Patent Grant
10423461
A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
The subject matter discussed in the background section should not be assumed to be prior art merely as a result of its mention in the background section. Similarly, a problem mentioned in the background section or associated with the subject matter of the background section should not be assumed to have been previously recognized in the prior art. The subject matter in the background section merely represents different approaches, which in and of themselves may also be inventions.
A virtual machine can be a software implementation of a computer that executes programs like a physical machine. A system virtual machine provides a complete system platform which supports the execution of a complete operating system, and usually emulates an existing architecture, including disks. Multiple instances of virtual machines lead to more efficient use of computing resources, both in terms of energy consumption and cost effectiveness, known as hardware virtualization, the key to a cloud computing environment. Server virtualization has proven to be a highly effective technology in many enterprises, and is a key element enabling cloud and information technology as a service offerings.
In the following drawings like reference numbers are used to refer to like elements. Although the following figures depict various examples, the one or more implementations are not limited to the examples depicted in the figures.
General Overview
Cloud computing can be a type of Internet-based computing that provides shared computer processing resources and data to computers and other devices on demand. Cloud computing may be used as a model for enabling ubiquitous, on-demand access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (such as computer networks, servers, storage, applications, and services), that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort. Cloud computing and storage solutions can provide users and enterprises with various capabilities to store and process their data in third-party data centers that may be located far from the user-ranging in distance from across a city to across the world. Cloud computing can rely on sharing of resources to achieve coherence and economy of scale. An enterprise can use cloud computing to scale up as computing needs increase and then scale down again as computing demands decrease.
An end user can use a client device to request the creation of a virtual machine environment, which may be created in a cloud computing environment or any other computing environment that enables the creation of a requested virtual machine environment. A virtual machine environment can be the overall structure within which an emulated computer operates. Examples of virtual machine environments include a single virtual machine and include multiple virtual machines that function as a load balancer, two or more application servers, a database server, and a storage server.
The creation of virtual machines may require complex processes that may result in errors. For example, the creation of a database server requires configuring the database server with database software, configuring the database server with initialization parameters, and then mounting the data set, each of which are complex processes that may result in errors. In an alternative example, the creation of a virtual hard drive requires configuring the hard drive with the bus type, configuring the hard drive with the maximum size, and loading a snapshot of existing data, each of which are complex processes that may result in errors. Consequently, if an end user requests the creation of a virtual machine environment that includes a database server and/or a virtual hard drive, and the creation of the database server and/or the virtual hard drive results in errors, the time required to create the database server and/or the virtual hard drive and correct the resulting errors can result in a delay in the creation of the requested virtual machine environment. Such a delay can result in the failure of the creation of the requested virtual machine environment within a required time period. Even if the request does not fail, already created virtual machines that depend on a running database server and/or a running virtual hard drive may be forced to wait idly while any errors in the database server and/or the virtual hard drive are being corrected.
In accordance with embodiments described herein, there are provided methods and systems for pooled virtual machine resources. A determination is made whether a number of virtual machine resources that are in a pool are less than a specified number. A calculated number of virtual machine resources is created for the pool if the number of virtual machine resources that are in the pool is less than the specified number, the calculated number being equal to the specified number minus the number of virtual machine resources that are in the pool. A request to create a virtual machine environment that requires at least one virtual machine resource is received. A virtual machine resource is allocated from the pool to the virtual machine environment.
For example, a system determines whether the 4 virtual machine database servers that are in subnetwork A's pool is less than the required number of 5 virtual machine database servers for subnetwork A. The system creates 1 virtual machine database server for subnetwork A's pool because the 4 virtual machine database servers that are in subnetwork A's pool is 1 less than the required number of 5 for subnetwork A. The system receives a request to create a virtual machine environment in subnetwork A, and the requested virtual machine environment requires 1 virtual machine database server. The system allocates 1 of the 5 virtual machine database servers from subnetwork A's pool to the requested virtual machine environment.
