JP4709172B2 - Information processing apparatus, control method, and program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a control method, and a program for realizing an update program for updating software including a plurality of components.

  Conventionally, a case is known in which software is divided into software functional units called components, and components to be combined are changed and distributed according to users.

  For example, even software having the same name may be provided by changing the combination of components according to the sales price of the software. As this type of prior art document, there is the following (for example, see Non-Patent Document 1). In Non-Patent Document 1, there are editions called “Professional Edition” and “Personal Edition”. For example, the Access 2003 component is not installed with the Personal Edition, but is installed with the Professional Edition.

  As another example, when selling software bundled with hardware, there is a case where a component for giving a function unique to the hardware is bundled.

  Such components that have hardware-specific functions can be combined with software bundled with the hardware, but cannot be combined with software bundled with other hardware. is there. As this type of prior art document, there is the following (for example, see Non-Patent Document 2). The software of Non-Patent Document 2 is sold by being bundled with products such as a digital camera and a digital video camera.

  The software can be used in combination with a component called Movie Edit Task for editing a movie file. Similarly, a component called RAW Image Task for processing an image of a special image format called a RAW image can be used in combination. The software is also included in a digital single-lens reflex camera product manufactured and sold by the present applicant, but this product does not have a function of shooting a moving image. Therefore, the movie editing component Movie Edit Task is not combined with what is included in this product. The software bundled with the digital video camera is the reverse combination. The reverse combination is a combination in which there is no RAW Image Task and there is a Movie Edit Task.

  Since a RAW image cannot be taken with a digital video camera, a RAW Image Task for processing a RAW image of the above-mentioned product of a digital single lens reflex camera is not included. Further, when a user who owns both the above-described digital single-lens reflex camera product and the digital video camera installs both the software bundled with the hardware, the following occurs. As a result of the installation, both the Movie Edit Task and the RAW Image Task are available in the software.

  In addition, it is described as background art in the prior art documents that there is a request to receive a plurality of pieces of software whose combination of components is changed according to a plurality of users (for example, patents). Reference 1).

  The above combination change is often performed as a part of the installer function. A component is composed of a combination of predetermined files and settings on the operating system. When a certain component is not provided to a specific user, software is provided in a form that does not include the component when the installer is executed after removing a file related to the component from the installer.

  Alternatively, as in Patent Document 1, the installer includes all components, but there is also a method of installing only components suitable for the user by using an encryption key called a product key.

  Apart from this, it is common to distribute update programs for software to users via the Internet or the like. Such an update program is distributed free of charge, but in most cases, it is structured so that only the user who owns the update target program can use it. In this case, only the user who has paid the price can use the latest version of the software.

  An update program may be provided for the software described above that is distributed by changing the combination of components by the user. At that time, there is a request for not updating software and components that are not owned by the user. The reason is that updating components that are not owned by the user may cause confusion for the user. Also, if a user who pays a small amount of money can use a component that originally required a high price, financial damage will occur.

  As a method of realizing such an update program, there are conventionally the following methods.

  First, as a first method, an update program is provided individually for each combination of components. In this method, it is only necessary to confirm whether the user can use the update program when the update program is started. After that, if the update program is executed as it is and the update is performed, there is no possibility of updating a component that the user does not own. As a method of confirming whether the user can use the update program, there is a method of using the contents of a hard disk, a recording medium such as a CD-ROM to which software is distributed, or information such as a product key.

  As a second method, there is a method in which all software and components are included in the update program, and only necessary software and components are extracted and updated when the update program is started.

  On the other hand, a method is disclosed in which environment information is acquired and only components are installed according to the environment information when the installer is started (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

  Here, it is obvious that this method can be used for updating from the previous version by including the presence or absence of the previous version of software in the environment information. Specifically, before installing each component, it is only necessary to acquire whether or not an old version of the component is installed as environment information and update the component only when the old version is installed.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228561 discloses a method of installing only available components according to a product key input by a user during execution of an installer. This method is also applicable to the update program. Specifically, the product key of the previous version is input during the execution of the update program, and in the update program, only the components that can be used with the product key need to be updated before each component is installed.
JP-A-2005-100401 JP 2002-318692 A Microsoft Office 2003 (registered trademark) Canon ZoomBrowser EX (registered trademark)

  However, the conventional example has the following problems.

  In the method of providing update programs individually for each combination of components described as the first method, the number of update programs that need to be provided increases as the number of combinations of components increases. Therefore, there is a problem that labor for providing the update program is increased, and it becomes difficult to provide the update program.

  Further, even from the viewpoint of the user who uses the update program, it is necessary to select an update program that can be used from a plurality of update programs, which makes it difficult to apply the update program.

  Of the methods described as the second method, there is a problem with the method of acquiring environment information at the time of starting the update program and updating only the component corresponding to the environment information. For the operation of this update program, it is necessary to install an old version of the software once. This becomes a problem when, for example, an operating system in which an old version of software cannot be installed is updated so that the new version of software can be installed.

