Duplex Virtual Machine Controller Automatic Hardware Reconfiguration

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional duplex operation systems fail to maintain a duplex state when a failure is detected in the standby system, leading to a narrow operational range and reduced service availability, requiring manual intervention for restoration.

Innovation Solution

A duplex operation system with a virtual machine controller that stops the active system's virtual machine, activates and reconfigures the standby system's virtual machine on different hardware, and further reconfigures the standby system on a different general-purpose device if the reconfigured virtual machine fails, maintaining the duplex state without manual intervention.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the standby system's virtual machine is stopped when a failure is detected, then the system reliability is maintained, but the duplex operation state collapses to a singular operation state, requiring manual intervention

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesystem reliabilityVSAvoidautomatic restoration capability

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs automatic failure detection and self-restoration by detecting failures in the standby virtual machine, stopping the failed VM, and automatically reconfiguring it on a different general-purpose device without requiring manual maintenance personnel intervention

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The system maintains a standby virtual machine configured in advance on a separate general-purpose device, ready to automatically take over when the active virtual machine fails, eliminating the need for manual restoration actions

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Productivity

If the standby virtual machine is reconfigured on the same general-purpose device as the active system, then resource utilization is efficient, but the duplex operation cannot be maintained when the reconfigured standby fails

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveresource utilization efficiencyVSAvoidduplex operation availability

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments the duplex operation by placing the active and standby virtual machines on different general-purpose devices, ensuring physical separation that allows the standby to function independently even when the active system's hardware fails

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system transitions from a single-dimension configuration (both VMs on the same device) to a multi-dimensional configuration (VMs on separate devices), adding spatial separation as a new dimension that enables automatic failure recovery while maintaining resource efficiency

Inventive Principle:

Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

Data Source

PatentUS11803452B2Duplexed operation system and method therefor

Publication Date: 2023.10.31 NIPPON TELEGRAPH & TELEPHONE CORP

AI summary

A duplex operation system including: a plurality of general-purpose devices on each of which a plurality of virtual machines are mounted; and a virtual machine controller that controls a duplex operation performed by two systems, an active system and a standby system, of the virtual machines. When detecting a failure of the active system, the virtual machine controller stops the virtual machine of the active system, activates the virtual machine of the standby system corresponding to the stopped active system, and reconfigures the standby system of the activated virtual machine on the hardware of the stopped virtual machine, and when detecting a failure in the virtual machine of the reconfigured standby system, the virtual machine controller reconfigures the standby system of the failed virtual machine on the general-purpose device 13 different from the general-purpose device 11 in which the virtual machine of the active system has been stopped.