In an alternative example, a system determines whether the 4 virtual hard disks that are in subnetwork A's pool is less than the required number of 5 virtual hard disks for subnetwork A. The system creates 1 virtual hard disk for subnetwork A's pool because the 4 virtual hard disks that are in subnetwork A's pool is 1 less than the required number of 5 for subnetwork A. The system receives a request to create a virtual machine environment in subnetwork A, and the requested virtual machine environment requires 1 virtual hard disk. The system allocates 1 of the 5 virtual hard disks from subnetwork A's pool to the requested virtual machine environment. By creating and maintaining a pool of virtual machine resources prior to receiving a request to create a virtual machine environment that requires one of the virtual machine resources, the system provides a pre-created virtual machine resource in response to the request, thereby reducing the time required to create the virtual machine environment and significantly reducing the possibilities of request failures and delays.
Methods and systems are provided for pooled virtual machine resources. First, a method for pooled virtual machine resources will be described with reference to example embodiments. Next, a mechanism for pooled virtual machine resources will be described. Then the following detailed description will describe multiple methods for pooled virtual machine resources.
Any of the embodiments described herein may be used alone or together with one another in any combination. The one or more implementations encompassed within this specification may also include embodiments that are only partially mentioned or alluded to or are not mentioned or alluded to at all in this brief summary or in the abstract. Although various embodiments may have been motivated by various deficiencies with the prior art, which may be discussed or alluded to in one or more places in the specification, the embodiments do not necessarily address any of these deficiencies. In other words, different embodiments may address different deficiencies that may be discussed in the specification. Some embodiments may only partially address some deficiencies or just one deficiency that may be discussed in the specification, and some embodiments may not address any of these deficiencies.
A determination is made whether a number of virtual machine resources that are in a pool is less than a specified number, box 102. The system maintains a specified number of virtual machine resources in a pool by verifying how many virtual machine resources are available in the pool. For example and without limitation, this can include the system's arbitrator component for subnetwork A dispatching one of the system's producer components for subnetwork A to determine whether the 4 virtual machine database servers that are in subnetwork A's pool is less than the required number of 5 virtual machine database servers for subnetwork A's pool, as specified in a subnetwork pool size table. In an alternative example, the system's arbitrator component for subnetwork A dispatches one of the system's producer components for subnetwork A to determine whether the 4 virtual hard drives that are in subnetwork A's pool is less than the required number of 5 virtual hard drives for subnetwork A's pool, as specified in a subnetwork pool size table. In another example, at system initialization, a producer component for subnetwork A determines whether the 0 virtual machine database servers that are in subnetwork A's pool is less than the required number of 5 for subnetwork A's pool. In an alternative example, at system initialization, a producer component for subnetwork A determines whether the 0 virtual hard drives that are in subnetwork A's pool is less than the required number of 5 for subnetwork A's pool. Similarly, at system initialization, producer components for each subnetwork determine whether the number of virtual machine resources for each subnetwork's pool is less than the required number specified in the subnetwork pool size table.
The subnetwork pool size table can be implemented in a database such as a mysql database. This table can maintain the pool size of virtual machine resources in all subnetworks. The table's details can be static and cached on startup. A system administrator can change any pool size and update the cache without the need to restart any virtual machine resources. An example subnetwork pool size table is depicted in
A virtual machine resource can be a computer emulation that provides a specific function, such as a load balancer, an application server, a database server, a file server, a storage server, an enterprise search server, a SMTP (simple mail transfer protocol) server, an IMAP (internet message access protocol) sever, a messaging system, or a virtual hard disk. A pool can be a set of initialized computer resources that are kept ready for use. A specified number can be a level or amount at which virtual machine resources are maintained in a pool. A subnetwork can be a part of a number of interconnected computers. If the number of virtual machine resources that are in a pool is less than the specified number, the method continues to box 104 to replenish the pool. If the number of virtual machine resources that are in the pool is not less than the specified number, the method proceeds to box 106 to wait for requests to create virtual machine environments.