  In order to update to a new version of software using the update program, the user needs to install the old version of the software once, but the old version of the software cannot be installed on the operating system. Therefore, there is a problem that it is impossible to update software using this update program.

  Of the methods described as the second method, there is still a problem with the method of updating only available components according to the product key input by the user during the execution of the update program. This is because this method cannot be used if the product key was not provided when the previous version was installed.

  Further, as a problem common to the methods described in the latter half of the first method and the second method, there is a problem that the software cannot be used when it is used in a combination of components different from the provided time point. is there. Specifically, it becomes a problem in the case of the software of Non-Patent Document 2 described in the background art.

  In this software, when both the software bundled with the above-mentioned product of the digital single lens reflex camera and the software bundled with the digital video camera are installed, it becomes as follows. Both Movie Edit Task and RAW Image Task can be used. This combination of components is different from any provided combination. Therefore, it is difficult to create an update program that can be applied in this state by the method described in the second half of the first method and the second method.

An object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus, a control method, and a program capable of installing the latest version of predetermined software .

In order to achieve the above object, an information processing apparatus according to the present invention provides an update program for a predetermined software downloaded from a server device when the predetermined software stored in an external storage medium is installed. An information processing apparatus that updates the predetermined software to the latest version by executing an installation detection unit that detects whether or not the predetermined software is installed; and the predetermined software is detected by the installation detection unit. when it is detected that not installed, the inserted and the medium detecting unit for detecting whether the predetermined software in the external storage medium are present are, by the medium detecting unit and the predetermined software the external storage medium From the server device when it is detected that Run the unload said predetermined software updates were, is characterized in that a installation executing section for installing the latest version of the predetermined software.

The program of the present invention includes an installation detection unit, a medium detection unit, and an installation execution unit, and the predetermined program downloaded from the server device when predetermined software stored in the external storage medium is installed. A computer-readable program for causing a computer to execute a control method of an information processing apparatus that updates the predetermined software to the latest version by executing a software update program of the computer, wherein the control method includes: when the software is detected and installation detection step of detecting by the installation detection unit whether it is installed, and in the installation detection step wherein the predetermined software is not installed, the external storage medium inserted Place A medium detection step for detecting whether the software is present by the medium detection unit, and when the medium detection step detects that the predetermined software is present in the external storage medium, the installation execution unit An installation execution step of executing an update program of the predetermined software downloaded from the server device and installing the latest version of the predetermined software is provided.

According to the present invention , even when predetermined software stored in the external storage medium cannot be installed in the information processing apparatus due to an operating system change or the like, the external storage medium in which the predetermined software exists is inserted into the information processing apparatus. Then , the latest version of the predetermined software can be installed by executing the predetermined update program downloaded from the server device .

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[First Embodiment]
First, the configuration of the network system will be described before describing the configuration of the update program according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a network system in which a client and a server are network-connected.

  In FIG. 2, a client 20 and a server 21 are connected to the Internet 22. The client 20 includes a computer 201, a display 202, an optical disk drive 203, a hard disk drive (HDD) 204, and a mouse 205 connected to the computer 201. The server 21 includes a computer 211 and a hard disk drive (HDD) 212 connected to the computer 211.

  A user of the system can insert various types of optical disks (for example, the optical disk 23 and the optical disk 24) into the optical disk drive 203 of the client 20 and install software stored on the optical disk. A user of the system performs a predetermined operation on the computer 201 of the client 20 via the keyboard and the mouse 205. Thereby, the update program 25 can be downloaded from the computer 211 of the server 21 to the computer 201 of the client 20 via the Internet 22 and executed.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a software configuration example of the optical disc 23.

  In FIG. 3, basic software 301 and an Internet component 302 are stored on the optical disc 23. The Internet component 302 is a component for adding an Internet connection function to the basic software 301, and does not operate by itself. The Internet component 302 provides an Internet connection function to the user by combining with the basic software 301.

  The basic software 301 and the Internet component 302 stored on the optical disc 23 are older than the latest version. When the optical disc 23 is inserted into the optical disc drive 203 of the client 20, the basic software 301 and the Internet component 302 are installed.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a software configuration example of the optical disc 24.

  In FIG. 4, basic software 301 and a print component 403 are stored on the optical disc 24. The basic software 301 is the same as that stored on the optical disc 23. The print component 403 is a part for adding a print function to the basic software 301, and does not operate by itself. Similar to the Internet component 302, the print component 403 provides a print function to the user in combination with the basic software 301.

  The basic software 301 and the print component 403 stored on the optical disc 24 are older than the latest version. When the optical disc 24 is inserted into the optical disc drive 203 of the client 20, the basic software 301 and the print component 403 are installed.

  Further, when installation is performed using the optical disc 24 in an environment in which the basic software 301 and the Internet component 302 are installed using the optical disc 23, the following occurs. That is, the basic software 301, the Internet component 302, and the print component 403 are installed on the hard disk.

