JP2010113476A - Information processing apparatus, installation method, program, and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an installation method or the like properly managing the use of a module depending on the dependency relationship between the module and functions even in an environment unconnectable to a network. <P>SOLUTION: An information processing apparatus, which installs one or more program components (PC) included in one package in a storage device in package units, includes an installation means for installing only PCs yet to be installed, by reading a list of PCs registered in a setting file from a storage medium storing the setting file (inf file) attached to a package to be installed, and checking the list against a list stored in a package information storage means 74; and a program information update means for registering the installed PCs in a program information storage means 75 along with the number of installations, and increasing by one the number of installed PCs which are detected to overlap. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus that installs a program in an information processing apparatus, and more particularly to an information processing apparatus, an installation method, a program, and a storage medium that install one or more program components included in one package in units of packages. .

  In an information processing apparatus that executes a program to realize various functions, the function can be increased or decreased according to the increase or decrease in the number of programs to be installed, and the user can provide the necessary functions even after purchasing the information processing apparatus. By purchasing and installing, you can use its features.

  From the viewpoint of preventing unauthorized use of a program, a technique of using license information that gives authority to use an installed program has been considered (for example, see Patent Document 1). In Patent Document 1, an information processing apparatus that stores information in a removable recording medium and permits use when the recording medium is attached to the information processing apparatus, further stores authentication information of the recording medium in the information processing apparatus. Techniques are disclosed.

  By the way, such a program may adopt a configuration in which a plurality of modules cooperate to realize one or more functions, and may be mounted on a computer or an embedded device. For example, when the function A is realized by cooperation of the modules a1, a2, and a3, the modules a1 to a3 are installed for the function A. If another function B is to be realized, one or more modules b1 necessary for the function B may be installed, and the user can use the necessary function when necessary.

However, a complicated relationship often occurs between a function and a module, and it is difficult for a user to grasp a module to be installed in order to realize a necessary function. With respect to this point, a method for implementing a program in which a server transmits a group of modules necessary for updating embedded software to an electronic device as a client in consideration of the dependency relationship between program modules is disclosed (for example, Patent Document 2). reference.).
JP 2006-279935 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-13587

  However, if the electronic device described in Patent Document 2 cannot communicate with the server, in other words, there is a problem that a new function cannot be installed in a stand-alone state. This is because in order to be able to use a new function even in an environment where communication is not possible, it is necessary to store in advance the module group considered to be necessary in the electronic device. May be freely used or misused. For this reason, in order to adopt the method of storing the module group in the electronic device in advance, there is a mechanism that even if it is installed, an unauthorized user cannot use it and an authorized user can use it. Necessary.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus, an installation method, a program, and a storage medium that can appropriately manage the use of a module according to the dependency relationship between the module and the function even in an environment that cannot be connected to a network. And

  In view of the above problems, the present invention is an information processing apparatus that installs one or more program components included in one package into a storage device in units of packages, and is a program included in a package that is already installed in the storage device Package information storage means for storing a list of components, program information storage means for storing the number of installations for each installed program component, and a storage medium for storing a setting file attached to a package to be installed, the setting A duplicate program detection means for reading a list of program components registered in the file, matching the list stored in the package information storage means, and detecting program components already installed; An installation unit that installs only program components that are not installed, and the installed program component are registered in the program information storage unit together with the number of installations, and the installation number of program components that are detected to be duplicated is increased by one. And a program information updating unit.

  It is possible to provide an information processing apparatus, an installation method, a program, and a storage medium that can appropriately manage the use of a module according to the dependency relationship between the module and the function even in an environment that cannot be connected to the network.

The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
First, a program implementation mode (installation mode) in the image forming apparatus 100 of the present application will be described. In the present embodiment, the image forming apparatus 100 including the information processing apparatus will be described as an example. However, the image forming apparatus 100 can be preferably applied to an electronic apparatus including the information processing apparatus and an information processing apparatus itself such as a personal computer.

  FIG. 1 is an example of a diagram for schematically explaining an outline of installation in the image forming apparatus 100 of the present embodiment. First, the definition of words will be explained. In this embodiment, the concept of installation, activation, and validation is used for program implementation. Installation refers to storing a program component in a storage device (HDD 15 described later) of the image forming apparatus 100. Activation means giving an authority to use the program in the image forming apparatus 100. In principle, a program component installed by activation is validated (makes it startable). The activation means that the program component can be activated at any time when it is activated or when there is a user's activation operation.

  A sales package may be activated after being installed, or may be automatically activated upon installation. Whether or not activation is necessary is determined by the attribute of the sales package (specified in the inf file). Sales packages that require activation after installation cannot be activated and program components cannot be launched without activation. In this case, it is also activated simultaneously by activation.

From the above, there is the following relationship between activation and activation.
・ Activation and activation by sales package installation that is automatically activated at the time of installation ・ Activation after activation after installation of sales package that requires activation after installation ・ Activation and activation are different Process sales package Validated by validation, invalidated by invalidation Referring to FIG. The sales package A includes two function packages 1 and 2. The sales package is a sales unit and includes one or more function packages. A function package is a minimum unit of installation and corresponds to a program component on a one-to-one basis (hereinafter, in principle, a program component is referred to as a function package).

  In order to realize the implementation of the program of the present embodiment, the image forming apparatus 100 stores sales package information 74 and functional package information 75. As shown in the figure, until the sales package A is installed, no information is registered in the sales package information 74 and the function package information 75, or the sales package information 74 and the function package information 75 themselves are not stored. . That is, the sales package information 74 is a file for registering a sales package sold to the image forming apparatus 100, and the function package information 75 is a file for registering a function package included in the sold sales package. Therefore, by referring to the sales package information 74 and the function package information 75, it is possible to detect a sales package and a function package that have already been sold.

  Note that the “name” of the sales package is a name that can be easily managed by the user, “ID” is unique identification information, “activation” is either “○” or “×”, and “valid” is “○” One of the states “X” is taken, and the ID of the function package included in the sales package is registered in the “function ID list”. Similarly, “name” of the function package information 75 is a name that can be easily managed by the user, “ID” is unique identification information, “number of sales” is the number sold, and “effective number of sales” is the effective number of sales. The number of function packages, “valid”, takes either “O” or “×”.

  Assume that the sales package A is installed in a situation where no information is registered in the sales package information 74 and the function package information 75. The plug-in management unit 71 described later refers to the sales package information 74 (confirms that it is not stored), and installs the function packages 1 and 2 included in the sales package A.

  Note that what is the functional package included in the sales package A (functional packages 1 and 2 in FIG. 1) is a program component included in the sales package, but an inf file is included in each sales package. Since it is attached, each function package included by referring to the inf file can be specified. In the inf file, the name of the sales package, the ID, the function ID list, the version of the sales package, the version of each function package included in the sales package, whether activation is necessary, and the like are registered.

  In the post-installation sales package information 74, the name “dist1”, the ID “1111”, the activation “◯”, the valid “O”, and the function ID list “2111, 2222” are registered as information about the sales package A. .

  Whether or not to activate is determined as an attribute of the sales package, and is determined at the time of sales, for example. Since FIG. 1 shows the sales package to be activated, the activation column is “◯”. Also, the valid column becomes “◯” when activated (when activated).

  In the function package information 75, information on function packages that are installed when the sales package A is installed is registered. Therefore, the names “func1” “func2”, IDs “2111” “2222”, sales numbers “1” “1”, valid sales numbers “1” “1”, valid “O” and “O” are registered. Yes. The number of sales indicates the number of sales of each function package, and the number of effective sales indicates the number of function packages activated. This is because a plurality of the same function packages may be sold. Since the sales package A includes one function package 1 and one function package 2, the number of sales increases by one, and since each is activated, the number of effective sales also increases by one. The valid column is “◯” if there is even one valid sale.

