Re: [platform-update-dev] How to publish plug-in changes to developers

[Peter Manahan <manahan@xxxxxxxxxx>]

platform-update-dev-admin@xxxxxxxxxxx wrote on 04/12/2003
01:17:28 PM:

> 
> I'll try to explain me better.
> 
> Let's say we have 3 characters.
> - The plug-in provider .
> - The customer system administrator
> - The plug-in final user.
> 
> A.) I am the Plug-in provider. The plug-ins have properties files
and I
> fill them by default. A property can be a DSN for example.
> I package my product (which includes plug-ins and other stuff) in
a
> installation setup.

Understood. At this point you should assume the data in your plugin is
readonly. The default values are in the plugin but any configuration thats
needs to be done later shouldn't be in stored in your plugin.

> B)The customer system administrator receives the setup and runs it.
> The setup  completes the following steps :
>       1. deletes previous deployed plugins from their
update server
>       2.  puts new plugins in the update server.
> At one step, the setup should be able to enable the person that runs
it to
> specify configuration data .
> For example, the DSN to the database that have to connect all users.
> 

This will only work if the user has specifically pointed
to the admin update server. The user will never find an update there using
1-click download. Help->Software Updates->New Updates. I wouldn't
recommend installing into an update server like that. The admins may have
set it up in a way that would make your install fail.

> C) The final user downloads the new plug-ins  from the customer
update
> server .
> He does not have to change or configure anything.
> 
> 
> My problem is to know if their is an easy way to make the customer
system
> administrator change the properties files, and repackage the plug-ins.
> Maybe I'm going the wrong way and the install philosophy is completely
> different. Please tell me.
> 

Install/Update manager is for installing and updating.
What you are describing a requirement for is more a global configuration
issue as part of the install. Update Manager currently doesn't provide
hooks for that really unless you use an install handler. 

You could Allow changes to a data-file provided as
part of the feature which can sit outside the feature (for example a url
defined in a properties file). That the admin could set to pull down a
default configuration from. Then your install handler could put it in a
well known place in the user's config say the user.dir and then your plugin
could read it from there.


> 
> >> - Once published to an update server, imagine there is a
need to change
> a
> >> properties file.
> >> if you change it inside the plugin,  as the version
does not change,
> there
> >> is no possibility for users to update to the latest changes.
Any
> solution ?
> >>
> >In a general case if you modify a plugins contents. You need to
 (this is
> for 2.1 )
> >1) Update the plugin version number
> >2)  Either create an update or a patch.
> >      a) Update - update the version number and
include of each feature
> down the tree from the root level feature to the feature with the
changed
> plugin
> >     b) Patch - create a new feature with the changed
plugin and feature
> it contains and use it to patch the root feature.
> >3) Supply the update or patch to the  Update Site.
> 
> That's what I don't want my customers have to do . I mean i would
like to
> do the same, but in an automatic way.
> 
> >> - It there a way to download old plug-ins from local machine
when you
> >> update to newer ones?
> >>
> 
> >Why do you need the old plugins?
> 
> I meant "delete" .
> My question was if their is a way to delete automatically previous
> installed plug-ins  (not only disabled), when you download new
ones from an
> update server.
> 
> Thanks
> 
> ------------------------------
> Thomas BUTTIER
> ISBAN - Gestión del Software
> Tel.-  91.3383642
> 
> 
>                    
                     
                     
             
>                    
  Peter Manahan                
                     
   
>                    
  <manahan@xxxxxxxxxx>            
  Para:    
> platform-update-dev@xxxxxxxxxxx          
                     
             
>                    
  Enviado por:                
      cc:              
  
>                    
  platform-update-dev-admin@         Asunto:  
> Re: [platform-update-dev] How to publish plug-in changes to 
> developers          
>                    
  eclipse.org                
                     
     
>                    
                     
                     
             
>                    
                     
                     
             
>                    
  04/12/2003 17:43              
                     
  
>                    
  Por favor, responda a            
                     
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  platform-update-dev              
                     
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> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> platform-update-dev-admin@xxxxxxxxxxx wrote on 04/12/2003 11:14:36
AM:
> 
> > Hi all
> >
> > Eclipse version : 2.1
> > - I have plug-ins that require a change in their properties file
before
> > beeing published to an Update Server. How would yo do that without
> building
> > again the feature/plugin, but in an automatic way ? For instance
changing
> > the configuration could be a final step in the installation setup.
> >
> 
> I am not sure I understand what you are doing. Each time a plugin
is
> shipped to a user with a change its version changes. Could you be
more
> specific as to what the properties file change you are talking about?
You
> mention configuration etc.  I am unsure how you would do that.
Plugins
> aren't meant to be different across installs. So if I have plugin
A on one
> machine then plugin A on another machine would be identical. Any config
> information should be stored in the plugins preferences area.
> 
> > - Once published to an update server, imagine there is a need
to change a
> > properties file.
> > if you change it inside the plugin,  as the version does
not change,
> there
> > is no possibility for users to update to the latest changes.
Any solution
> ?
> >
> 
> In a general case if you modify a plugins contents. You need to  (this
is
> for 2.1 )
> 1) Update the plugin version number
> 2)  Either create an update or a patch.
>        a) Update - update the version number and
include of each feature
> down the tree from the root level feature to the feature with the
changed
> plugin
>        b) Patch - create a new feature with the
changed plugin and feature
> it contains and use it to patch the root feature.
> 3) Supply the update or patch to the  Update Site.
> 
> 
> > - It there a way to download old plug-ins from local machine
when you
> > update to newer ones?
> >
> 
> Why do you need the old plugins?
> 
> Peter
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
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