  Similarly, when installation is performed using the optical disc 23 in an environment where the basic software 301 and the print component 403 are installed using the optical disc 24, the following occurs. That is, the basic software 301, the Internet component 302, and the print component 403 are installed on the hard disk.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the update program 25 according to the present embodiment.

  In FIG. 1, an update program 25 is a program for updating software including components that are functional units. The update program 25 includes control data 101, an installation detection unit 102, a medium detection unit 103, an extraction unit 104, and an installation execution unit 105. Further, the update program 25 includes basic software installation data 106, Internet component installation data 107, and print component installation data 108.

  The control data 101 is data for controlling the operation of the update program. The installation detection unit 102 detects whether or not specific software or components are installed in the HDD 120 by examining data recorded in the HDD 120 (installation detection step). The medium detection unit 103 detects whether or not specific software or components are included (stored) in the optical disk 140 inserted into the optical disk drive 130 (medium detection step).

  The extracting unit 104 extracts installation data for the designated software or component from the update program 25 and records it in the HDD 120. The installation execution unit 105 executes installation using the software or component extracted from the update program 25 by the extraction unit 104 (installation execution step).

  The basic software installation data 106 is data for installing the latest version of the basic software. The internet component installation data 107 is data for installing an internet component. The print component installation data 108 is data for installing a print component. Each installation data is a newer version than the basic software, the Internet component, and the printing component stored on the optical disc 23 and the optical disc 24.

  In addition, the area limitation information for limiting the area where software or component installation can be performed can be added to each installation data. In the present embodiment, the US region limited information 109 and the Japanese region limited information 110 are added to the Internet component installation data 107.

  The entire update program 25 is encrypted. This is to prevent the user from taking out the basic software installation data 106, the Internet component installation data 107, and the print component installation data 108 without permission.

  This embodiment has the following features. The installation detection unit 102 detects whether or not the designated software or component is installed. The medium detection unit 103 detects whether or not the specified software or component is included in the specified recording medium (optical disk in the present embodiment).

  The installation execution unit 105 first detects whether or not the user's software or component is installed by the installation detection unit 102, and detects that the installation is not detected by the medium detection unit 103. The installation execution unit 105 installs software or components detected by either the installation detection unit 102 or the medium detection unit 103.

  Further, when the medium detecting unit 103 detects that the designated software or component is not included in the designated optical disk, the CPU displays and provides a dialog screen on the display 202 that can designate another optical disk. To do. When another optical disk is designated on the dialog screen by the user, the medium detection unit 103 detects again whether or not the designated software or component is included in the designated other optical disk.

  Further, the installation execution unit 105 determines whether or not to install software or a component detected by either the installation detection unit 102 or the medium detection unit 103 according to a user setting.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the control data 101 included in the update program 25.

  In FIG. 5, in the present embodiment, the content of the control data 101 is a text file. The text file is composed of a section title line for separating the control data for each section and a data line for describing the name and value of the control data. The section title line can be distinguished by enclosing the line head and the line end with [].

  The control data is separated into three sections 501, 502, and 503 by three lines of [SoftwareA] on the first line, [ComponentA1] on the sixth line, and [ComponentA2] on the eleventh line. Each section shows the operation of the update program 25 for the basic software, the Internet component, and the printing component. Each section consists of the following data lines: A SearchRegistry data line for use by the installation detection unit 102. A SearchFile data line for use by the medium detection unit 103. ExtractFolder data row for use by the retrieval unit 104.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the overall operation of the update program 25.

  In FIG. 6, first, in step S <b> 601, the extraction unit 104 reads control data 101 for controlling the operation of the update program 25 from the update program 25.

  In step S602, the installation detection unit 102 detects whether or not basic software installation data exists in the update program. A method of detecting basic software installation data will be described later with reference to FIG.

  In step S603, the installation detection unit 102 checks whether or not basic software installation data exists in the update program based on the result detected in step S602. If basic software installation data exists, the process advances to step S604. If the basic software installation data does not exist, the entire processing of the update program 25 is terminated.

  In step S <b> 604, the extraction unit 104 performs the following process using the ExtractFolder data row of the control data 101 by the extraction unit 104 of the update program 25. That is, the basic software installation data 106 is extracted from the update program 25 and written to the HDD 204.

  In step S <b> 605, the installation detection unit 102 confirms whether or not all software and components described in the control data 101 have been detected. If detection has been completed for all software and components, the process proceeds to step S609. If the detection is not completed, the process proceeds to step S606.

  In step S606, the installation detection unit 102 detects whether or not the first component among the components that have not been detected yet exists. The component detection method will be described later with reference to FIG.

  In step S607, the installation detection unit 102 checks whether a component exists based on the result detected in step S606. If the component exists, the process proceeds to step S608. If no component is present, the process returns to step S605 to continue detection of the next component.

  In step S <b> 608, the extraction unit 104 performs the following processing using the ExtractFolder data row of the control data 101. That is, component installation data detected from the update program 25 is extracted and written to the HDD 204. Thereafter, the process returns to step S605, and detection of the next component is continued.

