JP2004118758A - Method for updating client program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To update a client program by simple system constitution by performing automatic restart notification to a client and automatic restarting processing. <P>SOLUTION: When client's download start time has elapsed in a client/server system (S12), a client program is downloaded (S12). When download end time has elapsed (S13), a server issues restart notification to the client (S14) and forcedly disconnects the client (S15). At this time, the client displays a restart message (S16), generates a restart process for restarting the client program after the lapse of fixed time (S17), ends the download of the client program (S18), and forcedly ends the client (S19). The client is automatically started by the restart process after the lapse of the fixed time (S20) and updates the program (S21). <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method for updating a client program when a client performs information display in an intranet system using a local connection, a dedicated line, or the like, or in a client / server system under an Internet environment. The present invention relates to a method for updating a client program for automatically reconnecting to a server after a forced disconnection performed by the server after the download of the program is completed.
[0002]
[Prior art]
When a client program is downloaded to a client in a conventional client / server system, a program transmitted from a center, which is a higher-level device, is received and stored in a server, and the download start time stored as a parameter by the client elapses. Then, the client program starts to be downloaded from the server to the client. Further, when the download end time has elapsed, the client connected to the server is forcibly terminated by forced disconnection from the server, and the client program is updated by reconnecting to the server by a user operation. In other words, the download and update of the client program are performed by separate processes, so the update after the download of the client program must be performed by disconnecting the client from the server, restarting the client, and reconnecting to the server. Has been done by
[0003]
Therefore, various techniques have been disclosed in the client / server system that can avoid the above-described forced disconnection after the download is completed and can smoothly update the client program by downloading from the server to the client. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. HEI 8-190474 discloses a technique for reliably performing version management between a server machine and a client machine. According to this technique, in a client / server system, when a user activates desired software on a client side, a version comparison request is issued from the client side to the server side. When the comparison results do not match, the software on the client side is automatically updated to the latest version. As a result, there is no possibility of a user's operation error or omission of version update caused by the server, and software version management can be reliably performed.
[0004]
Also, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H11-23809 discloses a module distribution management technique that allows the latest module to be used at all times without performing module update management on the terminal side. According to this technique, in a client / server system, each time a client connects to a server, a server flag file and a client flag file are checked. If the flag file is changed, a module corresponding to the client O / S is selected and copied to the client. As a result, the client can update the latest module without managing the module on the client side.
[0005]
Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-2767337 discloses that when updating a main program of a terminal, the latest business program is stored in an area different from the area where the existing business program is stored, and is set in the host computer. A technology for switching to a business program that matches the version of the business program being executed is disclosed. As a result, it is possible to smoothly switch to the latest business program version and continue the work without stopping the operation of the system.
[0006]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the technology of each of the above publications, in order to automatically update a client program, a comparison unit for comparing a client-side program with a server-side program, and an update processing unit for performing a program update process The configuration of the client / server system becomes complicated due to the necessity of providing the above. On the other hand, in the above-described conventional method of updating a client program, when the client finishes downloading, the client is forcibly disconnected from the server. Therefore, the client may be disconnected during operation, which hinders continued work on the client side. May be caused. Also, after the forced disconnection from the server, the program is updated after the user performs a reconnection operation to the server, so that it takes time and effort for the user to reconnect, and the operability of the client-side terminal deteriorates. There is.
[0007]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide an automatic restart notification from a server to a client, and to perform an automatic restart process by a client, thereby achieving a simple system configuration. An object of the present invention is to make it possible to update a client program and to realize a highly convenient and reliable method of updating a client program.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, a method for updating a client program according to the present invention is a method for updating a client program configured by a client / server system, the method comprising: downloading a client program to a client; The update process of the client program is performed by a series of automatic processes. The first step in which the client program is downloaded from the server to the client at the download start time, and the download from the server to the client at the download end time. A second step in which a restart notification for restarting the client is transmitted to the client and a restart process for causing the client to restart itself based on the received restart notification A third step in which the server forcibly terminates the operation of the client after the download end time, and the client automatically restarts according to the restart process, and the client executes the downloaded client program. A fifth step of starting up and updating to the latest client program.
[0009]
According to this configuration, even if the client is forcibly disconnected by the server after downloading the client program, the client is automatically restarted by the restart process, reconnects to the server, and updates the client program. It can be carried out. Therefore, the usability of the client when updating the client program is further improved. Further, according to the client program updating method of the present invention, the client is forcibly disconnected after the restart notification is transmitted from the server to the client after the download is completed, so that the client is forcibly disconnected immediately after the conventional download is completed. Unlike the above, the possibility that the client is disconnected during the predetermined operation is small, and the possibility that the client's continuous work is hindered is also reduced.
