardware and software elements. In a preferred
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embodiment, the invention is implemented in software, which
includes but is not limited to firmware, resident software,
microcode, etc.
[0094] Furthermore, the invention can take the form of
a computer program product accessible from a computer-
usable or computer-readable medium providing program code
for use by or in connection with a computer or any
instruction execution system. For the purposes of this
description, a computer-usable or computer readable medium
can be any apparatus that can contain, store, communicate,
propagate, or transport the program for use by or in
connection with the instruction execution system,
apparatus, or device.
[0095] The medium can be an electronic, magnetic,
optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system
(or apparatus or device) or a propagation medium. Examples
of a computer-readable medium include a semiconductor or
solid state memory, magnetic tape, a removable computer
diskette, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory
(ROM), a rigid magnetic disk and an optical disk. Current
examples of optical disks include compact disk - read only
memory (CD-ROM), compact disk - read/write (CD-R/W) and
DVD.
CA 02539407 2006-03-13
[0096] As described above, the present invention may be
implemented on a data processing system. A data processing
system suitable for storing and/or executing program code
will include at least one processor coupled directly or
indirectly to memory elements through a system bus. The
memory elements can include local memory employed during
actual execution of the program code, bulk storage, and
cache memories which provide temporary storage of at least
some program code in order to reduce the number of times
code must be retrieved from bulk storage during execution.
[0097] Input/output or I/0 devices (including but not
limited to keyboards, displays, pointing devices, etc.) can
be coupled to the system either directly or through
intervening I/0 controllers.
[0098] Network adapters may also be coupled to the
system to enable the data processing system to become
coupled to other data processing systems or remote printers
or storage devices through intervening private or public
networks. Modems, cable modems and Ethernet cards are just
a few of the currently available types of network adapters.
[0099] While certain particular embodiments of aspects
of the present invention have been described in order to
facilitate understanding, these embodiments are exemplary
only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present
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invention. It will appreciated that numerous modifications
and adaptations to the described embodiments may be made
without departing from the scope of the present invention
as defined by the appended claims.
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