  In step S609, the installation execution unit 105 performs software and component update processing using the installation data extracted so far. When the update process is finished, the entire process of the update program 25 is finished.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a detection process of the presence / absence of software and components in the operation of the update program 25.

  In FIG. 7, first, installation detection processing by the installation detection unit 102 from step S701 is performed. In step S701, the installation detection unit 102 acquires the name of the registry key indicating the presence of the designated software or component. Specifically, the content of the SearchRegistry data line of the specified software or component section is acquired from the control data 101.

  Next, in step S702, the installation detection unit 102 checks whether or not the acquired registry key exists. In step S703, if the registry key exists based on the result of the confirmation in step S702, it is determined that the designated software or component exists, and the detection process ends. If the registry key does not exist, the process proceeds to the medium detection process by the medium detection unit 103 from step S704.

  In step S704, the medium detection unit 103 acquires a file name on the recording medium (optical disk in the present embodiment) indicating the presence of the designated software or component. Specifically, the content of the SearchFile data line of the specified software or component section is acquired from the control data 101.

  Next, in step S705, the CPU displays an optical disc confirmation dialog screen for confirming the optical disc for installation on the display 202 of the computer 201, and requests the user to insert the optical disc into the optical disc drive. If the user has inserted an optical disk into the optical disk drive, the process proceeds to step S706.

  In step S706, the medium detection unit 103 confirms whether the file having the file name acquired in step S704 is present on the optical disc inserted into the optical disc drive. In step S707, if the file exists based on the result of the confirmation in step S706, it is determined that the designated software or component exists, and the detection process ends. If the file does not exist, it is determined that the designated software or component does not exist, and the detection process is terminated.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a display example of an optical disc confirmation dialog screen displayed during the detection process of presence / absence of software and components.

  In FIG. 8, the optical disc confirmation dialog screen is displayed on the display 202 of the computer 201 of the client 20 in step S705 of FIG. The optical disc confirmation dialog screen has software name text 801, an optical disc drive selection list 802, and a search start button 803. In this example, the message “Update target software could not be found. Insert a CD-ROM containing the following software into the drive and click [Start CD search]” is displayed on the optical disk confirmation dialog screen. Has been.

  The software name text 801 displays the software name being detected. The optical disk drive selection list 802 displays a list of optical disk drives connected to the computer 201. As a result, when an optical disc confirmation dialog is displayed on a computer to which a plurality of optical disc drives are connected, it is possible to select which optical disc drive to use. When a search start button 803 is clicked, a search for an optical disk inserted in the optical disk drive specified in the optical disk drive selection list 802 is started.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing software and component installation processing within the operation of the update program.

  9, details of the processing of the installation execution unit 105 shown in step S609 of FIG. 6 will be described. First, in step S <b> 901, the CPU displays an area confirmation dialog screen on the display 202 for allowing the user to select an area for performing installation. The region selected by the user is used in the subsequent processing of the installation execution unit 105.

  Next, in step S902, the installation execution unit 105 acquires a list of software and components that may be installed. Specifically, a list of section names is acquired from the control data 101. In step S <b> 903, the installation execution unit 105 confirms whether the processing has been completed for all the software and components described in the control data 101. When all the processes are finished, the entire installation process is finished. If all the processes have not been completed, the process proceeds to step S904.

  In step S904, the installation execution unit 105 checks whether the software or component currently being processed is extracted from the update program to the HDD 204 by the extraction unit 104 in the process of FIG. If the software or component currently being processed has not been extracted, the process returns to step S903 to continue the processing of the next software or component. If the software or component currently being processed has been extracted, the process advances to step S905.

  In step S905, the installation execution unit 105 confirms whether or not the area limitation information is added to the software or component. When the area limitation information is not added, the process proceeds to the software or component update process from step S907. If the area limitation information is added, in step S906, the installation execution unit 105 checks whether the software or component is available in the area selected in the first step S901.

  If the software or component cannot be used, the process returns to step S903 to continue the processing of the next software or component. If the software or component is available, the process proceeds to step S907.

  From step S907, software or component update processing is performed. First, in step S907, the installation execution unit 105 detects whether the software or component currently being processed is installed on the computer. The installation execution unit 105 performs this process using the SearchRegistry data line described in the control data 101.

  If no software is detected, the process proceeds to step S911. If software is detected, in step S908, the installation execution unit 105 acquires version information of the software detected to be installed. Next, in step S909, the installation execution unit 105 compares the installed software version with the software version extracted to the HDD 204 by the extraction unit 104 in the process of FIG.

  If the version of the installed software is the same as or newer than the extracted software, nothing is done and the process returns to step S903 to continue the processing of the next software or component. If the extracted software is newer, in step S910, the installation execution unit 105 uninstalls the installed software, and then proceeds to step S911.

