Converting desktop applications into cloud services
Techniques for converting desktop applications into cloud services are provided. In one embodiment, a server system can receive a representation of an application that has been extracted from an installation of the application on an end-user computing device. The representation can include a collection of files and configuration information associated with the application. The server system can then store the representation of the application in a server-side repository for deployment as a cloud service.
1. A method comprising:
determining, at a cloud service, a list of applications available to a user as cloud services;
transmitting the list of applications to an end-user computing device associated with the user;
receiving a selection of a particular application from the end-user computing device;
retrieving a stored representation of the selected application, wherein the representation of the application includes a collection of files and configuration information associated with the application, the configuration information including changes made to an application registry of an operating system of a computing device captured during a prior installation of the application, wherein the captured changes include a series of create, update, and delete registry operations that are performed in a particular order;
using the retrieved representation of the selected application to deploy an instance of the application that reproduces the application including any custom configurations captured by the configuration information, wherein the reproducing includes using the captured changes to the application registry to replay the series of create, update and delete registry operations in the same order on a server operating system instance of the cloud service; and
providing an interface of the deployed application to the end-user computing device using a remote display protocol.
2. The method of claim 1 , comprising:
receiving login credentials from the user; and
determining the list of applications in response to authenticating the user.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the list of applications comprises consulting an application repository to identify applications that have been added to a cloud-accessible user workspace of the user.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the selected application is deployed on a virtual machine running a guest operating system.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the list of applications correspond to applications exported from a prior computing device associated with the user.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the representation of the application includes metadata indicating that the application may be deployed as a cloud service.
7. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored thereon instructions executable by one or more server computer systems, the instructions, when executed, causing the one or more server computer systems to perform operations comprising:
determining, at a cloud service, a list of applications available to a user as cloud services;
transmitting the list of applications to an end-user computing device associated with the user;
receiving a selection of a particular application from the end-user computing device;
retrieving a stored representation of the selected application, wherein the representation of the application includes a collection of files and configuration information associated with the application, the configuration information including changes made to an application registry of an operating system of a computing device captured during a prior installation of the application, wherein the captured changes include a series of create, update, and delete registry operations that are performed in a particular order;
using the retrieved representation of the selected application to deploy an instance of the application that reproduces the application including any custom configurations captured by the configuration information, wherein the reproducing includes using the captured changes to the application registry to replay the series of create, update and delete registry operations in the same order on a server operating system instance of the cloud service; and
providing an interface of the deployed application to the end-user computing device using a remote display protocol.
8. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 7 , further comprising instructions that when executed perform operations comprising:
receiving login credentials from the user; and
determining the list of applications in response to authenticating the user.
9. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 7 , wherein determining the list of applications comprises consulting an application repository to identify applications that have been added to a cloud-accessible user workspace of the user.
10. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 7 , wherein the selected application is deployed on a virtual machine running a guest operating system.
11. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 7 , wherein the list of applications correspond to applications exported from a prior computing device associated with the user.
12. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 7 , wherein the representation of the application includes metadata indicating that the application may be deployed as a cloud service.
13. A system comprising:
one or more processors and one or more non-transitory computer readable media having stored thereon program code that causes the one or more processors to, upon being executed, perform operations comprising:
determining, at a cloud service, a list of applications available to a user as cloud services;
transmitting the list of applications to an end-user computing device associated with the user;
receiving a selection of a particular application from the end-user computing device;
retrieving a stored representation of the selected application, wherein the representation of the application includes a collection of files and configuration information associated with the application, the configuration information including changes made to an application registry of an operating system of a computing device captured during a prior installation of the application, wherein the captured changes include a series of create, update, and delete registry operations that are performed in a particular order;
using the retrieved representation of the selected application to deploy an instance of the application that reproduces the application including any custom configurations captured by the configuration information, wherein the reproducing includes using the captured changes to the application registry to replay the series of create, update and delete registry operations in the same order on a server operating system instance of the cloud service; and
providing an interface of the deployed application to the end-user computing device using a remote display protocol.
14. The system of claim 13 , further comprising program code that causes the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:
receiving login credentials from the user; and
determining the list of applications in response to authenticating the user.
15. The system of claim 13 , wherein determining the list of applications comprises consulting an application repository to identify applications that have been added to a cloud-accessible user workspace of the user.
16. The system of claim 13 , wherein the selected application is deployed on a virtual machine running a guest operating system.
17. The system of claim 13 , wherein the list of applications correspond to applications exported from a prior computing device associated with the user.
18. The system of claim 13 , wherein the representation of the application includes metadata indicating that the application may be deployed as a cloud service.