  Next, installation of a sales package that is installed but not activated will be described with reference to FIG. The installation target is the same as in FIG. Corresponding to the installation of the sales package A, the function packages 1 and 2 are installed, but the sales package A is not activated. For this reason, the activation column of the sales package information 74 after installation is “x”, and as a result, the valid column is also “x”.

  Similarly, in the function package information 75, since the function packages 1 and 2 are sold, the number of sales is “1” and “1”, but since the activation is not performed, the valid columns are “x” and “x”, respectively. .

  As described above, when a plurality of function packages are installed on a sales package basis, the program implementation form differs depending on the duplication of function packages, version, necessity / unnecessity of activation, and the like. The image forming apparatus 100 according to the present exemplary embodiment appropriately mounts a program according to such a situation.

  By setting the installation unit as the unit of the sales package, the user who installs in the function unit does not need to be aware of the unit of the program component which is the development unit. Further, by setting the unit of the sales package as a unit valuable to the user, an information processing apparatus that is easy to use for the user can be obtained.

[Image forming apparatus 100]
The image forming apparatus 100 will be briefly described. FIG. 3 shows an example of a hardware configuration diagram of the image forming apparatus 100. The image forming apparatus 100 includes a controller 50, a plotter 27, a scanner 28, a fax control unit 26, and other hardware resources 29 connected by a serial interbus such as a PCI bus, a PCI-X bus, or a PCI-Express. It becomes. The controller 50 is connected to the operation unit 24. A storage medium (memory card 30) for storing the installation management program 20 is shown.

  The controller 50 controls the entire image forming apparatus 100, that is, uses the fax control unit 26, the plotter 27, the scanner 28, and other hardware resources 29 to read a document, print, send / receive a facsimile, input from the operation unit 24, etc. It is a control part which processes.

  The plotter 27 is a black-and-white plotter and / or a one-drum color plotter, and forms an image for each page based on print job data and image data read by the scanner 28 and transfers the image onto a sheet. For example, a toner image formed on a photosensitive drum or the like is transferred onto a sheet using an electrophotographic process using a laser beam, and is fixed by a fixing device with heat and pressure and output.

  The scanner 28 optically scans the document placed on the contact glass, A / D converts the reflected light, performs image processing such as error diffusion and gamma conversion, and converts the digital data into a predetermined resolution. Convert to generate image data.

  The fax control unit 26 is connected to a public communication network via an NCU (Network Control Unit), and performs facsimile transmission / reception according to a communication procedure (communication protocol) corresponding to, for example, a G3 or G4 standard facsimile. The fax control unit 26 performs signal processing such as data compression and modulation on the image data and transmits it, and decompresses the image data received from the other party and corrects the error to restore the image data.

  The controller 50 includes a CPU 11, a north bridge (hereinafter referred to as NB13), a system memory (hereinafter referred to as MEM-P12), a south bridge (hereinafter referred to as SB), and a local memory (hereinafter referred to as MEM-C14). , An ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) 16, a hard disk drive (hereinafter referred to as HDD 15), a wireless USB host 17, a NIC (Network Interface Card) 18, a wireless LAN I / F 19, a USB host 22, and a memory card I / F23. The ASIC 16 and the NB 13 are connected by an AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port).

  The CPU 11 controls the entire image forming apparatus 100 via the NB 13 that controls transmission of data distributed to a bus connecting the MEM-P 12, the ASIC 16, the wireless USB host 17, and the like.

  The NB 13 is a bridge IC for connecting the CPU 11 to the MEM-P 12 and AGP. The MEM-P 12 is a system memory used as a drawing memory of the image forming apparatus 100.

  The MEM-C 14 is a local memory used as a copy image buffer and a code buffer, and the ASIC 16 includes a large number of registers and logic circuits, and functions as a head pulse generation unit in addition to a control unit of each motor driver. The ASIC 16 also serves as a bridge for connecting the AGP, HDD 15 and MEM-C 14 respectively.

  The operation unit 24 is an operation unit that receives an input operation from a user and performs display for the user. The operation unit 24 has a touch panel as an input unit in addition to a keyboard, and is also used as a display unit such as an LCD (liquid crystal display). Yes.

  The HDD 15 is a storage unit for storing image data, programs, font data, and forms, but may be a non-volatile memory such as a flash memory or an MRAM (Magnetoresistive Random Access Memory). In this embodiment, the HDD 15 stores an installation management program 20 for managing activation, sales package information 74, function package information 75, activation information 77, and a plug-in component 73.

  AGP is a bus interface for graphics accelerator cards that has been proposed to speed up graphics processing, and speeds up processing of graphics accelerator cards by directly accessing system memory with high throughput.

  The NIC 18 is, for example, an Ethernet (registered trademark) card, and executes processing according to a protocol defined in the physical layer and data link layer of the OSI basic reference model. A mail application described later executes an upper protocol such as SMTP or POP3 to send / receive e-mail, or a Web application executes a protocol such as FTP or HTTP to transfer a license file to the license server 200 or the image forming apparatus 100. Send and receive between.

  The wireless LAN I / F 19 conforms to a communication standard such as IEEE 802.11a / b / g, and connects to a network such as a LAN via an access point.

  The IEEE 1394 I / F 21 is an interface that communicates with a device having the IEEE 1394 communication standard, and a plurality of devices can be connected in a daisy chain. It is suitable for transmitting large-sized data such as a moving image, and a connected device is, for example, a digital camera or a video camera.

The USB host 22 is an IC called a USB controller, which is controlled by a device driver (driver software) executed by the CPU 11 to configure a USB I / F and communicate with, for example, a connected USB memory 31. Similarly, the memory card I / F 23 is an interface that reads data from the memory card 30 and writes data to a recording medium. The memory card 30 is, for example, an SD card, a multimedia card, an xD card, etc. [Software module]
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a software module of the image forming apparatus 100. The software module is configured to be connected to the above-described plotter 27, scanner 28, and other hardware resources 29 via a hardware hardware (HW) I / F, and mainly includes a platform 80 and an application 70.

  The platform 80 interprets a processing request from the application 70 and generates a hardware resource acquisition request, and a system that manages one or more hardware resources and arbitrates the acquisition request from the control service 55. It includes a resource manager (SRM 63), an OS (Operating System) 64, and an installation management unit 60.

  The control service 55 is formed of a plurality of service modules, and includes an SCS (system control service) 62, an ECS (engine control service) 56, an MCS (memory control service) 57, an OCS (operation panel control service) 58, An FCS (fax control service) 59 and an NCS (network control service) 61 are included. The platform 80 has an API (Application Program Interface) that receives a processing request from the application 70 by a predefined program.

  The OS 64 is a general-purpose operating system such as LINUX (registered trademark) or UNIX (registered trademark), and can execute each software of the platform 80 and the application 70 in parallel as processes. The OS 64 includes various device drivers that communicate with the NIC 18, the wireless LAN I / F 19, the IEEE 1394 I / F 21, the USB host 22, and the memory card I / F 23.

  The SRM 63 controls the system and manages resources together with the SCS 62. The process of the SRM 63 performs use scheduling of hardware resources in response to a request from an upper layer, and controls operations based on the hardware resources.

  The SCS 62 performs application management, control of the operation unit 24, system screen display, LED display, resource management, interrupt application control, and the like. The ECS 56 controls the hardware resource engine.

