Common Agent Framework for Virtual Machine Capability Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
In computing environments, existing management systems for virtual machines and containers consume resources and often install redundant monitoring agents, leading to inefficiencies and increased resource utilization.
Innovation Solution
A common agent framework is introduced, where a capabilities management agent is installed on assets to manage and catalog available capabilities, allowing for the discovery and invocation of plugins in a platform-agnostic and language-agnostic manner, reducing the need for redundant plugins and optimizing resource usage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multiple monitoring agents are installed on virtual machines and containers, then monitoring coverage is improved, but resource consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple monitoring agents into a single agent that integrates capabilities from different monitoring systems. This single agent lives side-by-side with the application and provides unified monitoring, eliminating the need for multiple separate agents and reducing resource consumption while maintaining comprehensive monitoring coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The monitoring agent is designed with universal capabilities that can monitor various aspects of virtual machines and containers through a common framework. It supports multiple monitoring functions and can adapt to different environments, providing broad monitoring coverage with a single multi-functional agent rather than multiple specialized agents.
2Reliability
If multiple monitoring agents are installed on virtual machines and containers, then monitoring coverage is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple monitoring agents into one unified agent, reducing system complexity by eliminating redundant components and interactions between multiple agents while maintaining comprehensive monitoring coverage through integrated capabilities.
3Adaptability or versatility
If plugins are installed for different platforms and languages, then compatibility is improved, but resource consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The monitoring agent implements a universal plugin framework that can load and execute plugins written in different languages on different platforms. This allows the system to maintain broad platform compatibility and language support without requiring separate agents for each platform, reducing resource consumption while preserving adaptability.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture are disclosed to manage asset in a computing environment using a common agent framework. An example method includes maintaining a catalog of capabilities available to an asset based on plugins installed at the asset. The example method also includes determining whether a capability is installed at the asset based on the catalog of capabilities, and installing the capability at the asset when the capability is not installed at the asset. The example method also includes receiving, at the asset, a request to perform the capability, validating, via a processor, the request, and, in response to the validating, performing the capability.