Virtual Application Appliance On-Demand Resource Tethering
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for migrating applications from a source computer to a target computer are inefficient, as they often require modifying the source computer, capturing entire images, or relying on time-differencing approaches that are either over-inclusive or under-inclusive, making it difficult to ensure a complete set of application resources is transferred, especially in active, online environments.
Innovation Solution
The tether approach involves a virtual application appliance on the target computer that intercepts resource requests and establishes an on-demand network connection to the source computer to retrieve missing data, allowing for transparent migration of applications without modifying the source computer or requiring prior images, focusing on current differences rather than past states.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If physical to virtual (P2V) technology is used to capture images of the entire source computer, then the application migration is simplified, but the target computer receives incompatible infrastructure including OS, security configuration, and management infrastructure that conflicts with the cloud operator's consistent operational stack requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the necessary application components and data from the source computer image, separating them from the incompatible OS and infrastructure elements. The P2V captured image is processed to isolate application-specific files, registry keys, and data, which are then deployed to the target virtualization infrastructure without the conflicting system-level components.
Solution Approach 2:
The migration process is segmented into distinct phases: initial P2V image capture, subsequent image updates that add missing application resources, and final deployment. This segmentation allows the system to progressively refine the application package without being constrained by the initial incompatible infrastructure capture.
2Measurement precision
If time-differencing approach is used to identify differences between computer images, then the migration process becomes more targeted, but it is over-inclusive by capturing all differences including unrelated applications and changes, or under-inclusive by missing resources the application requires but has not modified
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where the virtual application on the target system reports resource requests back to the migration system. This feedback loop allows the system to identify which specific resources are actually needed by the application during execution, enabling precise extraction of only those resources from the source system without including unrelated changes.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary P2V image capture and then iteratively updates the image with missing application resources. This preliminary action followed by iterative refinement allows the system to start with a broad capture and progressively refine it to include only necessary application resources, avoiding both over-inclusion and under-inclusion.
3Productivity
If time-differencing approach is used to capture application resources, then the migration can be performed, but it requires foresight to prepare the first image before application installation, which is often unavailable when migration is needed
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of requiring a pre-installation baseline image (traditional time-differencing), the patent inverts the approach by capturing the image after application installation and then using iterative updates to extract and transfer only the application-specific resources. This reversal eliminates the need for foresight and preparatory imaging while maintaining migration efficiency.
4Ease of manufacture
If the source computer is modified to create the virtual application image, then the migration can be achieved, but it introduces risks to the active, online source computer system
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a copy of the source computer's state through P2V imaging and performs all migration operations on this copy rather than modifying the live source system. The virtual application is built from the captured image data, allowing complete migration operations without touching the running source computer, thus eliminating modification risks while maintaining migration feasibility.
Data Source
AI summary
A computer-implemented virtual application appliance (VAA) and method for managing migration of an application on a source computer to a virtual application within the VAA on a target computer networked to the source computer are disclosed. The VAA includes resources on the target computer, a virtual application for execution in the VAA, and network credentials for remotely connecting to the source computer and copying data resources from the source computer. A runtime intercept of the VAA compares on-demand resource requests of the virtual application to resources on the target computer and provides the requested resource to the virtual application. When the runtime intercept fails to locate the requested resource in the resources on the target computer, a tether of the VAA remotely retrieves the requested resource from the source computer using the network credentials and then copies the requested resource into the resources on the target computer.