  The MCS 57 acquires and releases an image memory, uses the HDD 15, compresses and decompresses image data, and the like. The FCS 59 has APIs for performing facsimile transmission / reception using PSTN / ISDN network from each application layer of the system controller, registration / quotation of various facsimile data stored in the backup SRAM, facsimile reading, facsimile reception printing, and fusion transmission / reception. provide.

  The NCS 61 is a process for providing a service that can be commonly used for the applications 70 that require network I / O. The NCS 61 distributes the data received from the network side according to each protocol to each application 70, or from the application 70. Mediates when sending data to the network side. Specifically, it has various daemons for protocols such as FTP, and client functions for the same protocol.

  The OCS 58 controls the operation unit (operation panel) 24 serving as information transmission means between the user A and the main body control. The OCS 58 acquires a key press from the operation unit 24 as a key event, transmits a key event function corresponding to the acquired key to the SCS 62, and displays various screens on the display unit 25 in response to a request from the application 70 or the control service 55. A drawing function for drawing output, a function for controlling the operation unit, and the like are configured from a portion of the OCS function library registered in advance.

  The application 70 includes a mail application 49 for sending and receiving electronic mail, a printer application 51 for printer, a copy application 52 for copying, a fax application 53 for facsimile, and a scanner application 54 for the scanner 28. Yes.

  The control service 55 is provided with an installation management unit 60. The installation management unit 60 operates as a process in the control service 55, and executes various processes such as various plug-in components 73 constituting the function package, activation, deactivation, and activation / inactivation.

[Installation Management Unit 60]
FIG. 5 shows an example of a functional block diagram of the installation management unit 60. The installation management unit 60 includes a plug-in management unit 71 and a plug-in starter 72 that are executed by the CPU 11 executing the installation management program 20 or by a predetermined arithmetic circuit.

  The plug-in management unit 71 executes processes such as installation / uninstallation, activation / deactivation, activation / inactivation of various plug-in components 73. The plug-in starter 72 refers to the activation information 77 and executes activation processing of each plug-in component 73 when the system of the image forming apparatus 100 is activated. That is, the plug-in starter 72 activates the plug-in component 73 registered in the activation information 77.

  The plug-in component 73, the sales package information 74, and the function package information 75 are stored in the HDD 15, for example. The plug-in component 73 refers to various programs installed in the image forming apparatus 100 and corresponds to the function package managed by the plug-in management unit 71 on a one-to-one basis.

[Functional Block Diagram of Plug-in Manager 71]
FIG. 6 shows an example of a functional block diagram of the plug-in management unit 71. For example, the installation unit 81 installs the sales package stored in the memory card 30 in the HDD 15. Specifically, the function package (plug-in component 73) included in the sales package is installed for each sales package.

  The activation unit 82 activates the sales package and the function package included in the sales package in accordance with the attribute of the sales package or a user instruction. The validation unit 83 validates the function package. Since installation may include activation, and activation may include activation, the upper function includes the lower function as illustrated.

  Similarly, an uninstall unit 87 that deletes the function package from the HDD 15, a deactivation unit 88 that performs deactivation, and an invalidation unit 89 that invalidates the function package are provided. Details will be described later. The processing content determination unit 91 determines the processing content for uninstalling, invalidating, or doing nothing at the time of uninstallation.

  In addition, the sales package information update unit 93 updates the sales package information 74, and the functional package information update unit 92 updates the functional package information 75. The duplicate function detection unit 84 refers to the inf file, and detects a duplicate of the already installed function package among the function packages included in the sales package to be installed. The version determination unit 85 determines which version is newer about the duplicate function package. The deletion unit 86 deletes function packages that are no longer included in the sales package due to the update. Hereinafter, implementation of the program of this embodiment using these functional blocks will be described in detail.

[Various implementations of the program]
Hereinafter, various implementation modes of various programs according to the presence / absence of an installed sales package, the presence / absence of activation at the time of installation, and the like will be described.
<No installation or activation>
The implementation mode of the program activated at the time of installation will be described with reference to FIG. The sales package B is already installed in the image forming apparatus 100. For this reason, the information on the sales package B is registered in the sales package information 74. As shown in the drawing, the sales package B is not activated and the valid column is “x”.

  The sales package B includes two function packages 2 and 3. For this reason, information on the function packages 2 and 3 is registered in the function package information 75 respectively, but since the sales package B is not activated, the number of effective sales of the function packages 2 and 3 is “0” and “3”, respectively. 0 ”.

  When the sales package A that does not require activation is sold in this state, the installation management unit installs only the necessary function package. The duplicate function detection unit 84 detects a duplicate of a function package already installed among the function packages included in the sales package to be installed. The sales package A includes function packages 1 and 2, and the already installed sales package includes function packages 2 and 3. Therefore, the duplicate function detection unit 84 detects that the function packages 2 are duplicated. The installation unit 81 does not install the detected function package 2.

  Therefore, the installation unit 81 installs only the function package 1. Also, the activation unit 82 refers to the inf file to detect that the sales package is activated at the time of installation, activates the installed function package 1, and the activation unit activates the function package 1. . Note that the sales package B remains inactive.

  The sales package information update unit 93 registers the information of the function package 1 in the sales package information 74, and sets the valid column to “◯” at the time of registration. Further, the function package information update unit 92 registers information on the newly installed function package 1 in the function package information 75. Since the function package 1 has not been registered in the function package information 75 until then, a new name or the like is registered. The number of sales is “1”, and since the sales package A is activated, the number of effective sales is “1”.

  On the other hand, since the function package 2 is already registered in the function package information 75, the number of sales is increased by one to “2”. On the other hand, the function package 2 that has already been installed is not activated, and only the newly installed function package 2 is activated, so the number of effective sales remains “1”.

  As described above, one of the features of the image forming apparatus 100 of the present embodiment is that the already installed function package is not installed, and only the number of sales of the function package information 75 increases.

<Installation / activation required>
An implementation mode of a program that is not activated at the time of installation will be described with reference to FIG. Activation refers to authorizing use authority, generating activation information indicating that use authority has been authorized, and the like. The activation information is, for example, authentication information in which the serial number of the program component is associated with the image forming apparatus 100 or user identification information. With the activation information, even if only the program component is copied, it can be made difficult to use in other information processing apparatuses.

  In FIG. 8, the sales package A is installed in a state where the sales package B is already installed as in FIG. 7, but the sales package A is not activated in FIG. The sales package information 74 and the function package information 75 before the sales package A is installed are the same as those in FIG.

  When the sales package A that requires activation is sold in this state, the duplicate function detection unit 84 detects that the function package 2 is duplicated, and the installation unit 81 detects only the function package 1 that is not duplicated. install. Further, the activation unit 82 detects that the sales package is not activated at the time of installation, and therefore does not activate the function package 1. Note that the sales package B remains inactive.

  The sales package information update unit 93 registers the information of the function package 1 in the sales package information 74, and sets the valid column to “x” at the time of registration. Further, the function package information update unit 92 registers information on the newly installed function package 1 in the function package information 75. Since the function package 1 has not been registered in the function package information 75 until then, a new name or the like is registered. The number of sales is “1”, and the sales package A is not activated, so the number of effective sales is “0”.

  On the other hand, since the function package 2 is already registered in the function package information 75, the number of sales is increased by one to “2”. On the other hand, the already installed function package 2 is not activated, and the newly installed function package 2 is not activated, so the number of effective sales is “0” without increasing.

<No installation or activation required (different versions)>
The installation when the same function package is already installed but the version is different will be described with reference to FIG.
In FIG. 9, the sales package B is already installed in the image forming apparatus 100 and activated. For this reason, in the sales package B of the sales package information 74, the “activation” and “valid” fields are “◯”.

