Remote Service Instance Placement for Low-Latency Micro-Regions
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Solution Overview
Problem
The management of large-scale computing resources in data centers is complicated by increased scale and scope, and virtualization technologies face challenges in supporting desired latencies for end-user requests due to geographical distance from provider data centers.
Innovation Solution
A modular control-plane architecture is implemented, allowing service instances to be configured at micro-regions close to end-user endpoints, with control servers in standard regions managing administrative operations and using secure communication channels to minimize latency and administrative overhead.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If service instances are hosted at large centralized data centers, then resource utilization and management efficiency are improved, but latency for end-user requests increases due to geographical distance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the centralized data center infrastructure into distributed micro-regions geographically closer to end users. Service instances can be deployed to these micro-regions, maintaining resource utilization benefits while reducing latency through proximity to users. The control plane remains centralized for management efficiency while the data plane is distributed for performance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a new architectural dimension by separating control plane and data plane functions. Control servers in standard regions manage administrative operations remotely, while service instances run in micro-regions close to users. This dimensional separation allows centralized management to coexist with distributed deployment for low latency.
2Loss of time
If service instances are deployed close to end-user endpoints in micro-regions, then latency is reduced, but administrative management complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces control servers as intermediary components between administrators and distributed service instances. These control servers in standard regions handle administrative operations remotely, providing a mediation layer that simplifies management of distributed micro-regions while maintaining low-latency user experience.
Solution Approach 2:
The control servers provide universal management capabilities across multiple micro-regions and service instances. A single control server can manage numerous distributed service instances through standardized administrative interfaces, reducing the complexity burden that would otherwise scale with each additional micro-region.
3Adaptability or versatility
If control servers remotely configure service instances in different regions, then geographical flexibility is improved, but security risks increase due to network exposure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts configuration processing from the instance hosts themselves and relocates it to dedicated control servers. This separation removes the configuration vulnerability from the edge devices, centralizing security management in protected control servers while maintaining geographical flexibility for service deployment.
Solution Approach 2:
Control servers act as secure intermediaries between administrators and distributed service instances. They provide authenticated, authorized access to remote instances through controlled administrative channels, enabling geographical flexibility while mitigating security risks through centralized security policy enforcement.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and apparatus for client-directed placement of remotely configured service instances are described. One or more placement target options are selected for a client of a network-accessible service based on criteria such as service characteristics of the placement targets. The selected options, including a particular placement target that includes instance hosts configurable from remote control servers, are indicated programmatically to the client. A determination is made that a service instance is to be configured at the particular placement target on behalf of the client. A remote control server is configured to issue administrative commands to an instance host at the particular placement target to configure the service instance.