  In step S911, the installation execution unit 105 performs an installation process for the extracted software, and then returns to step S903 to continue the process for the next software or component.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a display example of a region selection dialog screen displayed during the software and component installation process.

  In FIG. 10, the area selection dialog screen is displayed on the display 202 of the computer 201 of the client 20 in step S901 of FIG. The region selection dialog screen has a region list 1001 and an OK button 1002. In this example, the message “Please select your region” is displayed on the region selection dialog screen.

  The user selects one item from the regions (Japan, America, Europe, Asia, Oceania) displayed in the region list 1001, and then clicks an OK button 1002. As a result, the selected area can be transmitted to the installation execution unit 105.

  Next, the operation when the environment of the computer 201 in which the basic software and components stored in the optical disc 23 are installed is updated by performing the processing of FIG. 6 using the update program 25 of the present embodiment will be described.

  From the optical disc 23, basic software 301 and an Internet component 302 are installed in the computer 201. Therefore, the presence of the basic software is detected in step S602 of FIG. 6, and the basic software installation data 106 is extracted from the update program 25 in step S604.

  Subsequently, in the processing from step S605, first, the presence of an Internet component is detected. Since the Internet component is detected after installation from the optical disc 23, the Internet component installation data 107 is extracted in step S608.

  Subsequently, the presence of the print component is detected, but not detected after installation from the optical disc 23, so the optical disc confirmation dialog screen in FIG. 8 is displayed on the display 202 of the computer 201. Here, when the user clicks the search start button 803 on the optical disc confirmation dialog screen with the optical disc 23 inserted into the optical disc drive, the following occurs.

  Since the optical disk 23 does not include a print component, the print component installation data 108 is not extracted. As a result, the installation process of step S609 is performed with the basic software installation data 106 and the Internet component installation data 107 extracted.

  In the installation process described with reference to FIG. 9, first, the region selection dialog screen in FIG. 10 is displayed on the display 202 of the computer 201. Thereafter, the processing from step S903 to S911 in FIG. 9 is performed for the basic software, the Internet component, and the printing component described in the control data 101.

  First, since the basic software is extracted in the process of FIG. 6, the process proceeds to step S905. Since the basic software is not limited to the area, the process directly proceeds to step S907. In step S907, it is detected that the basic software 301 is already installed. Therefore, in step S908 and step S909, the version comparison between the basic software 301 and the basic software installation data 106 extracted from the update program 25 is performed.

  As described above, the basic software 301 stored on the optical disc 23 is older than the latest version, and the basic software installation data 106 included in the update program 25 is the latest version. Therefore, after uninstalling the old version of the basic software 301 in step S910, the latest version is installed using the basic software installation data 106. As a result, the basic software is updated to the latest version.

  Similarly, processing is performed for the Internet component. As described above, the US region limited information 109 and the Japanese region limited information 110 are added to the Internet component installation data 107. Therefore, in step S906, it is confirmed whether or not the area selected on the area selection dialog screen in FIG. That is, the installed Internet component 302 is updated using the Internet component installation data 107 only when Japan or the United States is selected on the region selection dialog screen of FIG.

  The example of the update program 25 after installing the basic software and components stored on the optical disc 23 has been described so far, but other examples will also be described.

  For example, when the update program 25 is executed in a situation where the user has the optical disc 24 and is not installed, the following occurs. The optical disk confirmation dialog screen shown in FIG. 8 is displayed on the display 202 of the computer 201 by the detection processing of the basic software, the Internet component, and the printing component.

  Here, when the optical disc 24 is inserted into the optical disc drive and the search start button 803 on the optical disc confirmation dialog screen is clicked, the following occurs. The basic software installation data 106 and the print component installation data 108 are retrieved from the update program 25 and updated.

  In addition, in a state where the basic software and components of both the optical disc 23 and the optical disc 24 are installed, the following is performed. Basic software installation data 106, Internet component installation data 107, and print component installation data 108 are retrieved and updated.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained when software that can add or delete components is updated.

  Software can be updated by a single update program regardless of the combination of components and regardless of whether or not the component is installed in the environment in which the software update is executed.

  Further, even users who have different combinations of components using a plurality of recording media can update software with a single update program.

  Further, even the extracted component can be not updated depending on the user's selection.

[Second Embodiment]
The second embodiment of the present invention differs from the first embodiment in that the update program has the configuration shown in FIG. The other elements of the present embodiment are the same as the corresponding ones of the first embodiment (FIGS. 2, 3, and 4), and a description thereof will be omitted.

  FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the update program according to the present embodiment.

  In FIG. 11, the update program 1100 includes control data 1101, an installation detection unit 1102, a medium detection unit 1103, a retrieval unit 1104, and an installation execution unit 1105. Further, the update program 1100 includes basic software installation data 1106, Internet component installation data 1107, and print component installation data 1108.

  The control data 1101 is data for controlling the operation of the update program 1100. The installation detection unit 1102 detects whether specific software or components are installed from data recorded in the HDD 1120. The medium detection unit 1103 detects whether the specific optical software or component is included in the optical disk 1140 inserted into the optical disk drive 1130.