If the number of virtual machine resources that are in a pool is less than the specified number, a calculated number of virtual machine resources is created for the pool, the calculated number being equal to the specified number minus the number of virtual machine resources that are in the pool, box 104. The system maintains a specified number of virtual machine resources in a pool by creating virtual machine resources to compensate for any deficiency less than the specified number. By way of example and without limitation, this can include the arbitrator component for subnetwork A dispatching one of the system's producer components for subnetwork A to create 1 virtual machine database server for the subnetwork A's pool because the 4 virtual machine database servers that are in subnetwork A's pool is 1 less than the required number of 5 for subnetwork A. In an alternative example, the arbitrator component for subnetwork A dispatches one of the system's producer components for subnetwork A to create 1 virtual hard drive for the subnetwork A's pool because the 4 virtual hard drives that are in subnetwork A's pool is 1 less than the required number of 5 for subnetwork A. In another example, at system initialization, the arbitrator component for subnetwork A dispatches multiple producer components for subnetwork A to create 5 virtual machine database servers for subnetwork A's pool because the 0 virtual machine database servers that are in subnetwork A's pool is 5 less than the required number of 5 for subnetwork A. In an alternative example, at system initialization, the arbitrator component for subnetwork A dispatches multiple producer components for subnetwork A to create 5 virtual hard drives for subnetwork A's pool because the 0 virtual hard drives that are in subnetwork A's pool is 5 less than the required number of 5 for subnetwork A. Similarly, at system initialization, producer components for each subnetwork create the number of virtual machine resources for each subnetwork's pool that is specified in the subnetwork pool size table.
Creating the calculated number of virtual machine resources for a pool may include applying a write lock to the pool prior to creating the calculated number of virtual machine resources for the pool, and releasing the write lock from the pool after creating the calculated number of virtual machine resources for the pool. For example, a producer component for subnetwork A applies a write lock to subnetwork A's pool, creates the 1 virtual machine database server for subnetwork A's pool, configures the database server with database software, configures the database server with initialization parameters, mounts the data set, and releases the write lock from subnetwork A's pool. The producer component for subnetwork A applies a write lock to subnetwork A's pool to prevent other producer components for subnetwork A from adding the identifier of another virtual machine database server to subnetwork A's pool at the same time, thereby ensuring that the pool size is maintained correctly and does not overflow its specified capacity. In an alternative example, a producer component for subnetwork A applies a write lock to subnetwork A's pool, creates 1 virtual hard drive for subnetwork A's pool, configures the 1 virtual hard drive with the bus type (IDE, SCSI, or SATA), configures the 1 virtual hard drive with the maximum size, loads a snapshot of existing data, and releases the write lock from subnetwork A's pool.
System components interact with virtual machine resources in a pool in an atomic and consistent way. The producer component's write lock, and the consumer component's read lock that is described below, may be implemented in a mysql database: GET_LOCK( ) can be used to implement application locks or to simulate record locks. Names are locked on a server-wide basis. If a name has been locked within one session, GET_LOCK( ) blocks any request by another session for a lock with the same name. This blocking enables clients that agree on a given lock name to use the name to perform cooperative advisory locking. A lock obtained with GET_LOCK( ) is released explicitly by executing RELEASE_LOCK( ) or implicitly when a session terminates, either normally or abnormally. A producer component can use WRITE_<Subnet_Id> lock to ensure atomicity of its operations to maintain a pool's size. A consumer component can use READ_<Subnet_Id> lock to ensure that the same virtual machine resource is not allocated to multiple requestors.
Creating a calculated number of virtual machine resources for a pool can include modifying the tag of a virtual machine resource to being available in the pool. For example, after creating a virtual machine database server for subnetwork A's pool, a producer component for subnetwork A modifies the tag of the virtual machine database server to being ‘IN-POOL’ (available in the pool). A producer component tags virtual machine resources to enable tracking of these resources, and to enable a reaper component to delete resources that are associated with errors, as described below. A reaper can be a background process that deletes or terminates a virtual machine resource that is tagged as failed or no longer in use.
Having maintained a pool of virtual machine resources, a request to create a virtual machine environment that requires at least one virtual machine resource is received, box 106. In embodiments, this can include the system's arbitrator component for subnetwork A receiving a request to create a virtual machine environment in subnetwork A, and the requested virtual machine environment requires 2 virtual machine database servers. In an alternative example, the system's arbitrator component for subnetwork A receives a request to create a virtual machine environment in subnetwork A, and the requested virtual machine environment requires 2 virtual hard drives. A request to create a virtual machine environment can be an instruction from a client device to emulate a computer based on certain configurations.