[0010]
Further, in the client program updating method according to the present invention, in the fifth step, the restart process activates the client program after a predetermined time has elapsed from the download end time.
[0011]
According to this configuration, after the client has finished downloading the client program, a pop-up window is displayed to urge the client to restart. Therefore, if a restart process is generated so that the client program is restarted after a predetermined time has elapsed from the end of the download, the client program can be surely automatically operated without user operation. It is restarted and the client program can be updated.
[0012]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment of a method of updating a client program according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a client / server system for realizing the method of updating a client program according to the present invention.
[0013]
In FIG. 2, the client / server system has a configuration in which a center system 1 and a user system 2 are connected by the Internet 3 or a dedicated line network 4. The center system 1 includes a center 5, which is the highest-order device, a server 6, which performs various types of information management and information distribution, and a plurality of clients 7a, 7b, which are terminals on the server 6 side. Have been. The user system 2 is composed of a plurality of user clients 8a, 8b to 8n, which are user terminals receiving information services from the server 6. Since such a client / server system itself has a general configuration, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.
[0014]
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the server 6 in the client / server system shown in FIG. In FIG. 3, a server 6 includes a CPU 11 that controls the entire server 6, a first LAN control device 12 that controls a line between the center 5, and a line control between user clients 8a and 8b to 8n. A second LAN control device 13 for performing an input operation, a keyboard 14 for performing an input operation, a clock device 15 for measuring a download start time and an end time and generating various timing clock signals, and a RAM 16 for reading and writing various information. A ROM 17 for reading out programs and the like, an image output device 18 for outputting various images to the user client side, an image output control device 19 for controlling image output of the image output device 18, and a mouse 20. .
[0015]
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the user clients 8a, 8b to 8n in the client / server system shown in FIG. Since all of the user clients 8a, 8b to 8n have the same configuration, they are representatively shown as one user client 8a. In FIG. 4, a user client 8a includes a CPU 21 that controls the entire user client 8a, a client-side LAN control device 22 that controls a line to the server 6, a keyboard 23 that performs an input operation, and a download start. A clock device 24 for measuring time and end time and generating various timing clock signals, a RAM 25 for reading and writing various information, a ROM 26 for reading programs and the like, and outputting various images to its own display device. An image output device 27, an image output control device 28 that controls image output of the image output device 27, and a mouse 29.
[0016]
Next, an embodiment of a client program update process according to the present invention will be described by comparing a flowchart of the related art with a flowchart of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing the flow of a client program update process according to the present invention. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of a client program update process according to the related art. In the configuration of the client / server system shown in FIG. 2, the updating process of the client program is performed between the server 6 and each of the user clients 8a, 8b to 8n. I do. Accordingly, the flowcharts of FIGS. 1 and 5 show the flow of the client program update processing performed between the server 6 and a certain user client 8a. 1 and 5, the flow of processing on the client side and the flow of processing on the server side are displayed in parallel.
[0017]
Hereinafter, the flow of a client program update process according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5 in comparison with the flow of a conventional client program update process. First, in the updating process of the client program according to the prior art of FIG. 5, when the server 6 downloads the client program to each of the user clients 8a, 8b to 8n (hereinafter, representatively referred to as the user client 8a), the center 5 The transmitted update program is temporarily received by the server 6 and stored in the RAM 16.
[0018]
On the other hand, the user client 8a constantly monitors by the clock device 24 whether or not the download start time held by itself as a parameter has elapsed (step S1). Here, when the download start time has elapsed (Yes in step S1), the user client 8a starts downloading the corresponding program from the server 6 and performs a download process (step S2). On the other hand, the server 6 constantly monitors whether or not the download end time has elapsed by the clock device 15 (step S3), and when the download end time has elapsed (Yes in step S3), the server 6 is connected. The user client 8a is forcibly disconnected from the server 6 (step S4). As a result, the user client 8a ends the download process (step S5), and forcibly ends the operation of the user client 8 (step S6). Then, when the user performs the restart operation of the user client 8a (step S7), the connection from the user client 8a to the server 6 is performed, the switching process of the corresponding client program is executed, and the client program is updated to the latest program. (Step S8). For this reason, the usability of the user client 8a is extremely poor, for example, the continuous work of the user client 8a is interrupted or it takes time to reconnect.
