Documentation/Labs/AutomaticUpdateAndInstallationFramework

Overview

This page serves as roadmap for the Slicer Automatic Update and Installation framework.

Use cases:

• New Slicer version installed locally should be updated with the list of extensions previously installed.
• Self update of Slicer

Terminology

• User Interface
  • Extensions Manager is a Slicer dialog allowing the user to Search, Install, Remove and disable extensions.
  • ExtensionWizard module: This is a Slicer module providing a graphical interface within Slicer to aid in the creation of Slicer extensions.

• Command line
  • ExtensionWizard is a command line tool to simplify the process of creating and contributing extensions.
    • See also Contribute Extension Description File using Extension Wizard

• API
  • ExtensionsManagerModel: This is the backend of the Extensions Manager displayed to the user
  • Utilities/Scripts/SlicerWizard: This is a python package used in the ExtensionWizard

Convention

Tasks listed in this page can be associated with any of these state:

• ToBeDone
• Completed
• In progress

Use case: Keep track of the installed extensions across version

The goal here is to simplify the number of steps allowing people to reinstall extensions that were used in a previous installation.

Current Process

• Dennis added a third tab in the extension manager, using Qt Designer
• extensionsInstallPath() returns platform-specific path to "NA-MIC" folder which has "Extensions-2456" subfolders for all installed Slicer versions
  • on Linux, that's in ~/.config/NA-MIC
  • on Windows, in AppData/Roaming
  • on OS X, seems to be a subdirectory of the application bundle
• Dennis' idea: look for all Extensions-* subfolders – how to do that on OS X properly?
  • just found [Extensions]/InstallPath setting in .ini files -> by parsing all ini files, that could work cross-platform
  • on OS X, the inis are in ~/.config//www.na-mic.org
• Dennis' plan was to use Python scripting, but using C++/Qt would also be a good option

Proposed Changes

• a new (third) tab in the extension manager, which should list all previously installed extensions
• view should have columns:
  • extension name
  • Slicer revisions / last revision in which the extension was installed
  • checkbox for batch installation, pre-checked from latest previous Slicer revision
  • rows with installed extensions could be grayed out
• below that, a button for installing the checked extensions

Progress

• Extract list of extensions installed. Look at npm for the format. ToBeDone
• Extension manager:
  • Update ExtensionManageModel API so that "list" can be processed ToBeDone
  • Update entry "Install Extension from file" to "Install Extensions from file" and support "tar.gz", ".json" ToBeDone

Meta issue:

• 2779: Mechanism to keep track of the installed extensions across version ToBeDone

Completed

NA

Use case: Self update of Slicer

Proposed Changes

• Display list of nightly builds in a web view
• Selecting a new version should automate:
  • download
  • auto-start installer, with extra information for the next steps
  • auto-start new Slicer
  • possibly, directly going to the above extensions-reinstallation tab (maybe not even showing the main window before)
• stuff that is there, or might be useful
  • cross-platform re-start functionality is there (as part of extension installation)
  • probably, at least on Win/Linux, "start Slicer after installation" is possible
  • unattended installation on any platform(s)?

Notes

2016.05.03

• See also Documentation/Labs/ExtensionsFrameworkRoadmap

• Ability to ask the installer (or Slicer) to install other extensions
  • Would it make sense to transition to http://doc.qt.io/qtinstallerframework/ ?

• Serialize what is installed in you current Slicer

• Update of installed extensions:
  • See https://www.slicer.org/slicerWiki/index.php/Documentation/4.5/SlicerApplication/ExtensionsManager#Updating_installed_extensions