  Since the sales package B includes two function packages 2 and 3, information on the function packages 2 and 3 is registered in the function package information 75, respectively. Since the sales package B is activated, the effective sales numbers of the function packages 2 and 3 are “1” and “1”, respectively.

  In this state, the sales package A that does not require activation is sold and installed. Here, the duplicate function detection unit 84 detects that the function package 2 is duplicated. However, if there is a duplicate function package, the version determination unit 85 determines which version is newer. In FIG. 9, since the version of the function package 2 of the sales package A is “2” and the version of the function package 2 of the sales package B is “1”, the already installed function package 2 has an older version. . For this reason, the installation unit 81 installs the function package 2 included in the sales package A even if they overlap. Thereby, the function package 2 can be upgraded.

  The registration / update of the sales package information 74 and the function package information 75 is as described above. That is, the sales package information update unit 93 registers information on the functional package 1 in the sales package information 74. Since the sales package A does not require activation, the activation column is “◯” and the valid column is “◯”.

  Further, the function package information update unit 92 registers the information of the function package 1 in the function package information 75. Since the function package 1 does not require activation, the number of effective sales is “1” and the valid column is “◯”. If the function package information 75 has a version field, the version of the function package is registered.

  Further, since the function package 2 is included in the sales package A, the function package information update unit 92 increases the number of sales of the function package 2 by one to “2” and increases the number of effective sales by one to “2”. " When different versions of the same function package are installed, the version after the upgrade is registered.

<Installation / activation required (different versions)>
Similarly, a case where activation is necessary when the same function package is installed in different versions will be described with reference to FIG. The sales package information 74 and the function package information 75 before installation are the same as in FIG. Accordingly, the installation unit 81 installs the function package 2 included in the sales package A with a new version even if the function package 2 has already been installed.

  The sales package information update unit 93 registers information on the function package 1 in the sales package information 74. Since the sales package A requires activation, the activation column is “x” and the valid column is “x”.

  Further, the function package information update unit 92 registers the information of the function package 1 in the function package information 75. Since the function package 1 requires activation, even if the number of sales is “1”, the number of effective sales is “0” and the valid column is “x”.

  Further, since the function package 2 is included in the sales package A, the function package information update unit 92 increases the number of sales of the function package 2 by one to “2”. However, since the sales package A requires activation, the number of effective sales does not increase and remains “1”.

<No installation or activation required (version 2)>
The case where the same function package has already been installed and the versions of both are different, but the version of the function package to be installed later will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 11, the description of the same parts as those in FIG. 9 is omitted.

  In FIG. 11, since the version of the function package 2 included in the sales package A to be installed is “1” and the version of the function package 2 included in the sales package B is “2”, the already installed function package. Version 2 is newer. In such a case, it is not necessary to install the function package 2 included in the sales package A.

  The changes in the sales package information 74 and the function package information 75 due to the installation are the same as those in FIG.

<Installation / activation required (different versions 2)>
A case where activation of the sales package A is necessary in the same situation as in FIG. 11 will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 12, the description of the same parts as those in FIG. 10 is omitted. In FIG. 12, since the version of the function package 2 included in the sales package A to be installed is “1” and the version of the function package 2 included in the sales package B is “2”, the already installed function package Version 2 is newer. In such a case, it is not necessary to install the function package 2 included in the sales package A.

  The changes in the sales package information 74 and the function package information 75 due to the installation are the same as those in FIG.

<Update>
Describe the update of the same sales package. FIG. 13 is an example of a diagram illustrating the update of the sales package A. Even when a sales package is updated, each function package is installed as before. The update implementation is a situation that occurs when the same sales package is installed regardless of whether the user is conscious or unconscious, and is a form of installation.

  The user installs (updates) the new version “2” of the sales package A in a state where the sales package A of the version “1” is already installed in the image forming apparatus 100. The sales package A includes function packages 1 and 2, but the version of the function package 2 is “2” and there is no change. In such a case, only the function package with the new version needs to be installed.

  Therefore, the version determination unit 85 compares the versions for each function package, and requests the installation unit 81 to install only the function package with the new version. From the above, the installation unit 81 installs only the function package 1 of the sales package A.

  In the case of an update, the sales package information 74 and the function package information 75 change only in the version column. The sales package information update unit 93 updates the version column of the sales package information 74 from “1” to “2”, and the function package information update unit 92 updates the version column of the function package 1 from “1” to “2”. Update to Since the function package 2 has not been updated, the version column of the function package 2 is not changed.

<Update 2>
Another form of updating the same sales package will be described with reference to FIG. When updating, some or all of the functional packages may be renewed. In such a case, the same sales package may be switched or added to a different function package due to the update.

  In FIG. 14, the sales package A of the version “2” does not include the function package 2 included in the sales package A of the version “1”, and newly includes the function package 3. In such a case, the function package 2 does not need to be installed. Therefore, the deletion unit 86 detects a function package that is included in the new version of the sales package and is not included in the old version of the sales package, and deletes the function package. Deletion means erasing from the HDD 15 and is synonymous with uninstallation.

  The installation unit 81 installs the function package 3 included only in the new version of the sales package 1. Whether to activate this function package 3 depends on the situation of the sales package before the update.

  In FIG. 14, since the function package 2 is no longer included in the new sales package A, the deletion unit 86 deletes the function package 2. In addition, the installation unit 81 installs the function package 1 with the new version and the newly added function package 3.

  The sales package information update unit 93 updates the version column of the sales package information 74 from “1” to “2”, and the function package information update unit 92 updates the version column of the function package 1 from “1” to “2”. Update to In addition, the function package information update unit 92 deletes the information of the function package 2 from the function package information 75. Then, information on the newly installed function package 3 is registered. Since the valid column of the functional package 2 before the update is “◯”, the number of valid sales of the functional package 3 is “1”, and the valid column is also “◯”.

<Installation procedure>
FIG. 15 is an example of a flowchart for explaining the above installation procedure. In FIG. 15, it is assumed that installation is started by an instruction from the user (S10).

  First, the installation unit 81 determines whether access to the HDD 15 is possible (S20). “Accessible” means, for example, the authority to access. If access is not possible, it is determined whether or not access to the HDD 15 can be enabled (S30). Making access possible means, for example, newly logging in with a login name having access authority or adjusting the security of the HDD 15 (S40). If the HDD 15 cannot be finally accessed (No in S30), the process in FIG.

  When access to the HDD 15 is possible (Yes in S20, Yes in S30), a sales package to be installed is prepared (S50). There are several methods for preparing a sales package, for example, downloading from a server, decompressing a file stored in the HDD 15, loading a recording medium such as the memory card 30 into the image forming apparatus 100, and reading out. it can. In either case, an inf file is attached (stored in each storage medium).

  The installation unit 81 confirms the validity of the prepared sales package (S60). For example, whether the key code entered by the user matches the key code stored in the sales package, whether it is within the usable period stored in the sales package, Whether it is associated with an identification number or not is determined.

  When the validity is not confirmed (No in S70), the installation unit 81 performs post-processing when an attempt is made to install an illegal sales package (S80). For example, an error message is displayed.

  When the validity is confirmed (Yes in S70), the installation unit 81 acquires information on the sales package from the information file (* .inf) of the sales package (S90). In the inf file, the name of the sales package, the ID, the function ID list, the version of the sales package, the version of each function package included in the sales package, and the necessity / unnecessity of activation are registered. The installation unit 81 reads information on the function package from the inf file (S100).