  The retrieving unit 1104 retrieves the designated software or component from the update program 1100 and records it in the HDD 1120. The installation execution unit 1105 executes installation using the software or component extracted from the update program 1100 by the extraction unit 1104.

  The basic software installation data 1106 is data for installing the latest version of the basic software. Internet component installation data 1107 is data for installing an Internet component. The print component installation data 1108 is data for installing a print component. Each installation data is a newer version than the basic software, the Internet component, and the printing component stored on the optical disc 23 and the optical disc 24.

  In addition, the area limitation information for limiting the area where software or component installation can be performed can be added to each installation data. In the present embodiment, American region limited information 1109 and Japan region limited information 1110 are added to the Internet component installation data 1107.

  The entire update program 1100 is encrypted. This is to prevent the user from extracting the basic software installation data 1106, the Internet component installation data 1107, and the print component installation data 1108 without permission.

  The update program 1100 includes a detection retry unit 1111 as a configuration different from the update program 25 of the first embodiment. The detection retry unit 1111 detects another specific method when specific software or a component is not detected, and is included as a part of the medium detection unit 1103. The detection retry unit 1111 is effective only when software on the recording medium (optical disk in the present embodiment) is not found.

  This embodiment has the following features. When the medium detection unit 1103 detects that the designated software or component is not included in the designated optical disk, the CPU displays a screen for asking a predetermined question to the user on the display 202. When an answer to the question is input on the screen by the user, the medium detection unit 1103 changes the output result of the medium detection unit 1103 according to the answer to the question.

  When the medium detection unit 1103 detects that the designated software or component is not included in the designated optical disk, the medium detection unit 1103 performs the following processing. The medium detection unit 1103 detects whether or not the designated optical disc includes another software or component as a substitute, and changes the output result of the medium detection unit 1103 according to the detection result.

  Further, when the installation detection unit 1102 detects that the designated software or component is not installed, the installation detection unit 1102 performs the following processing. The installation detection unit 1102 detects whether or not another alternative software or component is installed, and changes the output result of the installation detection unit 1102 according to the detection result. The change of the output result described above can be a setting that is not detected as described later.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of control data 1101 included in the update program 1100.

  In FIG. 12, the present embodiment will be described in comparison with the control data 101 of the first embodiment. Also in this embodiment, the content of the control data 1101 is a text file. The text file is also composed of a section title line for separating the control data for each section and a data line for describing the name and value of the control data.

  The control data 1101 includes three sections 1201, 1202, and 1203 separated by three lines of [SoftwareA] on the first line, [ComponentA1] on the seventh line, and [ComponentA2] on the twelfth line. Each section instructs the operation of the update program 1100 for the basic software, the Internet component, and the print component, respectively. Each section consists of the following lines: A SearchRegistry data line for use by the installation detection unit 1102. A SearchFile data line for use by the medium detection unit 1103. ExtractFolder data row for use by the extractor 1104. A NotExist line for use by the detection retry unit 1111.

  FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the overall operation of the update program 1100.

  The overall operation of the update program 1100 shown in FIG. 13 is the same as the overall operation of the update program 25 shown in FIG. 6 of the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted. However, the basic software and component presence / absence detection processing in steps S1302 and S1306 in FIG. 13 is different from the detection processing in FIG. 7 of the first embodiment, and will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the detection process of the presence / absence of software and components in the operation of the update program 1100.

  In FIG. 14, first, installation detection processing by the installation detection unit 1102 from step S1401 is performed. In step S1401, the installation detection unit 1102 acquires the name of the registry key indicating the presence of the specified software or component. Specifically, the content of the SearchRegistry data line of the specified software or component section is acquired from the control data 1101.

  Next, in step S1402, the installation detection unit 1102 confirms whether the acquired registry key exists. In step S1403, if a registry key exists based on the result of the confirmation in step S1402, it is determined that the specified software or component exists, and the detection process is terminated. If the registry key does not exist, the process proceeds to the medium detection process by the medium detection unit 1103 from step S1404.

  In step S1404, the medium detection unit 1103 acquires a file name on the recording medium (optical disk in the present embodiment) indicating the presence of the designated software or component. Specifically, the content of the SearchFile data line of the specified software or component section is acquired from the control data 1101. In step S1405, the CPU displays an optical disk confirmation dialog screen for confirming the optical disk for installation on the display 202 of the computer 201, and requests the user to insert the optical disk into the optical disk drive. If the user has inserted an optical disc into the optical disc drive, the process advances to step S1406.

  In step S1406, the medium detection unit 1103 confirms whether the file having the file name acquired in step S1404 exists on the optical disc inserted into the optical disc drive. In step S1407, if the file exists based on the result of the confirmation in step S1406, it is determined that the designated software or component exists, and the detection process is terminated. If the file does not exist, it is determined that the designated software or component does not exist, and detection retry processing by the detection retry unit 1111 from step S1408 is performed.

