CMDB Resource Reconciliation Across Metadata Hierarchy Classes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current resource reconciliation processes in ITIL-based Configuration Management Databases (CMDBs) are limited to comparing and merging instances of the same class, failing to identify and reconcile instances of different classes, which leads to duplicate objects and data integrity issues.
Innovation Solution
An enhanced resource reconciliation process that examines the metadata hierarchy to identify and merge instances across any class in the hierarchy, allowing specification of reconciliation properties to consider upstream, downstream, or same-class instances, ensuring data integrity and compatibility by eliminating undetectable duplicates.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If resource reconciliation processes only compare instances of the same class, then the reconciliation process is simple and fast, but duplicate objects across different classes cannot be identified and data integrity is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extends the reconciliation process from a single-dimension (same-class) comparison to a multi-dimensional approach by incorporating the metadata hierarchy. Instead of only comparing instances within the same class, the system now traverses up and down the class hierarchy to identify candidate classes, enabling cross-class reconciliation while maintaining systematic control over the increased complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The reconciliation process is segmented into distinct phases: identifying candidate classes through hierarchy traversal, comparing instances against these candidates, and merging reconciled instances. This segmentation allows the system to manage the complexity of cross-class reconciliation by breaking it into manageable steps rather than attempting simultaneous multi-class comparison.
2Reliability
If resource reconciliation processes compare instances across different classes in the metadata hierarchy, then duplicate objects can be identified and data integrity is improved, but the reconciliation process becomes more complex and resource-intensive
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by pre-traversing the metadata hierarchy to identify all candidate classes before the actual instance comparison begins. This preliminary identification of candidate classes (upstream parent classes, downstream child classes, and same-level classes) allows the subsequent reconciliation process to focus only on relevant candidates, improving efficiency despite the expanded scope.
Solution Approach 2:
The reconciliation process dynamically adjusts the set of candidate classes based on the specific instance being processed. Rather than comparing every instance against every possible class in the hierarchy, the system dynamically determines which classes are relevant candidates through hierarchy traversal, optimizing the comparison process for each instance while maintaining comprehensive cross-class coverage.
Data Source
AI summary
An enhanced resource reconciliation process is disclosed to examine the metadata hierarchy of unidentified instances of configuration objects within a particular “data partition” (sometimes called a dataset) of an enterprise configuration management database (CMDB) and perform reconciliation against a target dataset, such as a golden, i.e., production, dataset. The enhanced reconciliation process could identify against instances in the production dataset that are of the same class as the unidentified instance—as well as instances that come from any “candidate” classes. Candidate classes could consist of, e.g., classes upstream or downstream from the unidentified instance in the metadata hierarchy. By allowing the specification of one or more reconciliation properties, such as, “identify downstream,”“identify upstream,”“identify upstream and downstream,” or “identify resources of the same class only,” the enhanced resource reconciliation process could perform identification and resource reconciliation against instances of any class in the unidentified instance's metadata hierarchy.