Software Upgrade Package Generation via Virtual Disk Mounting
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The existing software upgrade solutions result in large integrated compliance upgrade packages due to multiple optional components, making it difficult for customers to choose the correct package to meet their needs, as each component requires both an upgrade package and an OVA file, increasing the overall package size.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that generates a single integrated compliance upgrade package including OVA files with metadata, which unpacks and mounts disk files within a virtual machine, providing access to upgraded files without additional external files, thus reducing package size and allowing a single package to upgrade any or all optional components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If multiple integrated compliance upgrade packages are provided for different optional components, then each package has a smaller size, but customers cannot correctly choose the needed package and the overall solution becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple optional components into a single integrated compliance upgrade package. The package includes an OVA file that contains virtual disk files for multiple optional components (e.g., HA, CL, CMP) and a compliance script that automatically determines which components to upgrade. This consolidation reduces the number of separate packages from multiple to one, eliminating the selection complexity while maintaining manageable package size through virtualization.
Solution Approach 2:
The single integrated compliance upgrade package is designed to be universal and can upgrade any combination of optional components. The compliance script within the package automatically detects which optional components are present and need upgrading, making the package applicable to all customer scenarios without requiring customers to choose between different specialized packages.
2Reliability
If both upgrade packages and OVA files are included for each optional component, then complete upgrade capability is provided, but the overall package size becomes large
Solution Approach 1:
The patent embeds virtual disk files containing upgraded component files within the OVA file structure. The OVA file acts as a container that nests multiple virtual disk files (one for each optional component), which in turn contain the upgraded files. This nested structure allows complete upgrade capability to be packaged efficiently without requiring separate external upgrade packages for each component.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of including separate upgrade packages that contain differential updates, the patent uses OVA files that contain complete copies of all optional component files in their upgraded state. The compliance script then selectively copies only the necessary files to the target system, ensuring complete upgrade capability while managing package size through selective deployment.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus for upgrading a software product is provided. The apparatus generates an upgrade package of the software product, the upgrade package including an installation file of the software product, a metadata file and one or more executable files. The apparatus also executes the one or more executable files to perform operations for upgrading the software product. The operations include unpacking the installation file; adding a disk file in the installation file to a virtual machine based on a file name indicated in the metadata file, the disk file including upgraded files of the software product; mounting the disk file to a mount point of the virtual machine, wherein the mount point is indicated in the metadata file; and providing a path to access the upgraded files based on the mount point and a folder path of the upgraded files indicated in the metadata file.