In response to the request to create a virtual machine environment, a virtual machine resource is allocated from a pool to the virtual machine environment, box 108. For example and without limitation, this can include the system's arbitrator component for subnetwork A dispatching one of the system's consumer components for subnetwork A to allocate the next 2 available virtual machine database servers of the 5 virtual machine database servers from subnetwork A's pool to the virtual machine environment that requires 2 virtual machine database servers. In an alternative example, the system's arbitrator component for subnetwork A dispatches one of the system's consumer components for subnetwork A to allocate the next 2 available virtual hard drives of the 5 virtual hard drives from subnetwork A's pool to the virtual machine environment that requires 2 virtual hard drives. The dispatched consumer component returns the identifier of the next available virtual machine resource to the requestor. By creating and maintaining a pool of virtual machine resources prior to receiving a request to create a virtual machine environment that requires a virtual machine resource, the system provides a pre-created virtual machine resource in response to the request, thereby significantly reducing the possibilities of request failures and delays.
The arbitrator component for a subnetwork also dispatches a producer component for the subnetwork to replenish the subnetwork's pool with another virtual machine resource, thereby maintaining the size of each subnetwork's pool at each pool's corresponding specified number of virtual machine resources. The arbitrator component for a subnetwork dispatches a producer component for the subnetwork to replenish the subnetwork's pool with another virtual machine resource rather than reclaiming a virtual machine resource that is no longer being used by a virtual machine environment. Since a virtual machine environment can terminate the use of a virtual machine resource at any time, the system cannot depend upon reclaiming a virtual machine resource to maintain a pool size. Furthermore, a requestor may have significantly modified a virtual machine resource or written confidential data to the virtual machine resource, either of which would result in the virtual machine resource not being appropriate for reuse.
Allocating a virtual machine resource from a pool to a virtual machine environment can include applying a read lock to the pool prior to allocating the virtual machine resource from the pool to the virtual machine environment, and releasing the read lock from the pool after allocating the virtual machine resource from the pool to the virtual machine environment. For example, a consumer component for subnetwork A applies a read lock to subnetwork A's pool, allocates 2 virtual machine database servers from subnetwork A's pool to the virtual machine environment that requires 2 virtual machine database servers, and releases the read lock from subnetwork A's pool.
In an alternative example, a consumer component for subnetwork A applies a read lock to subnetwork A's pool, allocates 2 virtual hard drives from subnetwork A's pool to the virtual machine environment that requires 2 virtual hard drives, and releases the read lock from subnetwork A's pool. The consumer component for a subnetwork applies a read lock to the subnetwork's pool to prevent other consumer components for the subnetwork from reading the identifier of the next available virtual machine resource in the subnetwork's pool, thereby ensuring that the next available virtual machine resource in the subnetwork's pool is allocated to only one requestor, which may be referred to as an “exactly once” allocation of a resource. Since a producer component for a subnetwork's pool uses a write lock that differs from the read lock used by a consumer component for the same subnetwork's pool, both a producer component and a consumer component can access the same subnetwork's pool simultaneously, because the producer component's applied write lock does not prevent the consumer component from accessing the subnetwork's pool, and the consumer component's applied read lock does not prevent the producer component from accessing the subnetwork's pool.
Allocating a virtual machine resource from a pool to a virtual machine environment can also include modifying the tag of the virtual machine resource from being available in the pool to being allocated for use. For example, before assigning a virtual machine database server to a virtual machine environment, a consumer component modifies the tag of the virtual machine database server from being ‘IN-POOL’ (available in the pool) to being ‘IN-USE’ (allocated to a requestor for use). Allocating a virtual machine resource to a virtual machine environment can be distributing or assigning an asset to a computer emulation for a specific purpose.