Then, the duplicate function detection unit 84 confirms whether or not the function package included in the sales package has already been installed in the image forming apparatus 100 (S110), and the installation unit 81 determines for each function package included in the sales package. Processing corresponding to the installation status of the image forming apparatus 100 is executed (S120). That is,
• Install feature packages that are not yet installed.
・ If it is installed but the version is old, install a new function package.
・ Do not install if installed and the version is equal or higher.
-Delete function packages that are included in the new version of the sales package and are not included in the old version of the sales package.

  Next, the sales package information update unit 93 updates the installed sales package information 74, and the function package information update unit 92 updates the function package information 75 regarding the installed function package (S130). The installation unit 81 or the like repeatedly executes the above processing for each function package.

<Activation>
Activation of a sales package that requires activation after installation will be described with reference to FIG. As described with reference to FIG. 2, a sales package that requires activation cannot be activated unless it is activated even if installed in the HDD 15. In the sales package information 74 of the sales package A that is installed but not activated, the activation column is “x” and the valid column is “x”. Naturally, all the fields of the effective sales number of the function package information 75 are also “0”.

  For example, the activation unit 82 activates the sales package A according to an instruction from the user. It is activated at the same time by activation. When activated, the sales package information update unit 93 registers “◯” in the activation column and the valid column of the sales package information 74, respectively. Further, the function package information update unit 92 increases the number of valid sales of the function packages 1 and 2 to “1”, and registers “◯” in the valid column.

<Enable>
“Activation” refers to a state where activation and final use are permitted. Although it may be activated but not activated, if activated, activation is completed with a simple process, so the sales package should be in the state immediately before it can be activated. Can be allowed to start at any time.

  FIG. 17 is an example of a diagram for explaining the activation of a sales package. Since the sales package A has already been activated but has not been activated, "O" is registered in the activation column and "X" is registered in the valid column of the sales package information 74, respectively. Since the sales package is not activated, the column for the effective number of sales of the function information package is “0”, and the valid column is also “x”.

  For example, the activation unit 83 activates the sales package A triggered by an instruction from the user, a timer, access to the HDD 15, and the like. That is, the function packages 1 and 2 are activated.

  When validated, the sales package information update unit 93 registers “O” in the valid column of the sales package information 74. Further, the function package information update unit 92 increases the number of valid sales of the function packages 1 and 2 to “1”, and registers “◯” in the valid column.

<Activation (some function packages are shared)>
Since activation is performed for each sales package, when activation is performed in a state where a plurality of sales packages are installed, a function package included in the activated sales package may be included in another sales package. However, even in this case, only one function package is activated.

  FIG. 18 is an example of a diagram illustrating the activation of a sales package that requires activation after installation. Sales packages A and B are installed in the image forming apparatus 100, but the sales package A is not activated and the sales package B is activated. Accordingly, the sales package information 74 of the sales package A that has been installed but not activated has the activation column “X”, the valid column “X”, and the sales package information 74 of the sales package B is activated. The column of “○” is “◯”, and the valid column is “○”.

  Correspondingly, in the function package information 75, the number of sales of the function package 1 is “1”, the number of effective sales is “0”, and the valid column is “x”. Further, the number of sales of the function package 2 is “2”, the number of effective sales is “1”, and the field of “valid” is “◯”. The number of sales of the function package 3 is “1”, the number of effective sales is “1”, and the valid column is “◯”.

  For example, the activation unit 82 activates the sales package A according to an instruction from the user. Although activated at the same time by the activation, the function package 2 is already activated and does not need to be activated.

  When activated, the sales package information update unit 93 registers “◯” in the activation column and the valid column of the sales package information 74, respectively. Further, the function package information update unit 92 increases the number of effective sales of the function package 1 to “1” and registers “◯” in the valid column. Also, the effective sales number of the function package 2 is increased by 1 to “2”.

<Enable (some function packages are shared)>
The case where only activation is performed and activation is performed later is the same as the case where activation and activation are performed simultaneously.

  FIG. 19 is an example of a diagram for explaining activation after activation. Sales packages A and B are installed in the image forming apparatus 100, but the sales package A is not activated, and the sales package B is activated and validated. Therefore, the sales package information 74 of the sales package A that has been installed but not activated has the activation column “◯”, the valid column “X”, and the sales package information 74 of the sales package B is activated. The column of “○” is “◯”, and the valid column is “○”.

  Correspondingly, in the function package information 75, the number of sales of the function package 1 is “1”, the number of effective sales is “0”, and the valid column is “x”. Further, the number of sales of the function package 2 is “2”, the number of effective sales is “1”, and the field of “valid” is “◯”. The number of sales of the function package 3 is “1”, the number of effective sales is “1”, and the valid column is “◯”.

  For example, the activation unit 83 activates the sales package A triggered by an instruction from the user, a timer, access to the HDD 15, and the like. The specific work of validation is the same as that in FIG. That is, the validation unit 83 validates the function package 1. Since the function package 2 has already been activated, there is no need to activate it.

  When validated, the sales package information update unit 93 registers “O” in the valid column of the sales package information 74. Also, the function package information update unit 92 increases the number of valid sales of the function package 1 to “1” and registers “◯” in the valid column. Also, the effective sales number of the function package 2 is increased by one to “2”.

<Validation procedure>
FIG. 20 is an example of a flowchart for explaining the validation procedure. In FIG. 20, it is assumed that the activation is started by an instruction from the user. Since the activation process is the same as the activation process, it is omitted. In FIG. 20, the same steps as those in FIG.

  First, the enabling unit 83 determines whether or not access to the HDD 15 is possible (S20 to S40). When access to the HDD 15 is possible (Yes in S20, Yes in S30), the activation is executed for each function package, so the enabling unit 83 identifies the function package included in the sales package to be activated (S210). ).

  FIG. 21 is a flowchart for explaining the function package specifying procedure in step S210. That is, the enabling unit 83 reads the sales package information 74 and the function package information 75 from the HDD 15 (S2101). Then, the function package (function ID list) included in the sales package to be validated is specified (S2102). With the above, the function package to be activated has been identified.

  Referring back to FIG. 20, the enabling unit 83 refers to the function package information 75 and confirms the current state of the function package to be enabled (S220). This is because the function package included in another sales package may already be activated.

  If the function package to be activated has already been activated (invalid state in S230), it is not necessary to activate, so the process proceeds to the next function package.

  When the function package to be activated is not activated (the activated state in S230), the activation unit 83 activates the function package (S240). The above processing is repeated for the function package included in the sales package to be activated.

  When the activation processing of all the function packages is completed, the sales package information update unit 93 updates the sales package information 74, and the function package information update unit 92 updates the function package information 75 (S250).

[Uninstallation, deactivation, invalidation after implementation]
So far, the implementation mode of the program has been described, but it is also possible to follow the process in the opposite direction to the implementation. In other words, it is possible to delete the sales package from the HDD 15 by uninstallation, to make it unactivated by deactivation, and to make it not activated by invalidation. It is invalidated at the same time as deactivation. In the sense of approaching the activation state in the order of installation, activation, and activation, invalidation and activation correspond, deactivation and activation correspond, and installation and uninstallation correspond. Hereinafter, it demonstrates in order.

<Disabling>
Invalidation means that an activated sales package is made invalid. Invalidation results in an activated but not activated state.

  FIG. 22 is an example of a diagram for explaining invalidation of a sales package. Sales package A is activated and activated. Therefore, “◯” is registered in the activation column and the valid column of the sales package information 74, respectively. Since the sales package A is activated, both the columns of the effective sales number of the function packages 1 and 2 are “1”, and both of the valid columns are “◯”.

  For example, the invalidation unit 89 validates the sales package A triggered by an instruction from the user, an update request due to expiration of the validity period, or the like. By disabling it before completely deactivating or uninstalling it, it becomes possible to use it again after confirming a message that informs the expiration date, etc. The invalidating unit 89 interrupts or prohibits the use with a simple process, for example, by terminating the program component.