  In step S1408, the detection retry unit 1111 acquires information indicating what kind of processing is performed when the designated software or component is not detected. Specifically, the contents of the NotExist data line of the specified software or component section are acquired from the control data 1101. Next, in step S1409, the detection retry unit 1111 branches the subsequent processing depending on the contents of the NotExist data row.

  If the NotExist data line has a value of “Check: xxxx”, the detection retry unit 1111 detects the presence / absence of the software shown in FIG. 13 for another software designated as xxxx. Then, the detection result is used as the detection result of the software or component currently being detected.

  If the NotExist data row has a value of “Error”, the detection retry unit 1111 determines that the designated software or component has not been detected, and ends this processing.

  If the NotExist data line has a value of “Confirm”, the CPU displays a confirmation dialog screen (FIG. 15) for making an inquiry to the user on the display 202 of the computer 201 in step S1410. .

  Next, in step S1411, the detection retry unit 1111 determines a user input to the confirmation dialog screen. If “Yes” (Yes button 1501) is input on the confirmation dialog screen, it is determined that the specified software or component exists, and the detection process is terminated. When “No” (No button 1502) is input, it is determined that the designated software or component does not exist, and the detection process is terminated.

  FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a confirmation dialog screen displayed during the software / component presence / absence detection process.

  In FIG. 15, the confirmation dialog screen has a Yes button 1501 and a No button 1502. In this example, the message “Do you have a digital camera?” Is displayed on the confirmation dialog screen. The user clicks either a Yes button 1501 or a No button 1502. Thereby, the selected information can be transmitted to the detection retry unit 1111.

  In this embodiment, the display content of the confirmation dialog screen is fixed to a predetermined content, but is not limited to this. It is also possible to display different confirmation dialog screens for each software or component by describing the display contents of the confirmation dialog screen in the control data 1101.

  In the present embodiment, the detection retry unit 1111 is configured as a part of the medium detection unit 1103 and is effective only when software on the recording medium (optical disk in the present embodiment) is not found. However, it is not limited to this. For example, the detection retry unit 1111 is configured as a part of the installation detection unit 1102, and an option for detecting the recording medium by the medium detection unit 1103 is provided as one of the options of the detection retry unit 1111. Is also possible.

  Here, for example, when the designated software or component is not detected by the installation detection unit 1102, the configuration is as follows. For each software or component, it is possible to set whether to detect the recording medium by the medium detection unit 1103, use the detection result of other software instead, display an inquiry dialog, or not to be detected. It becomes the composition.

  Next, an operation when the environment of the computer 201 in which the basic software and components stored in the optical disc 23 are installed is updated by performing the processing of FIG. 13 using the update program 1100 of the present embodiment will be described.

  From the optical disc 23, basic software 301 and an Internet component 302 are installed in the computer 201. Therefore, the presence of the basic software is detected in step S1302 of FIG. 13, and the basic software installation data 1106 is extracted from the update program 1100 in step S1304.

  Subsequently, in the processing from step S1305, first, the presence of the Internet component is detected. After installation from the optical disc 23, since the Internet component is detected, the Internet component installation data 1107 is extracted in step S1308.

  Subsequently, the presence of the print component is detected, but not detected after installation from the optical disc 23, so the optical disc confirmation dialog screen in FIG. 8 is displayed on the display 202 of the computer 201. Here, when the user clicks the search start button 803 on the optical disc confirmation dialog screen with the optical disc 23 inserted into the optical disc drive, the following occurs. Since the optical disk 23 does not include a print component, the processing of the detection retry unit 1111 from step S1408 is performed.

  Since the “Notify” data line of the control data includes “Confirm” data, the confirmation dialog screen of FIG. 15 is displayed on the display 202 of the computer 201. When the user clicks the No button 1502 on the confirmation dialog screen, the print component installation data 1108 is not extracted. As a result, the installation process of step S1309 is performed with the basic software installation data 1106 and the Internet component installation data 1107 extracted. The subsequent processing is the same as the installation processing in the first embodiment.

  The example of the update program 1100 after installing the basic software and components stored on the optical disc 23 has been described so far, but other examples will also be described.

  For example, when the update program 25 is executed in a situation where the user has the optical disc 24 and is not installed, the following occurs. The optical disk confirmation dialog screen shown in FIG. 8 is displayed on the display 202 of the computer 201 by the detection processing of the basic software, the Internet component, and the printing component.

  Here, when the optical disc 24 is inserted into the optical disc drive and the search start button 803 on the optical disc confirmation dialog screen is clicked, the following occurs. Basic software installation data 1106 and print component installation data 1108 are extracted from the update program 1100.

  Regarding the Internet component, since “Not Check” is described in the NotExist line of the control data 1101, the detection retry unit 1111 acquires the result of the basic software existence check. Then, the result is used as the result of the presence check of the Internet component. As a result, the Internet component software installation data 1107 is also extracted from the update program 1100, and installation processing is performed.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained when software that can add or delete components is updated.

