Offline Virtual Machine Provisioning via Configuration File Extension
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current virtual machine provisioning methods require virtual machines to be running to inject state information, making the process tedious and time-consuming, especially when provisioning hundreds or thousands of machines.
Innovation Solution
An offline provisioning system that extends the virtual machine configuration file to store provisioning information, allowing selective contents to be pushed into the guest virtual machine during launch, enabling provisioning without requiring the virtual machine to be launched, and even before a host is identified.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If virtual machines are provisioned by injecting state information while running, then provisioning can be performed, but the process becomes tedious and time-consuming when provisioning hundreds or thousands of machines
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by capturing state information before the virtual machine is launched. The system captures hardware configuration information and provisioning information (such as user accounts, passwords, network configuration) and stores it in a configuration file before the VM starts. When the VM launches, the hypervisor automatically injects the pre-captured state information, eliminating the need for manual intervention during the VM running state and dramatically reducing provisioning time for large-scale deployments
2Productivity
If hardware customization is done without launching the virtual machine, then hardware provisioning is efficient, but software state provisioning cannot be performed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges hardware provisioning and software state provisioning into a single unified process. The configuration file structure is extended to include both hardware configuration information and software state information (user accounts, passwords, network settings, etc.). The hypervisor is enhanced to automatically inject both hardware and software state information from the configuration file during VM launch, combining the efficiency of offline hardware provisioning with the capability of software state customization without requiring the VM to be running
3Reliability
If provisioning is performed manually with administrative oversight, then accuracy can be maintained, but administrative resources are consumed and deployment is slowed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service by enabling the system to automatically inject pre-captured state information into the virtual machine during launch without requiring continuous administrative oversight. The hypervisor automatically reads the configuration file, extracts the state information, and injects it into the VM's storage device. This automation maintains provisioning accuracy through systematic automated processes while freeing administrative resources for other tasks and dramatically improving deployment speed, especially when provisioning large numbers of machines
Data Source
AI summary
An offline provisioning system provides a facility for provisioning a virtual machine without requiring that the virtual machine be launched. The system extends the configuration file or other mechanism used for storing virtual hardware configuration to store provisioning information for software state. The system uses the configuration information for pushing selective contents of the configuration information into the guest virtual machine as it is launched to perform guest provisioning. With these changes in place, a guest virtual machine can be provisioned when the virtual machine image is offline and not running. The system can even perform provisioning before an appropriate host has been identified to launch the guest virtual machine. This allows for much more rapid deployment and provisioning of virtual machines and frees administrative resources for other tasks.