  When invalidated, the sales package information update unit 93 registers “x” in the valid column of the sales package information 74. Also, the function package information update unit 92 registers “0” for the number of valid sales of the function packages 1 and 2 and registers “x” for each of the valid columns.

<Disabling process>
FIG. 23 is an example of a flowchart for explaining the invalidation procedure. In FIG. 23, the invalidation is started by an instruction from the user. In FIG. 23, the same steps as those in FIG.

  First, the invalidation unit 89 determines whether or not access to the HDD 15 is possible (S20 to S40). When access to the HDD 15 is possible (Yes in S20, Yes in S30), the invalidation is executed for each function package, so the invalidation unit 89 identifies the function package included in the sales package to be invalidated (S210). ). The process of step S210 is as shown in FIG. Next, the invalidation unit 89 refers to the function package information 75 and confirms the current state of the function package to be invalidated (S320). This is because the function package may already be disabled.

  If the function package to be invalidated is already invalidated (invalid state in S330), it is not necessary to invalidate, and the process proceeds to the next function package.

  If the function package to be invalidated has not been invalidated (valid state in S330), the invalidation unit 89 checks whether or not the functional package to be invalidated is included in another valid sales package ( S340). This is because if there is even one effective sales package, its effectiveness is given priority.

  If it is included (S350 is included), it cannot be invalidated, and the process proceeds to the next function package.

  If not included (S350 is not included), the invalidating unit 89 invalidates the function package (S360). The above processing is repeated for the function package included in the sales package to be activated.

  When the invalidation processing of all function packages is completed, the sales package information update unit 93 updates the sales package information 74, and the function package information update unit 92 updates the function package information 75 (S370).

<Deactivation>
Deactivation refers to bringing a sales package that has been activated and activated into an unactivated state. By deactivation, for example, the function package cannot be activated with the right to activate, and can be reactivated in another image forming apparatus 100 or information processing apparatus.

  FIG. 24 is an example of a diagram illustrating deactivation of a sales package. Sales package A is activated and activated. Therefore, “◯” is registered in the activation column and the valid column of the sales package information 74, respectively. Since the sales package A is activated, both the columns of the effective sales number of the function packages 1 and 2 are “1”, and both of the valid columns are “◯”.

  For example, the deactivation unit 88 deactivates the sales package A triggered by an instruction from the user, an update request due to expiration of the validity period, or the like. In the former case, for example, activation information is extracted from the image forming apparatus 100 in which the sales package has been activated by deactivation, and the relationship between the two is canceled. It becomes possible to activate with. In the latter case, since the expiration date has expired, the use can be prohibited while leaving the functional package in the HDD 15.

  After deactivation, the sales package information update unit 93 registers “x” in the activation column and the valid column of the sales package information 74, respectively. Also, the function package information update unit 92 registers “0” for the number of valid sales of the function packages 1 and 2 and registers “x” for each of the valid columns.

<Uninstall>
Uninstall refers to deleting a sales package from the HDD 15. In other words, if it is not reinstalled, the function of the sales package cannot be executed, and unauthorized use of program components can be easily prevented.

  FIG. 25 is an example of a diagram illustrating uninstallation of a sales package. Sales package A is activated and activated. Therefore, “◯” is registered in the activation column and the valid column of the sales package information 74, respectively. It should be noted that the uninstallation can be performed even in an unactivated state or an activated state. Since the sales package A is activated, both the columns of the effective sales number of the function packages 1 and 2 are “1”, and both of the valid columns are “◯”.

  For example, the uninstallation unit 87 uninstalls the sales package A from the HDD 15 by using an instruction from the user, expiration of the validity period, or the like as a trigger. In the former case, for example, when deleting from the HDD 15 because the expiration date has expired, conversely, it may be possible to install it in another image forming apparatus 100 while leaving the expiration date, or to return the fee for the remaining period. It is done. In the latter case, it is possible to uninstall automatically because the expiration date has expired.

  When the software package is uninstalled, the sales package information update unit 93 deletes the sales package information 74 from the HDD 15, and the function package information update unit 92 deletes the function package 1 information from the HDD 15.

<Disabling (some function packages are shared)>
A case where a part of a sales package including the same function package is invalidated will be described. FIG. 26 is an example of a diagram for explaining invalidation of a sales package. Sales packages A and B are both activated and activated. Therefore, “◯” is registered in the activation column and the valid column of the sales packages A and B, respectively. Since the sales packages A and B are activated, the number of effective sales of the functional package 1 is “○” in the “effective” column, and the effective number of sales of the functional package 2 is “2” in the “effective” column. The effective sales number of the function package 3 is “1”, and the “effective” column is “◯”.

  When the invalidation unit 89 invalidates the sales package A, the sales package information update unit 93 registers “x” in the valid column of the sales package A. As a result, since the function package 2 included in the function package 1 and the sales package A is invalidated, the function package information update unit 92 reduces the number of effective sales of the function package 1 by 1 and is valid to “0”. In the column, “×” is registered, and the number of effective sales of the function package 2 is decreased by 1, and “1” is registered. In addition, since the number of effective sales of the function package 2 is “1”, the function package 2 is not invalidated.

<Deactivation (some function packages are shared)>
A case where a part of a sales package including the same function package is deactivated will be described. FIG. 27 is an example of a diagram illustrating deactivation of a sales package. Sales packages A and B are both activated and activated. Therefore, “◯” is registered in the activation column and the valid column of the sales packages A and B, respectively. Since the sales packages A and B are activated, the number of effective sales of the functional package 1 is “○” in the “effective” column, and the effective number of sales of the functional package 2 is “2” in the “effective” column. The effective sales number of the function package 3 is “1”, and the “effective” column is “◯”.

  When the deactivation unit 88 deactivates the sales package A, the sales package information update unit 93 registers “x” in the activation column and the valid column of the sales package A, respectively. In addition, since the function package 2 included in the function package 1 and the sales package A is invalidated, the function package information update unit 92 reduces the number of effective sales of the function package 1 by 1 and sets it to the column “0”. “×” is registered, and the number of effective sales of the function package 2 is decreased by 1, and “1” is registered. In addition, since the number of effective sales of the function package 2 is “1”, the function package 2 is not invalidated.

<Uninstall (some function packages are shared)>
There are three modes of uninstallation in which some function packages are shared, depending on whether the sales package before the uninstallation is valid or not. Hereinafter, it demonstrates in order.
-Uninstall one of the sales packages that are all valid. Explain the case where a part of the sales package that contains the same functional package is invalidated. FIG. 28 is an example of a diagram illustrating uninstallation of a sales package. Sales packages A and B are both activated and activated. Therefore, “◯” is registered in the activation column and the valid column of the sales packages A and B, respectively. Since the sales packages A and B are activated, the number of effective sales of the functional package 1 is “○” in the “effective” column, and the effective number of sales of the functional package 2 is “2” in the “effective” column. The effective sales number of the function package 3 is “1”, and the “effective” column is “◯”.

When the uninstall unit 87 uninstalls the sales package A, the sales package information update unit 93 deletes all the information of the sales package A. As a result, the function package 1 included in the function package 1 and the sales package A is uninstalled, and the function package information update unit 92 erases the information of the function package 1. Further, the number of sales of the function package 2 is decreased by 1 to “1”, and the number of effective sales is decreased by 1 to “1”. In addition, since the number of effective sales of the function package 2 is “1”, the function package 2 is not invalidated.
Uninstalling the valid one of the sales packages in which one is not valid FIG. 29 is an example of a diagram for explaining the uninstallation of the sales package. Sales package A is activated and activated, but sales package B is activated but not activated. If the sales package A is uninstalled in this state, there is no valid sales package.

