Account-based software upgrades in a multi-tenant ecosystem

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016371071-A1
Application number	US-201514741021-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jun 16, 2015
Priority date	Jun 16, 2015
Publication date	Dec 22, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A scalable infrastructure containing multiple computer devices may be used for executing a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) software application. The multiple computer devices of the infrastructure may be divided into several collections of computer devices. Each collection of computer devices is used to execute a different version of the SaaS software application (e.g., a “legacy” version, a “stable” version, and a new “development” version). Different user accounts belonging to a customer organization can then each use one of these SaaS software versions, with requests from each user account being interpreted and routed by an input management module of the infrastructure to the appropriate computer set that executes the appropriate SaaS software version. The appropriate computer set then provides the SaaS service to a user computer device or web server that serves the user account. The SaaS software version used by the user account can be upgraded by the user account.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method for software version management, the method comprising:
receiving a first service request from a first user account, the first service request requesting that a first service be provided to a first recipient computer device associated with the first user account, the first service to be a provided by a first version of a Software-as-a-Service software application; generating a first version-specific request based on the first service request; and transmitting the first version-specific request to a first computer set, the first computer set including one or more service computer devices, where each service computer device of the first computer set executes first instructions associated with the first version of the Software-as-a-Service software application, and wherein execution of the first instructions by the first computer set provides the first service to the first recipient computer device.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first recipient computer device is a personal user device that is logged into a local user account associated with the first user account, and further comprising interpreting an application programming interface (API) within the first service request prior to generating the first version-specific request.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first recipient computer device is a portal server that serves a network-based portal that is accessed by a personal user device through a local user account associated with the first user account, and further comprising interpreting at least one of a network-based interface or an application programming interface (API) used by the first service request prior to generating the first version-specific request.

4 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving a second service request from a second user account, the second service request requesting that a second service be provided to a second recipient computer device associated with the second user account, the second service to be a provided by a second version of a Software-as-a-Service software application; generating a second version-specific request based on the second service request; and transmitting the second version-specific request to a second computer set, the second computer set including one or more service computer devices, where each service computer device of the second computer set executes instructions associated with the second version of the Software-as-a-Service software application, and wherein execution of the instructions by the second computer set provides the second service to the second recipient computer device.

5 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the first recipient computer device is the second recipient computer device.

6 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the first user account and the second user account are both associated with a single user.

7 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving a first upgrade request associated with the first user account; locating a first user account dataset including personal data associated with the first user account; and making the first user account dataset accessible to an updated computer set, the update computer set including one or more service computer devices, where each service computer device of the update computer set executes updated instructions associated with an updated version of the Software-as-a-Service software application, and wherein execution of the updated instructions by the updated computer set provides an updated service to the first recipient computer device.

8 . The method of claim 7 , wherein making the first user account dataset accessible to the updated computer set includes converting at least part of the first user account dataset from a first format that is associated with the first version of the Software-as-a-Service software application to an updated format that is associated with the updated version of the Software-as-a-Service software application.

9 . The method of claim 7 , wherein making the first user account dataset accessible to a update computer set includes copying data from a first memory locally accessible to at least some of the first computer set to an update memory locally accessible to at least some of the updated computer set.

10 . The method of claim 7 , wherein making the first user account dataset accessible to a updated computer set includes identifying a first data chunk that is stored at a data storage system to the updated computer set, the data storage system communicatively coupled to both the first computer set and to the update computer set, the first data chunk including at least part of the first user account dataset.

11 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the first upgrade request is received from the first user account.

12 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the first upgrade request is received from an administrative user account associated with an organization associated with the first user account.

13 . A system for software version management, comprising:
a first computer set, the first computer set including a first one or more network-connected service computer devices executing a first set of instructions stored at a first memory associated with the first computer set, the first set of instructions for executing a first version of a software-as-a-service application to provide a first service to a first recipient computer device that is logged into the first user account upon receiving a first service request from the first user account; and a second computer set, the second computer set including a second one or more network-connected computer devices executing a second set of instructions stored at a second memory associated with the second computer set, the second set of instructions for executing a second version of a software-as-a-service application to provide a second service to a second recipient computer device that is logged into the second user account upon receiving a second service request from the second user account.

14 . The system of claim 13 , further comprising a data storage system communicatively coupled to the first computer set and also communicatively coupled to the second computer set, the data storage system storing a first user dataset associated with the first user account and also storing a second user dataset associated with the second user account.

15 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the data storage system is associated with an identity management system.

16 . The system of claim 14 , wherein the first user account and the second user account are associated with a single user, and wherein the first user dataset is the same as the second user dataset.

17 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the first recipient computer device and the second recipient computer device are the same recipient computer device.

18 . The system of claim 13 , further comprising an input management module that interprets the first service request and the second service request by interpreting at least one of an application programming interface (API) request or a network interface request.

19 . The system of claim 13 , further comprising an Update Management Module, wherein execution of the Update Management Module:
adjusts the first set of instructions so that the first version of a software-as-a-service application no longer provides the first service to the first recipient computer device, and adjusts the second set of instructions so that the second version of a software-as-a-serv

Assignees

• Dell Software Inc

Inventors

• Reese George Edward

Classifications

• G06F8/65 Primary

  Updates (security arrangements therefor G06F21/57) · CPC title

• H04L67/34

  involving the movement of software or configuration parameters  (network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416) · CPC title

• G06F8/71

  Version control (security arrangements therefor G06F21/57); Configuration management · CPC title

• H04L67/10

  in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network (software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46) · CPC title