Abstract: A hierarchal organization of registers containing error indicators is utilized to determine which of a plurality of error recovery modules is to be executed. A redundancy mask and a priority mask stored in a data table associated with each register are sequentially applied to each register in order to eliminate redundant error indicators resulting from a common fault and to set the order of execution of error recovery modules. Thus, the redundancy and priorities associated with detected errors can be controlled substantially independent of the actual error recovery actions to be taken.

Abstract: Platform and/or application software on all online, machine/servers in a cluster is updated without manually taking each machine/server offline. Initially, platform and/or application software for updating is stored in respective directories in an APPLY phase. Next, the new platform and/or application software is activated with or without a trial/test phase in an ACTIVATE phase. Where the new platform and/or application software is activated with a trial/test phase, a ROLLBACK phase is either automatically or manually invoked by the application in the event of a failure of the new software for backing out the new platform and/or application software and reactivating the previous platform and/or application software. An OFFICLAL phase then transitions the new platform and/or application software to the official state followed by a REACTIVATE phase for reactivating the backup copy of the previous/old platform and/or application software after the new software has been made official.