The pool can be implemented as a queue that uses a database table or a queue service. An example of a pool that is implemented by database table that functions as a queue of virtual machine resources is depicted by
Following the creation of virtual machine resources in the pool, a determination is optionally made whether another virtual machine resource has been in the pool for more than a specific duration, box 110. Checking on virtual machines' duration in a pool reduces costs for virtual machine resources that have created but not allocated for some time. By way of example and without limitation, this can include the system's sleeper component for subnetwork A waking up after 20 minutes and determining if any of the virtual machine database servers has been in subnetwork A's pool for more than 30 minutes. In an alternative example, the system's sleeper component for subnetwork A wakes up after 20 minutes and determines if any of the virtual hard drives has been in subnetwork A's pool for more than 30 minutes. If the other virtual machine resource has been in the pool for more than the specific duration, the method 100 continues to block 112 to stop the other virtual machine resource. If the other virtual machine resource has not been in the pool for more than the specific duration, the method 100 proceeds to block 114. A specific duration can be an amount of processing cycles or a time period. Although
If the other virtual machine resource has been in a pool for more than the specific duration, then the other virtual machine resource is optionally stopped, box 112. Stopping long-idling virtual machine resources reduces costs for these virtual machine resources that have created but not allocated for some time. In embodiments, this can include the system's sleeper component for subnetwork A stopping the virtual machine database server that has been in subnetwork A's pool for more than 30 minutes. In an alternative example, the system's sleeper component for subnetwork A stops the virtual hard drive that has been in subnetwork A's pool for more than 30 minutes. Stopping a virtual machine resource can be powering off a computer emulation, such that the computer emulation could quickly be powered back on if the need arises.
Once virtual machine resources are created in a pool, a determination is optionally made whether the tag of another virtual machine resource is inconsistent with the state of the other virtual machine resource, box 114. Verifying that different sources of information about a virtual machine resource are consistent enables the identification of unforeseen errors. For example and without limitation, this can include the system's reaper component for subnetwork A determining whether a virtual machine database server that is tagged as ‘IN-POOL’ is actually listed as an available virtual machine database server in subnetwork A's pool. In an alternative example, the system's reaper component for subnetwork A determines whether a virtual hard drive that is tagged as ‘IN-POOL’ is actually listed as an available virtual hard drive in subnetwork A's pool. A tag of a virtual machine resource can be a label or identifier attached to or associated with an asset for computer emulation.
A state of a virtual machine resource can be a particular condition of an asset for computer emulation at a specific point in time. An inconsistency between the tag of a virtual machine resource and the state of the virtual machine resource can occur when a label or identifier attached to or associated with an asset for computer emulation does not accurately describe a particular condition of the asset for computer emulation at a specific point in time. Examples of other inconsistencies identified by a reaper component include a tag indicating use by a requester when the virtual machine resource lacks an identifier associated with the requestor, the inability to identify the tag indicating that a virtual machine resource is in a pool when the identifier of the virtual machine resource is in the pool, and any untagged virtual machine resources. Although
If the tag of the other virtual machine resource is inconsistent with the state of the other virtual machine resource, then the other virtual machine resource is optionally deleted, box 116. Deleting specifically identified virtual machine resources enables the correction of certain unforeseen errors. By way of example and without limitation, this can include the system's reaper component for subnetwork A deleting a virtual machine database server that is tagged as ‘IN-POOL’ but is not listed as an available virtual machine database server in subnetwork A's pool. In an alternative example, the system's reaper component for subnetwork A deletes a virtual hard drive that is tagged as ‘IN-POOL’ but is not listed as an available virtual hard drive in subnetwork A's pool.
In addition to the functions of the sleeper components and the reaper components, the system can use other means to monitor the health of each pool. For example, the system can trigger an alarm to a system administrator if any subnetwork's pool is empty for too long or overflowing its specified capacity. If the healthy host count, the number of functioning virtual machine application servers behind a virtual machine load balancer, is less than a certain number, then the system can trigger an alarm to a system administrator.
The system can also use a thread deadlock detection to determine if any threads are deadlocked. This thread deadlock detection is applicable to all components of the system, including arbitrators, producers, consumers, sleepers, and reapers.
Additionally, the system can trigger an alarm to a system administrator if a consumer component waits too long for a virtual machine resource and/or identifies an empty pool, which may occur during a high demand scenario.
The method 100 may be repeated as desired. Although this disclosure describes the blocks 102-116 executing in a particular order, the blocks 102-116 may be executed in a different order. In other implementations, each of the blocks 102-116 may also be executed in combination with other blocks and/or some blocks may be divided into a different set of blocks.
