Pre-generating Blank Application Instances to Reduce Delivery Time
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Solution Overview
Problem
Software companies face delays and customer dissatisfaction due to the time it takes to generate a free trial application instance, which can be faulty, leading to potential customers losing interest.
Innovation Solution
Pre-generating blank application instances in a repository, which can be quickly configured and assigned to customers upon request, with a system to refill the inventory and validate instances for quality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If application instances are generated on-demand when customers request free trials, then the system can avoid storing multiple instances, but the generation time delays customer satisfaction and instances may be faulty
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-generates blank application instances and stores them in a repository before customers request them. This preliminary action allows instances to be ready for immediate deployment when needed, eliminating generation delays and ensuring quality through pre-validation.
Solution Approach 2:
The application instance creation process is separated into two distinct phases: (1) pre-generation of blank instances with default configurations stored in a repository, and (2) customer-specific configuration applied at request time. This segmentation allows the time-consuming generation and validation to occur separately from customer waiting time.
2Loss of time
If the system pre-generates and stores blank application instances in a repository, then delivery time is reduced and quality is improved, but system complexity and storage requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
Blank application instances are pre-generated and stored in a repository with default configurations. This preliminary preparation eliminates the need for on-demand generation, reducing delivery time while the automated repository management minimizes the operational complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of generating unique instances for each customer request, the system creates copies of validated blank templates. This copying approach simplifies the generation process while maintaining consistency and quality across all instances.
3Productivity
If multiple application instances are stored in a repository for different customers, then service speed is improved, but storage space and maintenance resources are consumed
Solution Approach 1:
The instance storage is segmented into a shared repository of blank templates rather than storing complete customized instances for each customer. This segmentation reduces total storage requirements while maintaining fast provisioning through template copying.
Solution Approach 2:
A single blank application instance template serves multiple customers through copying and configuration. This universal template approach eliminates the need to store separate base instances for each customer, reducing storage consumption while maintaining high provisioning speed.
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques are described for providing an instance of a software application to a potential customer. The application instance can be configured specifically for the potential customer. When a customer request is received from the potential customer, the backend server can determine whether a blank application instance is available in an application instance repository. If available, the blank application instance can be configured using customer data of the potential customer and then provided to the potential customer. By retrieving a blank application instance from the repository rather than generating one on the fly, the backend server can process the customer request in a shorter period of time. In some examples, a clone job can be scheduled to create additional blank application instances to repopulate the application instance repository. The clone job can be created after a configured application instance is provided to the potential customer.