Virtual SMP Server Cluster Resource Allocation
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current server consolidation methods face limitations in resource utilization and flexibility, as virtualization infrastructure is typically limited to a single SMP server, and single server image infrastructure is limited to a single operating system, leading to underutilization and potential interference between applications.
Innovation Solution
A system that represents a cluster of SMP servers as a single virtual SMP server, dynamically allocates system resources, and partitions the virtual SMP server into virtual servers, allowing multiple operating systems and applications to execute without modification, while ensuring isolation and efficient resource management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If virtualization infrastructure is used to consolidate multiple applications onto a single SMP server, then system flexibility and resource utilization are improved, but the infrastructure is limited to a single SMP server and applications cannot share resources across multiple servers
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple SMP servers into a single virtualized infrastructure, merging their computing resources, storage, and networking capabilities into a unified pool that can be dynamically allocated across multiple virtual machines, thereby eliminating the single-server limitation while maintaining flexibility
Solution Approach 2:
The virtualized infrastructure is designed to support multiple operating systems and applications simultaneously across clustered servers, making the system universally capable of running diverse workloads on a shared platform rather than being restricted to single-server applications
2Productivity
If single server image infrastructure is used to consolidate applications onto a server cluster, then resource sharing across servers is enabled, but the infrastructure is limited to a single operating system and applications not designed for that OS cannot be consolidated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the single operating system environment into multiple isolated virtual machine instances, each capable of running different operating systems and applications while sharing the underlying cluster resources, thus removing the OS limitation while maintaining resource sharing efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The virtualization layer acts as an intermediary between the physical server cluster and the diverse applications/OSes, translating resource requests from multiple OS environments into unified resource allocation on the underlying hardware, enabling both resource sharing and multi-OS support
3Ease of operation
If applications are run on a single server or cluster without virtualization isolation, then system management is simpler, but applications can adversely impact each other and resource utilization is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments applications into isolated virtual machine containers that run independently on the shared infrastructure, preventing interference between applications while maintaining centralized management through the virtualization layer, thus achieving both simplicity and reliability
Data Source
AI summary
A system for improving resource utilization across a cluster of interconnected symmetric multiprocessor (“SMP”) servers is provided. The system includes single system image (“SSI”) software that represents the cluster of SMP servers as a single virtual SMP server and virtualization software that partitions the virtual SMP server into virtual servers. The system may also include virtual infrastructure management software that is used to partition the virtual SMP server into the virtual servers. A method for using SMP servers is further provided. The method includes representing the SMP servers as a virtual SMP server and partitioning the virtual SMP server into virtual servers. The method may also include allocating and reallocating processes across the physical SMP servers.