Workflow Endpoint Throttling Using Staging Areas
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Solution Overview
Problem
Workflow engines lack the ability to adaptively manage service calls to endpoints that are experiencing outages or performance issues, leading to potential service overload and continuous outages due to unmanaged traffic, which can disrupt cross-operation workflows.
Innovation Solution
A workflow manager that adaptively throttles service calls by modifying workflow definitions to include staging areas, allowing high-traffic orders to be diverted to a staging state before critical endpoints, and dynamically adjusts traffic based on endpoint recovery, using automated monitoring and scaling mechanisms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If workflow engines continue sending service calls to endpoints experiencing outages or performance issues, then service availability and throughput are maintained, but service overload and continuous outages occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a workflow manager as an intermediary between workflow engines and service endpoints. The workflow manager monitors endpoint health and dynamically modifies workflow definitions to route traffic through staging areas or alternative paths, preventing direct calls to unhealthy endpoints while maintaining overall service throughput
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts workflow definitions based on real-time endpoint performance monitoring. When endpoints experience outages or performance degradation, the workflow manager modifies routing logic to divert traffic to staging areas or alternative endpoints, adapting the system behavior to current conditions rather than following static routing rules
2Reliability
If traffic is diverted to staging areas to protect endpoints, then service overload is prevented, but workflow execution time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the workflow execution path into multiple routes: direct paths for healthy endpoints and staged paths for protected endpoints. The workflow manager dynamically selects appropriate segments based on endpoint health, allowing critical path operations to bypass staging areas when possible while still providing protection when needed
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary health checks and pre-evaluates endpoint status before workflow execution. By monitoring endpoint performance in advance and pre-modifying workflow definitions when issues are detected, the system avoids runtime delays caused by reactive routing decisions, reducing the time penalty associated with traffic diversion
3Reliability
If manual monitoring and management of service endpoints is performed, then traffic can be adjusted based on endpoint status, but operational complexity and labor requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The workflow manager implements self-service capabilities by automatically monitoring endpoint health, detecting performance issues, and dynamically modifying workflow definitions without human intervention. The system autonomously routes traffic to staging areas or alternative endpoints based on real-time conditions, eliminating the need for manual traffic management while maintaining high reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The system establishes continuous feedback loops where the workflow manager monitors endpoint performance metrics and uses this information to dynamically adjust workflow routing. This closed-loop control automatically responds to endpoint status changes, providing adaptive traffic management that reduces operational complexity while maintaining reliable endpoint protection
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for a workflow manager to adaptively throttle service calls to service endpoints are disclosed herein, according to some embodiments. A system includes a plurality of service endpoints. The system also includes a workflow definition repository storing workflow definitions, where a workflow definition defines both tasks for a workflow to perform that corresponds to service calls to the service endpoints, and a dependency ordering between the tasks. The system also includes workflow execution nodes implementing workflow engine instances. A workflow engine instance executes a workflow according to a workflow definition. Responsive to health information indicating that a service endpoint is operating below a performance threshold, the workflow manager modifies workflow definitions using that service to incorporate a staging area. Instead of transitioning to a task that corresponds to a service call to the service endpoint, the workflow engine instances executing modified workflow definitions, transition to the staging area.