Multi-tenant PaaS Resource Sharing via Container Isolation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) environments face inefficiencies in resource utilization and cost due to the need for separate virtual machines for each application, leading to wasted resources and high expertise requirements for deployment and management, especially when migrating applications between hypervisors or cloud providers.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a mechanism for system resource sharing in a multi-tenant PaaS environment by categorizing virtual machines into resource-usage groups and using resource control tools to enforce uniform resource constraints, allowing multiple applications to share resources efficiently on a single node.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If separate virtual machines are used for each application in PaaS environment, then application isolation and security are improved, but resource utilization deteriorates and costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple applications onto a single virtual machine by implementing containerization technology. Each application runs in an isolated container with its own filesystem, process space, and resource constraints, while sharing the underlying VM infrastructure. This combining approach maintains application isolation through container boundaries while improving resource utilization by eliminating the need for separate VMs for each application.
Solution Approach 2:
The virtual machine is designed to host multiple applications simultaneously by implementing a container runtime environment that can manage diverse workloads. The VM becomes a universal platform capable of running different types of applications (web servers, databases, microservices) on the same infrastructure, thereby improving resource utilization while maintaining security through container isolation mechanisms.
2Device complexity
If separate virtual machines are allocated for each application, then resource allocation is simplified, but device complexity and management expertise requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a container runtime and orchestration layer as an intermediary between the application deployment process and the underlying VM infrastructure. This intermediary abstraction layer simplifies deployment by providing standardized container images, automated provisioning, and unified management interfaces, reducing the need for complex VM configuration expertise while maintaining proper resource allocation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements self-service capabilities through automated container orchestration that handles resource allocation, scaling, and management without requiring manual VM provisioning. The platform automatically manages the lifecycle of containers, including deployment, monitoring, and termination, thereby reducing management complexity and expertise requirements while maintaining proper resource distribution.
3Productivity
If multiple applications share a single virtual machine, then resource utilization is improved, but resource constraint enforcement and isolation become more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the virtual machine into isolated container environments, where each application receives dedicated resource constraints and isolation boundaries. The container runtime enforces resource limits (CPU, memory, storage) at the container level, ensuring that each application's resource usage is independently controlled and monitored, thereby maintaining reliable resource constraint enforcement while enabling efficient shared utilization of the underlying VM resources.
Data Source
AI summary
A mechanism for system resource sharing in a multi-tenant PaaS environment in a cloud computing system is disclosed. A method of embodiments includes receiving, by a virtual machine (VM), identification of resource-usage groups that each define resource constraints to apply to applications having a type of the resource-usage group, establishing a resource control policy on the VM for each of the identified resource-usage groups, the resource control policy to enforce the resource constraints of its associated resource-usage group, configuring a plurality of resource control tools of the VM to implement each resource control policy, identifying a resource-usage group of an application to be created on the VM, applying, by the one or more resource control tools to the application, the resource control policy of the identified resource-usage group of the application, and executing the application with the defined resource constraints on the VM.