An Engineering Solution for a Showstopper Problem

We have had windows OS like update mechanism in order to update our server/client applications. Few days back, I have made one of my applications a windows service and I initiated the updater control and all other relevant actions of the controller from code behind, but once applying update from a remote location for the first time, the service could not launch itself after being updated , saying starting…. and went for an indefinite state. The same condition remains, even if I uninstall the service and install the updated service again from command prompt. I have tried several ways to fix the problem.... and at the end as a precaution measure, instead of applications executable and other necessary files, I have set the full bin folder on the update repository to be updated, so that nothing can get missed, but........still no luck!!!


As it is hard to track a tricky problem while you are residing inside the problem,so I had to apply my rule of thumb for this scenario and that was to go and think out of the box. Then I found that some common assemblies that have been referenced in different projects were the firebrand of the scenario. Furthermore, as we start some processes inside from the service as well … they were also the show stopper. So, found the obstacles, now I have separated those processes and have made the service light weighted so that it can lift itself without extra burden after getting updated . I have made a separate service monitor app, from where I launch my extra processes, stop/start service and monitor the service continuously.....


Now it’s working...... excellent!