In an embodiment, the system 200 represents a cloud computing system that includes a first client 202, a second client 204, and a third client 206; and a server 208 in a cloud computing environment 210 which may be provided by a hosting company. Although
The system 200 also includes a pool A 214 that contains a resource A-1216, a resource A-2218, a resource A-3220, a resource A-4222, and a resource A-5224. The pool A 214 is accessed by an arbitrator A 226 via a producer A-1228, a producer A-2230, a producer A-3232, a consumer A-1234, a consumer A-2236, and a consumer A-3238. The resources 216-224 are accessed by a sleeper A 240 and a reaper A 242. The system 200 further includes a pool B 244 that contains a resource B-1246, a resource B-2248, and a resource B-3250. The pool B 244 is accessed by an arbitrator B 252 via a producer B-1254, a producer B-2256, a producer B-3258, a consumer B-1260, a consumer B-2262, and a consumer B-3264. The resources 246-250 are accessed by a sleeper B 256 and a reaper B 258. The system 200 additionally includes a pool C 270 that contains a resource C-1272 and a resource C-2274. The pool C 270 is accessed by an arbitrator C 276 via a producer C-1278, a producer C-2280, a producer C-3282, a consumer C-1284, a consumer C-2286, and a consumer C-3288. The resources 272-274 are accessed by a sleeper C 290 and a reaper C 292.
In response to the request to create a lab that requires a Big IP EC2 instance, the arbitrator A 226 component kicks off the consumer A-1234 component to read from the instance queue, block 304. The instance queue can be a virtual machine resource pool, such as pool A 214. After the consumer A-1234 component returns an instance identifier from the instance pool, the arbitrator A 226 component determines whether the instance identifier is null or blank, block 306. An instance identifier can uniquely identify an instance of a virtual machine resource. If the instance identifier is null or blank, the arbitrator A 226 component determines whether it has waited long enough, such as more than 2 minutes, for the consumer A-1234 component to return a valid instance identifier, block 308. If it has waited long enough, the arbitrator A 226 component throws an exception. block 310, and then terminates the method 300. An exception can cause an error message to be output to a system administrator. If it has not waited long enough, the arbitrator A 226 component blocks for some seconds, block 312. After blocking for some seconds, the arbitrator A 226 component returns to block 304 to kick off the consumer component to read from the instance queue again. If the instance id is not null or blank, the arbitrator A 226 component determines whether the instance is running, block 314. If the instance is not running, the arbitrator A 226 component starts the instance, block 316. If the instance is running, the arbitrator A 226 component tags the instance with the tag name Big Pool (Status IN-USE), block 318. After tagging a running instance, the arbitrator A 226 component returns the instance identifier to the requestor, block 320. The arbitrator A 226 component responds with an EC2 instance, block 322, and asynchronously kicks off a producer component to replenish the depleted instance queue, block 324.
If service is not starting up, the producer A-1228 component gets the subnetwork identifier from the program argument, because a consumer has just consumed an EC2 instance from the top of the instance queue, block 408. Using a subnetwork identifier, the producer A-1228 component gets a write mutex, block 410. A write mutex can be a mutual exclusion write lock for a subnetwork's pool, as described above. When write exclusion has been ensured for the instance queue, the producer A-1228 component gets the total instances available from the instance queue, block 412. After getting the total instances available from the instance queue, the producer A-1228 component determines whether the total instances available in the current instance queue is less than the subnetwork pool size, block 414. If the total instances available is less than the subnetwork pool size, the producer A-1228 component spawns the number of Big IP EC2 instances so that the total instances available in the current instance queue is no longer less than the subnetwork pool size, block 416. Having spawned any new instances, the producer A-1228 component adds tags to the new instances, block 418. After tagging any new instances, the producer A-1228 component adds the new instance identifiers to the instance queue, block 420. If the total instances available is not less than the subnetwork pool size, the producer A-1228 component releases the write mutex, block 422. Once the write mutex is released, the producer A-1228 component determines whether more subnetworks are available for possible pool replenishment, block 424. If more subnetworks are available for possible pool replenishment, the method 400 returns to block 410 to get a write mutex for the next subnetwork to have its pool checked.