  “O” is registered in the activation column and the valid column of the sales package A, “O” is registered in the activation column of the sales package B, but “X” is registered in the valid column. Since only the sales package A is activated, the number of valid sales of the function package 1 is “1”, the valid field is “○”, the number of valid sales of the function package 2 is “1”, the valid field is “○”, and the function The number of effective sales of the package 3 is “0”, and the “effective” column is “×”.

When the uninstall unit 87 uninstalls the sales package A, the sales package information update unit 93 deletes all the information of the sales package A. As a result, the function package 1 included in the function package 1 and the sales package A is uninstalled, and the function package information update unit 92 erases all the information of the function package 1. In addition, the number of sales of the function package 2 is reduced by 1 to register “1”, and the number of effective sales is decreased by 1 to register “0”. Since the number of effective sales is “0”, the valid column of the function package 2 is “x”. Therefore, neither of the function packages 2 and 3 becomes effective.
Uninstalling one of the sales packages that is not valid is not effective FIG. 30 is an example of a diagram for explaining how to uninstall a sales package. Sales package A is activated but not activated, and sales package B is activated and activated. In this state, the sales package A is uninstalled.

  In the activation field of the sales package A, “X” is registered for the valid field, and “◯” is registered for the activation field and the valid field of the sales package B. Since only the sales package B is activated, the number of effective sales of the function package 1 is “0”, the “effective” column is “×”, the number of effective sales of the function package 2 is “1”, the effective column is “○”, and the function The number of effective sales of the package 3 is “1”, and the “effective” column is “◯”.

  When the uninstall unit 87 uninstalls the sales package A, the sales package information update unit 93 deletes all the information of the sales package A. As a result, the function package 1 included in the function package 1 and the sales package A is uninstalled, and the function package information update unit 92 erases all the information of the function package 1. Further, the number of sales of the function package 2 is reduced by 1, and “1” is registered. Since the number of effective sales of the function package 2 does not change, it remains “1” and the valid column also remains “◯”. Therefore, the function package 2 remains valid. Further, the function package information 75 of the function package 3 is not changed.

<Uninstallation procedure>
FIG. 31 is an example of a flowchart for explaining the uninstallation procedure. In FIG. 31, it is assumed that the activation is started by an instruction from the user. In FIG. 31, the same steps as those in FIG.

First, the uninstaller 87 determines whether or not access to the HDD 15 is possible (S20 to S40). If access to the HDD 15 is possible (Yes in S20, Yes in S30), the uninstallation is performed for each function package, so the uninstaller 87 specifies the function package included in the sales package to be uninstalled (S210). ). The process of step S210 is as shown in FIG.
When the sales package is uninstalled, the processing changes depending on whether the included function package is included in another sales package or whether the function package is activated. Appropriate processing (hereinafter referred to as uninstallation processing) is determined (S410).
FIG. 32 is an example of a flowchart showing the procedure of uninstallation processing. The processing content determination unit 91 checks whether or not the function package included in the sales package to be uninstalled is currently valid (S4010).

  For example, in FIG. 28, the function packages 1 and 2 are both valid, in FIG. 29 both the function packages 1 and 2 are valid, and in FIG. 30, the function package 1 is not valid but the function package 2 is valid. .

  If it is in the valid state (Yes in S4020), it is confirmed whether the valid function package included in the sales package to be uninstalled is included in another valid sales package (S4030).

  If it is included in another valid sales package (Yes in S4040), nothing can be done because neither uninstallation nor invalidation is possible (S4100). That is, the function package 2 in FIG. 28 and the function package 2 in FIG. 30 remain valid.

  If it is not included in another valid sales package (No in S4040), it is confirmed whether or not a valid function package included in the sales package to be uninstalled is included in the other sales package (S4050). ). Because it is included in a non-valid sales package, the feature package is no longer valid for this uninstall.

  For this reason, when it is included in another sales package (Yes in S4060), the processing content determination unit 91 determines to invalidate the function package (S4070). That is, the function package 2 in FIG. 29 is invalidated.

  On the other hand, if it is not included in another sales package (No in S4060), it can be deleted, so the processing content determination unit 91 determines to uninstall the function package (S4110). That is, the function package 1 shown in FIGS. 28 and 29 is deleted from the HDD 15.

  Returning to step S4020, if it is not in the valid state (No in S4020), it is confirmed whether the function package included in the sales package to be uninstalled is included in another sales package (S4080). For example, the function package 1 of FIG. 30 is not valid, but is not included in other sales packages.

  If not included (No in S4090), the processing content determination unit 91 determines to uninstall the function package (S4110). That is, the function package 1 in FIG. 30 is erased from the HDD 15.

  If it is included (Yes in S4090), it is already invalid, so nothing is performed on the function package to be uninstalled (S4100).

  When the processing content is determined for each function package by the above logic, the process returns to FIG. 31 and the uninstaller 87 determines whether or not the function package included in the sales package can be uninstalled based on the processing content (S420). .

  If it is a function package that can be uninstalled (Yes in S430), the uninstaller 87 uninstalls the function package included in the sales package (S440).

  When uninstalling, the sales package information update unit 93 updates the sales package information 74, and the functional package information update unit 92 updates the functional package information 75 (S450).

  As described above, when uninstalling, it can be appropriately uninstalled according to the sharing state of function packages, presence / absence of activation, and the like.

〔Start process〕
Next, activation of the installed program will be described. As described above, activation of each plug-in component (functional package) 73 is controlled by the plug-in starter 72 based on the activation information 77. For this reason, when installing a sales package, the activation order of each function package included in the sales package is registered in the activation information 77. For this reason, each sales package includes information for generating the activation information 77.

  FIG. 33 (a) is an example of a diagram for schematically explaining package contents included in a sales package. For example, this function package includes three function packages A to C. Also, a start order definition file 95 defining the above inf file and start order is packaged. In the activation order definition file 95, for example, the activation order is defined as “activation order: 1. function package A, 2. function package B, 3. function package C”.

  FIG. 33B shows an example of a functional block diagram of the installation management unit in the startup process. The activation information update unit 94 registers the activation order in the activation information 77 according to the activation order definition file 95 of the installed sales package. Similarly, when the function package is activated not only at the time of installation but also by activation or activation, the activation information update unit 94 registers the activated function package in the activation information 77.

  The order of registration in the activation information 77 is the registration order in the activation information 77. However, when the activation order for the function packages of other sales packages is defined in the activation order definition file 95, it may be registered before the function packages already registered according to the activation order.

In addition, since the activation information update unit 94 registers the activated function package in the activation information 77, the activation information update unit 94 registers the valid function package with reference to the function package information 75, and deletes the invalid function package. .
Several examples will be specifically described below.

<Update 1 of activation information 77>
FIG. 34 is a diagram for explaining an example of the relationship between the sales package mounting and the activation information 77. FIG. 34 shows that the sales package includes a function package connected by an arrow. The sales package A includes functional packages 1, 2, and 5, the sales package B includes functional packages 1 and 3, and the sales package C includes functional packages 2, 3, and 4.

The initial sales package A is valid and the sales package B is invalid. For this reason, the function packages 1, 2, and 5 are activated, and the function packages 1, 2, and 5 are registered in the activation information 77. From this state, the sales package C is installed. Therefore, the function packages 2, 3, and 4 included in the sales package C are left as they are if they are valid until then, and are valid if they are installed and invalid until then, and become valid if they are not installed.
If the function package 2 remains valid, the function package 3: invalid → valid function package 4: uninstall → valid, the activation information update unit 94 registers the newly activated function packages 3 and 4 in the activation information 77. The registration order of the function packages 3 and 4 is the order defined in the activation order definition file 95.

