A method of installing software on and/or testing a computer system which includes checks for compatibility

摘要

Software installation and/or testing of software/hardware on a build-to-order computer system (160) is automated. A descriptor file, containing a series of component (hardware/software) descriptors, is used to obtain a set of steps, which relate to installation/testing, from a database (100) (eg. relational database, Fig 6). Each step has an associated sequence number which is used to sequence the steps. The compatibility between steps and components is checked through processing compatibility information stored on the database. Steps may need to be removed or altered depending on their compatibility. For each step it is determined if that step requires a parameter; if so the parameter's value is calculated. A progress or log file is kept during the installation/testing of the system to ensure the correct sequence of steps is followed. Installation/testing may either be carried out using a setup disk (Fig. 1) or over a network (Fig 2.).