Many information processing systems operate according to software configurations which migrate through a series of upgrades and/or patches to repair, extend or otherwise modify the capabilities of such systems. In order to effect such modifications, the information processing systems are typically taken off-line, with the consequential detrimental effect on system availability and overall performance. Also, these systems typically need to be backwards compatible with prior versions through successive version updates.
Thus, there is a need for an information processing system with a facility for managing its configuration so that modifications made during runtime are propagated and take affect without restarting the system or a portion thereof. This would allow the potential for 100% uptime while upgrading such systems. There is also a need for a means of allowing an information processing system to be able to process multiple configuration versions, and to be able to process such versions even while such versions are changing during operation of the information processing systems.
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