The table 702 can provide all of the atomicity, consistency, isolation, and durability transactional properties of database management systems, and store the information for each pool for each subnetwork in a single data structure. Even if the single database table 702 stores the information for a significantly large number of pools, access time for such a large data structure can be improved by clustering pool information. The table 702 implements multiple virtual machine resource pools in a single database table. One column or combination of columns (composite keys) can hold a reference for a virtual machine resource pool. Each record in the table 702 is a reference to a virtual machine resource within that virtual machine resource pool, which is beneficial if the number of virtual machine resource pools is dynamic in response to the changing availability of subnetworks. Table 702 is based on
Producers and consumers in each pool can read/write in a thread-safe and atomic manner. Producers for instances of virtual machine resources in subnetwork A are guarded by a mutex (subnet-a-producer) so that only one producer can add to subnetwork A's pool at a time, which ensures that the pool never goes over its specified capacity. Consumers for instances of virtual machine resources in subnetwork A are guarded by a separate mutex (subnet-a-consumer) so that each instance of a virtual machine resource in subnetwork A is allocated only once, which is called “exactly once” delivery. Each pool can be treated as a FIFO (first in, first out) queue, in which the oldest virtual machine resource is consumed first. Each pool in the multi-pool is logically independent of each other pool. Other implementations of the database table 702 can involve using a LIFO (last in, first out) queue or a stack-based approach to add and remover virtual machine resources from a pool.
System Overview
Having describing the subject matter in detail, an exemplary hardware device in which the subject matter may be implemented shall be described. Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the elements illustrated in
The bus 814 may comprise any type of bus architecture. Examples include a memory bus, a peripheral bus, a local bus, etc. The processing unit 802 is an instruction execution machine, apparatus, or device and may comprise a microprocessor, a digital signal processor, a graphics processing unit, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), etc. The processing unit 802 may be configured to execute program instructions stored in the memory 804 and/or the storage 806 and/or received via the data entry module 808.
The memory 804 may include read only memory (ROM) 816 and random access memory (RAM) 818. The memory 804 may be configured to store program instructions and data during operation of the hardware device 800. In various embodiments, the memory 804 may include any of a variety of memory technologies such as static random access memory (SRAM) or dynamic RAM (DRAM), including variants such as dual data rate synchronous DRAM (DDR SDRAM), error correcting code synchronous DRAM (ECC SDRAM), or RAMBUS DRAM (RDRAM), for example. The memory 4804 may also include nonvolatile memory technologies such as nonvolatile flash RAM (NVRAM) or ROM. In some embodiments, it is contemplated that the memory 804 may include a combination of technologies such as the foregoing, as well as other technologies not specifically mentioned. When the subject matter is implemented in a computer system, a basic input/output system (BIOS) 820, containing the basic routines that help to transfer information between elements within the computer system, such as during start-up, is stored in the ROM 816.
The storage 806 may include a flash memory data storage device for reading from and writing to flash memory, a hard disk drive for reading from and writing to a hard disk, a magnetic disk drive for reading from or writing to a removable magnetic disk, and/or an optical disk drive for reading from or writing to a removable optical disk such as a CD ROM, DVD or other optical media. The drives and their associated computer-readable media provide nonvolatile storage of computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules and other data for the hardware device 800.
It is noted that the methods described herein can be embodied in executable instructions stored in a computer readable medium for use by or in connection with an instruction execution machine, apparatus, or device, such as a computer-based or processor-containing machine, apparatus, or device. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that for some embodiments, other types of computer readable media may be used which can store data that is accessible by a computer, such as magnetic cassettes, flash memory cards, digital video disks, Bernoulli cartridges, RAM, ROM, and the like may also be used in the exemplary operating environment. As used here, a “computer-readable medium” can include one or more of any suitable media for storing the executable instructions of a computer program in one or more of an electronic, magnetic, optical, and electromagnetic format, such that the instruction execution machine, system, apparatus, or device can read (or fetch) the instructions from the computer readable medium and execute the instructions for carrying out the described methods. A non-exhaustive list of conventional exemplary computer readable medium includes: a portable computer diskette; a RAM; a ROM; an erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM or flash memory); optical storage devices, including a portable compact disc (CD), a portable digital video disc (DVD), a high definition DVD (HD-DVD™), a BLU-RAY disc; and the like.
