Cloud Session Transfer via RDMA and State Manager
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cloud business applications that utilize stateful computing protocols face challenges in being compatible with the stateless architecture principle, requiring re-implementation to facilitate scalability and flexibility in a cloud environment, which is time-consuming and expensive.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a cloud environment that supports stateful applications by enabling sticky user sessions to be virtually transferred between application servers, using a cross-server state manager and Remote Direct Memory Access (RDMA) network for seamless session management, allowing existing applications to maintain state without re-implementation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If stateful computing protocols are used to support complex business applications, then application functionality and user session management are improved, but compatibility with cloud architecture principles deteriorates and re-implementation is required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a session manager as an intermediary component that mediates between stateful applications and the cloud infrastructure. The session manager handles session state persistence and retrieval, allowing applications to maintain stateful behavior while the underlying cloud infrastructure operates with stateless principles. This intermediary layer abstracts the complexity of state management from individual application servers.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements session state copying mechanisms where session data is replicated and stored in a centralized location accessible by multiple application servers. When a user session needs to be transferred between servers, the session state is copied rather than requiring complex state transfer protocols, enabling seamless load balancing and failover while maintaining application state.
2Productivity
If stateful applications are extended to cloud environment with multiple application servers, then scalability and data center utilization are improved, but session management complexity and compatibility issues worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges session management functionality into a centralized session manager that is shared across all application servers. Instead of each server independently managing its own session state, all servers access a unified session management system. This consolidation reduces overall system complexity while enabling better resource utilization and load distribution across the data center.
Solution Approach 2:
The session manager is designed as a universal component that serves multiple functions: session creation, persistence, retrieval, and transfer management. It works with all application servers uniformly, providing a single interface for session management regardless of which server handles the request. This multi-functional approach simplifies the overall architecture while supporting scalable deployment.
3Adaptability or versatility
If re-implementation of stateful applications is performed to achieve stateless design, then compatibility with cloud architecture is improved, but development time and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of modifying applications to become stateless, the patent inverts the approach by making the infrastructure stateful through the session manager. Application servers continue to use stateful protocols and maintain session awareness, while the session manager handles the complexity of state persistence and server-independent session management. This inversion allows existing applications to run unchanged in the cloud environment.
4Ease of operation
If sticky user sessions are transferred between application servers, then load balancing and system flexibility are improved, but session transfer latency and complexity worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The session manager pre-loads and caches session data in memory, preparing it for rapid retrieval when session transfers are needed. Session state is maintained in a readily accessible format before transfer events occur, eliminating the need for time-consuming data reconstruction or database queries during actual session migration. This preliminary preparation significantly reduces transfer latency.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution allows stateful applications to run in the cloud without re-implementation, ensuring efficient load balancing and improved data center utilization by maintaining user sessions across application servers without latency, thus achieving better system operation and scalability.
Implementation Method 1
using a cross-server state manager and Remote Direct Memory Access (RDMA) network for seamless session management
Data Source
AI summary
A session transfer request is received from a cloud operating system, the session transfer request identifying a first active session and a second enhanced application server of a plurality of enhanced application servers. Then it is verified that cross user data containing information used by a plurality of sessions, including the first active session, is mapped to a first work process in a process pool of the cloud computing environment. Then a central dispatcher on the second enhanced application server is triggered to create a virtual context and a virtual machine corresponding to the first client device. When a subsequent user request is received from a first client device, the subsequent user request is sent to the central dispatcher of the second enhanced application server and the central dispatcher of the second enhanced application server is caused to roll-in the virtual context by attaching it to a free work process.