<Update 2 of startup information 77>
FIG. 35 is a diagram for explaining an example of the relationship between the sales package mounting and the activation information 77. FIG. 35 shows a state in which the sales package C is valid in FIG. 34, so that the function packages 1 to 5 in the initial state are all valid. From this state, the sales package C is uninstalled.

Therefore, the function package 4 included only in the sales package C is uninstalled. Since the sales package B is originally invalid, the function package C included only in the sales packages C and B is invalidated.
Function package 2: Sales package A is valid and remains valid Function package 3: Valid → Invalid Function package 4: Valid → Uninstalled, the startup information update unit 94 is newly deactivated, and the function package 3 is newly uninstalled. The function package 4 is deleted from the activation information 77.

<Update 3 of startup information 77>
A case where there are restrictions in the order of activation will be described. FIG. 36 is a diagram for explaining an example of the relationship between the sales package mounting and the activation information 77. The initial state of FIG. 36 is the same as that of FIG. 34, and the same applies to the installation point of the sales package C in the initial state.
Function package 2: Remains valid Function package 3: Invalid → Valid function package 4: Uninstall → Valid The activation information update unit 94 registers the newly activated function packages 3 and 4 in the activation information 77. The sales package C defines the startup order in the startup order definition file 95. In FIG. 36, the order is “1. function package 2, 2. function package 3, 3. function package 4.” Such an activation order is defined when there is a dependency relationship between function packages. In FIG. 36, for example, the function package 4 uses the function of the function package 3, and therefore the function package 3 needs to be activated before the function package 4.

  When there is an activated function package, the activation information update unit 94 refers to the activation order definition file 95 and registers the function packages in the activation information 77 in an appropriate order.

  As described above, the image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment does not install the already installed function package, so that efficient installation is possible. Further, when uninstalling, the function package included in the sales package that is not uninstalled is not deleted, so that the remaining sales package is not affected. That is, when a plurality of function packages included in a plurality of sales packages are partially overlapped, a practical program can be easily implemented.

FIG. 2 is an example of a diagram schematically illustrating an overview of installation in an image forming apparatus. It is an example of the figure explaining installation of the sales package which is not validated even if installed. 1 is an example of a hardware configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a software module of an image forming apparatus. FIG. It is an example of a functional block diagram of an installation management unit. It is an example of the functional block diagram of a plug-in management part. It is a figure explaining an example of the implementation mode of the program activated at the time of installation. It is a figure explaining an example of the implementation mode of the program which is not activated at the time of installation. It is a figure explaining an example of installation when the same function package is already installed, but versions are different. It is a figure explaining an example in case activation is required when installing the same function package in a different version. It is a figure explaining an example when the same function package is already installed and the version is different, but the version of the function package to be installed later is older. It is an example of the figure explaining an example when activation of a sales package is required. It is an example of the figure explaining the update of a sales package. It is an example of the figure explaining another form of the update of the same sales package. It is an example of the flowchart figure explaining an installation procedure. It is a figure explaining an example of activation of the sales package which needs activation after installation. It is an example of the figure explaining validation of a sales package. It is an example of the figure explaining the activation of the sales package which needs activation after installation. It is an example of the figure explaining the activation after activation. It is an example of the flowchart figure explaining an validation procedure. It is an example of the flowchart figure explaining the specific procedure of a function package. It is an example of the figure explaining invalidation of a sales package. It is an example of the flowchart figure explaining an validation procedure. It is an example of the figure explaining the deactivation of a sales package. It is an example of the figure explaining uninstallation of a sales package. It is an example of the figure explaining invalidation of a sales package. It is an example of the figure explaining the deactivation of a sales package. It is an example of the figure explaining uninstallation of a sales package. It is an example of the figure explaining uninstallation of a sales package. It is an example of the figure explaining uninstallation of a sales package. It is an example of the flowchart figure explaining an uninstallation procedure. It is an example of the flowchart figure which shows the procedure of the process at the time of uninstallation. It is an example of the figure which illustrates the package contents contained in a sales package typically. It is a figure explaining an example of the relationship between mounting of a sales package, and starting information. It is a figure explaining an example of the relationship between mounting of a sales package, and starting information. It is a figure explaining an example of the relationship between mounting of a sales package, and starting information.

Explanation of symbols

15 HDD
60 Installation Management Unit 71 Plug-in Management Unit 72 Plug-in Starter 73 Plug-in Component (Functional Package)
74 Sales Package Information 75 Function Package Information 77 Startup Information 100 Image Forming Apparatus

Claims (10)

An information processing apparatus that installs one or more program components included in one package into a storage device in units of packages,
Package information storage means for storing a list of program components included in a package already installed in the storage device;
Program information storage means for storing the number of installations for each installed program component;
A program that has already been installed by reading a list of program components registered in the setting file from a storage medium that stores the setting file attached to the package to be installed, and matching the list stored in the package information storage means Duplicate program detection means for detecting components;
Installation means to install only program components that are not already installed;
Program information update means for registering the installed program component together with the number of installations in the program information storage means, and increasing the number of installed program components detected to be one by one;
An information processing apparatus comprising: When uninstalling a given package,
A deletion determination unit that refers to a list stored in the package information storage unit and determines whether or not a program component included in a package to be uninstalled is included in another package;
Uninstalling means for erasing program components included in the package to be uninstalled, which are not included in other packages,
The program information update unit decreases the number of installed program components included in the package to be uninstalled and registered in the program information storage unit by one and is also included in other packages,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1. An enabling means for activating or enabling an installed program component; and
A disabling means for disabling the startable or startable program component;
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: An activation means for generating activation information indicating that the right to use has been granted for each package;
A deactivation means for erasing the activation information generated by the activation;
The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising: In the configuration file, it is registered whether activation is required after installation in order to activate or activate.
The information processing apparatus according to claim 4. When installing the same package that is already installed,
Version determination means for comparing versions of the same program component;
Deleting means for deleting program components not included in the package to be installed from the storage device;
The installation means installs only a program component having a new version,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information processing apparatus is an information processing apparatus. An activation order information storage means for storing activation information in which the activation order of a plurality of program components is registered;
In accordance with a boot order definition file attached to a package to be installed, boot order determining means for registering boot orders of a plurality of program components in the boot information,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: A package information storage means for storing a list of program components included in the already installed package;
In an information processing apparatus having program information storage means for storing the number of installations for each installed program component,
An installation method for installing one or more program components included in one package in units of packages,
The duplicate program detection means reads a list of program components registered in the setting file from a storage medium that stores the setting file attached to the package to be installed, and matches the list stored in the package information storage means, Detecting program components already installed; and
The installation means only installs program components that are not already installed;
The program information update means registers the installed program component together with the number of installations in the program information storage means, and increases the number of installations of the program component detected to be duplicated by one.
An installation method characterized by comprising: A package information storage means for storing a list of program components included in the already installed package;
In an information processing apparatus having program information storage means for storing the number of installations for each installed program component,
Receiving an instruction to install one or more program components included in one package in units of packages from the input means;
A program that has already been installed by reading a list of program components registered in the setting file from a storage medium that stores the setting file attached to the package to be installed, and matching the list stored in the package information storage means Detecting a component;
Installing only program components that are not already installed;
Registering the installed program components together with the number of installations in the program information storage means, and increasing the number of installed program components detected to be duplicated by one;
A program that executes   A computer-readable storage medium in which the program according to claim 9 is described.

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