[0019]
Therefore, in the updating process of the client program in the present invention, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 1, after the client program is downloaded to the user client 8a, the automatic restart notification from the server 6 to the user client 8a and the automatic restart by the user client 8a are performed. By performing the restart process, the operability of the user client 8a when the user updates the client program is further improved.
[0020]
In the update process of the client program according to the present invention, as in the case of the prior art, when the server 6 downloads the client program to the user client 8a, the update program transmitted from the center 5 is received by the server 6, and the first LAN The data is taken into the control device 12 and stored in the RAM 16.
[0021]
On the other hand, the user client 8a constantly monitors by the clock device 24 whether or not the download start time held by itself as a parameter has elapsed (step S11). Here, when the download start time has elapsed (Yes in step S11), the user client 8a starts the download of the corresponding client program from the server 6 based on the control of the client-side LAN control device 22, and performs the download process. Is executed (step S12).
[0022]
Further, the server 6 constantly monitors whether or not the download end time has elapsed by the clock device 15 (step S13), and when the download end time has elapsed (Yes in step S13), the server 6 is connected. A client restart notification is issued to the existing user client 8a (step S14). On the other hand, since the download end time has elapsed, the server 6 forcibly disconnects the connected user client 8a from the server 6 (step S15).
[0023]
At this time, since the user client 8a has received the restart notification at step S14 when the download end time has elapsed, a pop-up window prompting a message to restart the user client 8a (after displaying for a certain period of time, automatically (Step S16), a restart process for restarting the client program after a predetermined time is generated, and the restart process is performed (Step S17). Then, the user client 8a ends the download process of the client program (step S18), and forcibly ends the operation of the user client 8 (step S19).
[0024]
Next, even if the user does not perform a restart operation of the user client 8a, the user client 8a starts up the user client 8a after a lapse of a predetermined time according to the restart process generated in step S17. Is automatically activated (step S20). Then, reconnection to the server 6 is performed, the switching process of the corresponding client program is executed, and the client program is updated to the latest program (step S21). As described above, even if the user client 8 is forcibly disconnected by the server 6 after the download of the client program is completed, the user client 8 can automatically reconnect to the server 6 by the restart process.
[0025]
The embodiment described above is an example for describing the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the processing in the case where one server downloads a client program to any one user client and updates the client program has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and even when a client program is downloaded from one server to a plurality of user clients and updated, the same can be realized by the same processing as in the above embodiment. .
[0026]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the client program updating method of the present invention, after the client program is downloaded to the client, an automatic restart notification from the server to the client and an automatic restart process by the client are performed by a series of automatic processes. Is going. Therefore, it is possible to further improve the operability of the client when the user performs the updating process of the client program, and to improve the reliability of the updating process. Furthermore, the client is forcibly disconnected after the restart notification is transmitted from the server to the client after the download is completed. Therefore, unlike the conventional case where the client is forcibly disconnected immediately after the completion of the download, the client is in a predetermined operation. Is less likely to be interrupted, and there is less risk of hindering continued work on the client side.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing the flow of a client program update process according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a client / server system for implementing a client program update method according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of a server 6 in the client / server system shown in FIG.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of user clients 8a, 8b to 8n in the client / server system shown in FIG.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a client program update process according to the related art.
[Explanation of symbols]
Reference Signs List 1 center system, 2 user system, 3 Internet, 4 dedicated line network, 5 center, 6 server, 7a, 7b client, 8a, 8b to 8n user client, 11, 21 CPU, 12 first LAN controller, 13 second LAN control Devices, 14, 23 keyboard, 15, 24 clock device, 16, 25 RAM, 17, 26 ROM, 18, 27 image output device, 19, 28 image output control device, 20, 29 mouse, 22 client side LAN control device.

Claims (2)

In a client program updating method for updating a client program configured in a client / server system,
A first step of downloading a client program from a server to the client at a download start time;
A second step in which a restart notification for restarting the client is transmitted from the server to the client at a download end time;
A third step in which the client generates a restart process for restarting itself based on the received restart notification;
A fourth step in which the server forcibly terminates the operation of the client after the download end time;
A fifth step of automatically restarting the client according to the restart process, wherein the client starts the downloaded client program and executes an update to the latest client program. How to update the client program. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, in the fifth step, the restart process activates the client program after a predetermined time has elapsed from a download end time.

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