  Even when a predetermined component does not exist in the recording medium, the component can be installed by a user input.

  Even when a predetermined component does not exist in the recording medium, it is possible to use another component as an alternative.

[Other embodiments]
In the first and second embodiments, an optical disk is used as an example of a recording medium for storing software and components. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various recording media other than an optical disk can be used. Can also be applied.

  The object of the present invention is achieved by executing the following processing. That is, a storage medium that records a program code of software that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or apparatus, and a computer (or CPU, MPU, etc.) of the system or apparatus is stored in the storage medium. This is the process of reading the code.

  In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiment, and the program code and the storage medium storing the program code constitute the present invention.

  Moreover, the following can be used as a storage medium for supplying the program code. For example, floppy (registered trademark) disk, hard disk, magneto-optical disk, CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-ROM, DVD-RAM, DVD-RW, DVD + RW, magnetic tape, nonvolatile memory card, ROM or the like. Alternatively, the program code may be downloaded via a network.

  Further, the present invention includes a case where the function of the above-described embodiment is realized by executing the program code read by the computer. In addition, an OS (operating system) running on the computer performs part or all of the actual processing based on an instruction of the program code, and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing. Is also included.

  Furthermore, a case where the functions of the above-described embodiment are realized by the following processing is also included in the present invention. That is, the program code read from the storage medium is written in a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer. Thereafter, based on the instruction of the program code, the CPU or the like provided in the function expansion board or function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the update program which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a network system in which a client and a server are network-connected. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a software configuration example of an optical disc 23. FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a software configuration example of an optical disc 24. It is a figure which shows the example of the data for control contained in the inside of an update program. It is a flowchart which shows the whole operation | movement of an update program. It is a flowchart which shows the detection process of the presence or absence of software and a component in the operation | movement of an update program. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the optical disk confirmation dialog screen displayed during the detection process of presence / absence of software and components. It is a flowchart which shows the installation process of the software and component in the operation | movement of an update program. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the area selection dialog screen displayed during the installation process of a software and a component. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the update program which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the data for control contained in the inside of an update program. It is a flowchart which shows the whole operation | movement of an update program. It is a flowchart which shows the process which detects the presence or absence of software and a component in operation | movement of an update program. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the confirmation dialog screen displayed during a software and component presence / absence detection process.

Explanation of symbols

25, 1100 Update program 101, 1101 Control data 102, 1102 Installation detection unit 103, 1103 Medium detection unit 104, 1104 Extraction unit 105, 1105 Installation execution unit 106, 1106 Basic software installation data 107, 1107 Internet component installation data 108, 1108 Print component installation data 1111 Detection retry unit

Claims (4)

An information processing apparatus that updates the predetermined software to the latest version by executing an update program of the predetermined software downloaded from a server apparatus when the predetermined software stored in the external storage medium is installed Because
An installation detection unit for detecting whether or not the predetermined software is installed;
When the predetermined software has been detected as not being installed by the installation detection section, and a medium detecting unit for detecting whether inserted and has an external storage medium to the predetermined software is present,
When the medium detection unit detects that the predetermined software is present in the external storage medium, the update program for the predetermined software downloaded from the server device is executed, and the latest version of the predetermined software is installed. An information processing apparatus comprising an installation execution unit.   2. The display device according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit configured to display a dialog screen for requesting insertion of an external storage medium when the installation detection unit detects that the predetermined software is not installed. Information processing device. An installation detection unit, a medium detection unit, and an installation execution unit are provided, and an update program for the predetermined software downloaded from the server device is executed when the predetermined software stored in the external storage medium is installed An information processing apparatus control method for updating the predetermined software to the latest version by
An installation detection step of detecting by the installation detection unit whether or not the predetermined software is installed;
When in the installation detection step wherein the predetermined software is detected as not installed, the medium detecting step of detecting whether the predetermined software in the external storage medium inserted there by the medium detecting unit and ,
When it is detected in the medium detection step that the predetermined software exists in the external storage medium, the installation execution unit executes an update program of the predetermined software downloaded from the server device, and the predetermined software An information processing apparatus control method comprising: an installation execution step of installing the latest version of the information processing apparatus. An installation detection unit, a medium detection unit, and an installation execution unit are provided, and an update program for the predetermined software downloaded from the server device is executed when the predetermined software stored in the external storage medium is installed A computer-readable program for causing a computer to execute a control method of an information processing apparatus that updates the predetermined software to the latest version,
The control method is:
An installation detection step of detecting by the installation detection unit whether or not the predetermined software is installed;
When in the installation detection step wherein the predetermined software is detected as not installed, the medium detecting step of detecting whether the predetermined software in the external storage medium inserted there by the medium detecting unit and ,
When it is detected in the medium detection step that the predetermined software exists in the external storage medium, the installation execution unit executes an update program of the predetermined software downloaded from the server device, and the predetermined software A computer-readable program comprising an installation execution step of installing the latest version of the program.

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