API Binding Manager for Cloud Service Provider Translation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Applications face challenges when migrating between cloud service providers due to incompatibilities between different client service provider APIs, requiring reconfiguration and limiting deployment to specific CSPs.
Innovation Solution
A binding manager translates application programming interface (API) calls and return objects between client service provider APIs, enabling applications to operate seamlessly across multiple CSPs without reconfiguration by identifying mismatches and converting formats.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If applications are migrated between cloud service providers, then application performance and deployment flexibility are improved, but API incompatibility between different CSPs causes reconfiguration requirements and deployment limitations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an API gateway as an intermediary component that sits between applications and multiple cloud service provider APIs. The gateway translates and adapts API calls between different CSP interfaces, allowing applications to migrate between providers without direct reconfiguration. The gateway maintains a mapping layer that handles protocol conversion, authentication translation, and response normalization, effectively mediating between heterogeneous CSP APIs and application logic.
Solution Approach 2:
The API gateway is designed with universal functionality to handle multiple CSP APIs through a single unified interface. It implements a pluggable adapter architecture that can accommodate different CSP providers without requiring application changes. The gateway provides multi-functional capabilities including request routing, translation, caching, and error handling that work across all connected CSPs, eliminating the need for application-specific configurations for each provider.
2Reliability
If applications are configured for specific CSP APIs, then API compatibility is ensured, but migration to other CSPs is limited and requires reconfiguration
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the API interaction layer into distinct components: application logic, API gateway, and CSP-specific adapters. This segmentation allows the application to remain agnostic of specific CSP implementations while the gateway handles provider-specific details. Each CSP adapter is an independent module that can be added, removed, or modified without affecting the application core, enabling reliable compatibility with one CSP while maintaining adaptability to migrate to another by simply switching adapters.
Solution Approach 2:
The API gateway implements dynamic configuration capabilities that allow it to adapt to different CSP APIs at runtime. The system uses configurable connection profiles and dynamic adapter selection based on the target CSP. This dynamic approach enables the same application to reliably connect to different CSPs by loading appropriate configuration settings and adapter modules, without requiring static hardcoding of CSP-specific parameters.
3Productivity
If API calls are translated between different CSP formats, then migration efficiency is improved, but translation overhead increases processing time
Solution Approach 1:
The API gateway performs preliminary actions by pre-compiling and caching translation rules for common API patterns between different CSPs. During application deployment, the gateway pre-processes and stores mapping templates that define how requests and responses should be transformed between providers. This preliminary preparation significantly reduces runtime translation overhead, as the gateway can apply pre-validated transformation rules rather than generating translations dynamically for each request.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses copying strategies by maintaining cached copies of translated API responses and commonly used request templates. When the same API call pattern is detected, the gateway retrieves pre-translated versions from cache rather than performing full translation processing. This copying approach dramatically reduces translation processing time for repetitive operations while maintaining migration efficiency across different CSP environments.
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques described herein relate to a method for managing applications. The method may include obtaining, by a binding manager associated with a first CSP, a first API call from a first application; the binding manager identifies a first CSP API associated with the first CSP; identifies a second CSP API associated with the first API call; make a first determination that the second CSP API does not match the first CSP API; and in response to the first determination: translates the first API call into a format associated with the first CSP API to obtain a translated API call; initiates performance of the translated API call; obtains a first CSP API call return object in first CSP API format; translates the first CSP API call return object to obtain a translated CSP API call return object; and provides the translated CSP API call return object to the first application.