Cloud Service Provision via SCTP Multi-Homing Failover
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Cloud service availability is compromised due to server failures or high loads in traditional cloud environments, which fail to meet the high availability standards of cellular networks, where even small outages can cause significant disruptions.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a system that uses Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) for high availability, scalability, and load balancing by providing a cluster of virtual machines with shared memory, enabling seamless failover and load balancing through SCTP's multi-homing feature, and using APIs to manage data consistency across virtual machines.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional cloud servers are used to store information, then cloud service can be provided, but service availability deteriorates when servers go offline or experience high loads
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the cloud service into multiple virtual machines (VMs) that are distributed across different servers. Each VM can independently store and process information, allowing the system to continue operating even if one VM or server fails. This segmentation enables failover to other VMs, improving service availability without requiring a single complex server system.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a load balancer as an intermediary component that sits between client devices and the virtual machines. The load balancer distributes incoming requests across multiple VMs and handles failover automatically, shielding clients from underlying server complexity while ensuring continuous service availability even when individual servers go offline or experience high loads.
2Reliability
If multiple virtual machines are used to improve availability, then service continuity is maintained during failures, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal shared storage system that all virtual machines can access. This shared storage provides a common data repository that simplifies data management across multiple VMs and enables seamless failover. The shared storage acts as a universal data source that any VM can read from or write to, reducing the complexity of managing data consistency across the distributed VM infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates monitoring mechanisms that continuously track the status of virtual machines and servers. When a VM or server fails or experiences high load, the system automatically detects this condition and triggers failover to another VM. This feedback-driven automation eliminates manual intervention and simplifies the management complexity of running multiple VMs.
3Reliability
If load balancing is implemented across virtual machines, then service availability is improved, but data consistency management becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the data storage functions of multiple virtual machines into a single shared storage system. This unified storage approach eliminates the need for complex data synchronization protocols between VMs, as all VMs access the same data source. The shared storage automatically ensures data consistency across all VMs while enabling load balancing, resolving the complexity of maintaining consistent data across distributed systems.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for high availability cloud service provision are disclosed. A server receives, from a remote device, a request to access a specified service, the specified service being associated with a plurality of virtual machines, each of the plurality of virtual machines storing shared states associated with the specified service. The server provides, to the remote device in response to the request, a connection to a first virtual machine of the plurality of virtual machines and identifiers of other ones of the plurality of virtual machines. The server determines to end a data connection the remote device and the first virtual machine while continuing to provide the specified service to the remote device. The server provides, to the remote device in response to determining to disconnect the remote device from the first virtual machine, a connection to a second virtual machine of the plurality of virtual machines.