Serverless Application State Recovery via Manifest Capture

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Solution Overview

Problem

Recovering serverless applications after failures is complex, time-consuming, and error-prone due to the need for manual backups and tracking of state changes in cloud-based compute services, making operational recovery difficult.

Innovation Solution

Implementing automated capture and recovery of serverless application state using previously-generated serverless application manifests, which include application function mappings, container image identifiers, and backend service descriptors, to facilitate efficient state capture and recovery without manual intervention.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If manual backups are performed to enable operational recovery of serverless applications, then recovery capability is achieved, but complexity and time consumption increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveoperational recovery capabilityVSAvoidbackup process complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary actions by automatically capturing and storing application state information at designated points in time before failures occur. The state capture mechanism proactively records configuration data, runtime state, and dependency information, enabling recovery without requiring manual backup operations when failures actually occur.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The operational recovery system performs self-service by automatically capturing application state, managing backup data, and executing recovery operations without human intervention. The system autonomously identifies what needs to be backed up, stores it appropriately, and restores it when needed, eliminating the need for administrators to manually coordinate complex backup processes.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

2Measurement precision

If manual tracking of state changes is implemented across multiple components, then recovery accuracy improves, but time consumption and error potential increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvestate change tracking accuracyVSAvoidtime for tracking and documenting changes
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system replaces manual mechanical tracking processes with automated electronic state capture mechanisms. Instead of administrators manually documenting state changes across multiple components, the system automatically captures application state information including configuration data, runtime state, and dependency relationships, eliminating time consumption and human error.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Solution Approach 2:

The state capture mechanism serves multiple functions simultaneously: it tracks configuration changes, records runtime state, captures dependency information, and maintains version history all through a single automated process. This multi-functional approach eliminates the need for separate manual tracking processes for each type of state information.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Reliability

If coordinated backup processes are implemented for multiple components, then complete recovery is achieved, but operational complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecomplete application recoveryVSAvoidease of coordinating backups
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The system merges the coordination of backups across multiple components into a single unified automated process. Instead of requiring administrators to separately coordinate backups for different application components, the state capture mechanism combines all state information into a cohesive recovery package that can be restored with a single operation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Data Source

PatentUS10649861B1Operational recovery of serverless applications in a cloud-based compute services platform
Publication Date: 2020.05.12 EMC IP HLDG CO LLC
  • US10649861B1 patent drawing
  • US10649861B1 patent drawing
  • US10649861B1 patent drawing

AI summary

An apparatus in one embodiment comprises at least one processing platform including a plurality of processing devices. The processing platform is configured to receive a request to execute a serverless application, to initiate execution of the serverless application responsive to the request, to utilize one or more application function mappings to invoke one or more application functions with each such application function interacting with one or more backend services in executing the serverless application, to capture state of the serverless application for a particular point in time, and to perform operational recovery of the serverless application for the particular point in time utilizing the captured state. Capturing state of the serverless application for the particular point in time comprises capturing the state in accordance with a previously-generated serverless application manifest characterizing the application function mappings, the application functions, and the backend services.