Mobile agent based memory replication

• US 10,108,505 B2
• Filed: 02/01/2016
• Issued: 10/23/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/24/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Portier, Bertrand H., Shinde, Suraj
• Primary Examiner(s): Iqbal, Nadeem
• Application Number:
  US15/011,746
• Publication Number:
  US 20160147621A1
• Time in Patent Office: 995 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0709 in a distributed system consisting of a plurality of standalone computer nodes, e.g. clusters, client-server systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/079 Root cause analysis, i.e. error or fault diagnosis in a hardware test environment G06F11/22; in a software test environment G06F11/36
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2007 using redundant communication media
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/203 using migration
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2035 without idle spare hardware
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2048 where the redundant components share neither address space nor persistent storage
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/27 Replication, distribution or synchronisation of data between databases or within a distributed database system; Distributed database system architectures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/85 Active fault masking without idle spares

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention disclose a method, computer program product, and system for memory replication. In one embodiment, in accordance with the present invention, the computer implemented method includes the steps of executing a mobile agent on a server node, wherein the server node is within a cluster of server nodes connected via network communications, capturing a memory state of the server node during operation of the server node, which is captured and stored by the mobile agent, monitoring the server node to determine whether the server node has failed, and responsive to determining that the server node has failed, migrating the mobile agent to an active server node within the cluster of server nodes, wherein the mobile agent carries the captured memory state.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method for memory replication, the method comprising the steps of:

executing a mobile agent on a server node, wherein the mobile agent is within a container and the server node is within a cluster of server nodes connected via network communications;

capturing a memory state of the server node during operation of the server node, which is captured and stored by the mobile agent within the container;

monitoring the server node to determine whether the server node has failed; and

responsive to determining that the server node has failed, migrating the mobile agent to an active server node within the cluster of server nodes, wherein the mobile agent carries the captured memory state.

2. The method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising the step of:

transferring the captured memory state from the mobile agent to computer memory of the active server node.

3. The method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the mobile agent starts executing when the server node starts operating, and executes during operation of the server node.

4. The method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the step of monitoring the server node to determine whether the server node has failed, further comprises the steps of:

monitoring the server node for a heartbeat, wherein the heartbeat is an indication that the server node is active and operating; and

responsive to a failure of detecting a heartbeat from the server node, determining that the server node is not active and has failed.

5. The method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the step of migrating the mobile agent to an active server node within the cluster of server nodes, further comprises the steps of:

identifying an active server node within the cluster of server nodes; and

migrating the mobile agent, including the captured memory state, to the identified active server node,

wherein the mobile agent migrates to an agent container included on the identified active server node.

6. The method in accordance with claim 1,

wherein the mobile agent is a state migration agent operating within a framework for running mobile agents on server nodes, and

wherein an itinerary of the mobile agent is set to migrate to other server nodes within the cluster of server nodes.

7. The method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the server node within the cluster of server nodes includes an application server node within a cluster of application server nodes, a database node within a cluster of databases, and an operating system node within a cluster of operating systems.

8. A computer program product for memory replication, including one or more computer-readable storage media and program instructions stored on at least one of the one or more storage media, wherein execution of the program instructions by one or more processors of a computer system causes the one or more processors to carry out the acts of:

executing a mobile agent on a server node, wherein the mobile agent is within a container and the server node is within a cluster of server nodes connected via network communications;

capturing a memory state of the server node during operation of the server node, which is captured and stored by the mobile agent within the container;

monitoring the server node to determine whether the server node has failed; and

responsive to determining that the server node has failed, migrating the mobile agent to an active server node within the cluster of server nodes, wherein the mobile agent carries the captured memory state.

9. The computer program product in accordance with claim 8, wherein execution of the program instructions by the one or more processors of the computer system causes the one or more processors to carry out the additional act of:

transferring the captured memory state from the mobile agent to computer memory of the active server node.

10. The computer program product in accordance with claim 8, wherein the mobile agent starts executing when the server node starts operating, and executes during operation of the server node.

11. The computer program product in accordance with claim 8, wherein program instructions for monitoring the server node to determine whether the server node has failed further comprises program instructions to carry out the additional acts of:

monitoring the server node for a heartbeat, wherein the heartbeat is an indication that the server node is active and operating; and

responsive to a failure of detecting a heartbeat from the server node, determining that the server node is not active and has failed.

12. The computer program product in accordance with claim 8, wherein program instructions for migrating the mobile agent to an active server node within the cluster of server nodes further comprises program instructions to carry out the additional acts of:

identifying an active server node within the cluster of server nodes; and

migrating the mobile agent, including the captured memory state, to the identified active server node,

wherein the mobile agent migrates to an agent container included on the identified active server node.

13. The computer program product in accordance with claim 8,

wherein the mobile agent is a state migration agent operating within a framework for running mobile agents on server nodes, and

wherein an itinerary of the mobile agent is set to migrate to other server nodes within the cluster of server nodes.

14. The computer program product in accordance with claim 8, wherein the server node within the cluster of server nodes includes an application server node within a cluster of application server nodes, a database node within a cluster of databases, and an operating system node within a cluster of operating systems.

15. A computer system for memory replication, the computer system comprising:

one or more computer processors;

one or more computer-readable storage media; and

program instructions stored on the computer-readable storage media for execution by at least one of the one or more processors, the program instructions comprising;

program instructions to execute a mobile agent on a server node, wherein the mobile agent is within a container and the server node is within a cluster of server nodes connected via network communications;

capturing a memory state of the server node during operation of the server node, which is captured and stored by the mobile agent within the container;

program instructions to monitor the server node to determine whether the server node has failed; and

responsive to determining that the server node has failed, program instructions to migrate the mobile agent to an active server node within the cluster of server nodes, wherein the mobile agent carries the captured memory state.

16. The computer system of claim 15, further comprising program instructions to:

transfer the captured memory state from the mobile agent to computer memory of the active server node.

17. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the mobile agent starts executing when the server node starts operating, and executes during operation of the server node.

18. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the program instructions to monitor the server node to determine whether the server node has failed, further comprise program instructions to:

monitor the server node for a heartbeat, wherein the heartbeat is an indication that the server node is active and operating; and

responsive to a failure of detecting a heartbeat from the server node, determine that the server node is not active and has failed.

19. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the program instructions to migrate the mobile agent to an active server node within the cluster of server nodes, further comprise program instructions to:

identify an active server node within the cluster of server nodes; and

migrate the mobile agent, including the captured memory state, to the identified active server node,

wherein the mobile agent migrates to an agent container included on the identified active server node.

20. The computer system of claim 15,

wherein the mobile agent is a state migration agent operating within a framework for running mobile agents on server nodes, and

wherein an itinerary of the mobile agent is set to migrate to other server nodes within the cluster of server nodes.