A number of program modules may be stored on the storage 806, the ROM 816 or the RAM 818, including an operating system 822, one or more applications programs 824, program data 826, and other program modules 828. A user may enter commands and information into the hardware device 800 through the data entry module 808. The data entry module 808 may include mechanisms such as a keyboard, a touch screen, a pointing device, etc. Other external input devices (not shown) are connected to the hardware device 800 via an external data entry interface 830. By way of example and not limitation, external input devices may include a microphone, joystick, game pad, satellite dish, scanner, or the like. In some embodiments, external input devices may include video or audio input devices such as a video camera, a still camera, etc. The data entry module 808 may be configured to receive input from one or more users of the hardware device 800 and to deliver such input to the processing unit 802 and/or the memory 804 via the bus 814.
A display 832 is also connected to the bus 814 via the display adapter 810. The display 832 may be configured to display output of the hardware device 800 to one or more users. In some embodiments, a given device such as a touch screen, for example, may function as both the data entry module 808 and the display 832. External display devices may also be connected to the bus 814 via an external display interface 834. Other peripheral output devices, not shown, such as speakers and printers, may be connected to the hardware device 800.
The hardware device 800 may operate in a networked environment using logical connections to one or more remote nodes (not shown) via the communication interface 812. The remote node may be another computer, a server, a router, a peer device or other common network node, and typically includes many or all of the elements described above relative to the hardware device 800. The communication interface 812 may interface with a wireless network and/or a wired network. Examples of wireless networks include, for example, a BLUETOOTH network, a wireless personal area network, a wireless 802.11 local area network (LAN), and/or wireless telephony network (e.g., a cellular, PCS, or GSM network). Examples of wired networks include, for example, a LAN, a fiber optic network, a wired personal area network, a telephony network, and/or a wide area network (WAN). Such networking environments are commonplace in intranets, the Internet, offices, enterprise-wide computer networks and the like. In some embodiments, the communication interface 812 may include logic configured to support direct memory access (DMA) transfers between the memory 804 and other devices.
In a networked environment, program modules depicted relative to the hardware device 800, or portions thereof, may be stored in a remote storage device, such as, for example, on a server. It will be appreciated that other hardware and/or software to establish a communications link between the hardware device 800 and other devices may be used.
It should be understood that the arrangement of the hardware device 800 illustrated in
In addition, while at least one of these components are implemented at least partially as an electronic hardware component, and therefore constitutes a machine, the other components may be implemented in software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. More particularly, at least one component defined by the claims is implemented at least partially as an electronic hardware component, such as an instruction execution machine (e.g., a processor-based or processor-containing machine) and/or as specialized circuits or circuitry (e.g., discrete logic gates interconnected to perform a specialized function), such as those illustrated in
Other components may be implemented in software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. Moreover, some or all of these other components may be combined, some may be omitted altogether, and additional components can be added while still achieving the functionality described herein. Thus, the subject matter described herein can be embodied in many different variations, and all such variations are contemplated to be within the scope of what is claimed.
In the description herein, the subject matter is described with reference to acts and symbolic representations of operations that are performed by one or more devices, unless indicated otherwise. As such, it is understood that such acts and operations, which are at times referred to as being computer-executed, include the manipulation by the processing unit of data in a structured form. This manipulation transforms the data or maintains it at locations in the memory system of the computer, which reconfigures or otherwise alters the operation of the device in a manner well understood by those skilled in the art. The data structures where data is maintained are physical locations of the memory that have particular properties defined by the format of the data. However, while the subject matter is described in this context, it is not meant to be limiting as those of skill in the art will appreciate that various of the acts and operations described herein may also be implemented in hardware.
To facilitate an understanding of the subject matter described, many aspects are described in terms of sequences of actions. At least one of these aspects defined by the claims is performed by an electronic hardware component. For example, it will be recognized that the various actions can be performed by specialized circuits or circuitry, by program instructions being executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of both. The description herein of any sequence of actions is not intended to imply that the specific order described for performing that sequence must be followed. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly.
While one or more implementations have been described by way of example and in terms of the specific embodiments, it is to be understood that one or more implementations are not limited to the disclosed embodiments. To the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements as would be apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the scope of the appended claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements.
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