Framework to build, deploy, service, and manage customizable and configurable re-usable applications

摘要

Disclosed is a framework to build, deploy, service, and manage customizable and configurable re-usable applications. The framework is defined declaratively as a manifest possessing an identity, namely a strong identity. The application manifest can declare appropriate ways to configure or customize the application securely and provides the ability to only grant such a right to authorized parties. A further aspect of the invention provides a framework for an application deployment to be defined declaratively with a manifest possessing an identity of the customized application. Such a framework offers a way for the system, state infrastructure, setup programs, authoring tools, and management tools to deploy, install, service and manage the customized application using an authoritative composite application identity. The application manifest as well as the deployment manifest can be made available through out the lifecycle of the deployed application - including at runtime - which assists in consistent manipulation of the customized application.