Job management in presence of implicit dependency

• US 20040025163A1
• Filed: 07/31/2002
• Published: 02/05/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Klotzek, Hans-Georg, Babutzka, Dieter
• Granted Patent: US 7,516,458 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 718/106
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2209/506 Constraint
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5038 considering the execution order of a plurality of tasks, e.g. taking priority or time dependency constraints into consideration scheduling strategies G06F9/4881 and subgroups

Abstract

Methods, systems, and computer program products for job management in the presence of implicit dependency. In a situation where static dependency exists between a first computer job and a second computer job as an initial start condition for the second job, where the start of the second job depends on the completion of the first job, a scheduler determines whether the first job has created a child job, in which case the initial start condition is changed into an adjusted start condition by adding an implicit dependency, whereby the start of the second job is made further to depend at least on the completion of the child job.

Claims

1. A method for job management in the presence of child jobs, comprising:

establishing a static dependency between a first job and a second job as an initial start condition for the second job, whereby the start of the second job depends on the completion of the first job;

starting the first job;

determining whether the first job has created a child job; and

if it is determined that the first job has create a child job, changing the initial start condition into an adjusted start condition for the second job by adding an implicit dependency on the child job, whereby the start of the second job is made further to depend at least on the completion of the child job.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

in the initial start condition, the start of the second job depends on the error-free completion of the first job; and

in the adjusted start condition, the start of the second job depends on the error-free completion of the child job.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving status information about the first job by polling computers in a computer installation; and

determining whether the first job has created a child job by evaluating the received status information.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving status information about the first job by receiving notifications from computers in a computer installation; and

determining whether the first job has created a child job by evaluating the received status information.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

starting the second job when the adjusted start condition is satisfied.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first job is started on a first computer and the second job is started on a distinct second computer.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein:

determining whether the first job has created a child job comprises determining whether the first job has created a child job on a distinct third computer.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the first job is started on a first computer; and

determining whether the first job has created a child job comprises determining whether the first job has created a child job on a distinct second computer.

9. A method for job management in a computer installation where a static dependency exists between a first job and a second job as an initial start condition for the second job, whereby the start of the second job depends on the completion of the first job, the method comprising:

starting the first job using a local job administration program; and

sending status information about the first job from the local job administration program to a scheduler, the status information indicating that the first job has created a child job, to enable the scheduler to change the initial start condition for the second job into an adjusted start condition for the second job by adding an implicit dependency so that the start of the second job is made further to depend at least on the completion of the child job.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein:

in the initial start condition, the start of the second job depends on the error-free completion of the first job; and

in the adjusted start condition, the start of the second job depends on the error-free completion of the child job.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the local job administration program is running on a first computer, the method further comprising:

sending the status information to a scheduler running on a distinct second computer.

12. A system for managing jobs, the system comprising:

a data store that includes a representation of jobs and dependencies, including child jobs and implicit dependencies;

computer program instructions for tracking a current status of jobs and for updating the representation to reflect the current status of jobs; and

computer program instructions using the representation to avoid starting a second job when the data store indicates that the second job implicitly depends on a first job that is not completed.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein:

the first job is scheduled to be run on a first computer; and

the second job is scheduled to be run on a distinct second computer.

14. A computer program product, tangibly embodied in an information carrier, for job management in the presence of child jobs, the computer program product comprising instructions operable to cause data processing apparatus to:

establish a static dependency between a first job and a second job as an initial start condition for the second job, whereby the start of the second job depends on the completion of the first job;

start the first job;

determine whether the first job has created a child job; and

change the initial start condition into an adjusted start condition for the second job by adding an implicit dependency on the child job, if it is determined that the first job has create a child job, whereby the start of the second job is made further to depend at least on the completion of the child job.

15. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein:

in the initial start condition, the start of the second job depends on the error-free completion of the first job; and

in the adjusted start condition, the start of the second job depends on the error-free completion of the at least one child job.

16. The computer program product of claim 14, further comprising instructions to:

receive status information about the first job by polling computers in a computer installation; and

determine whether the first job has created a child job by evaluating the received status information.

17. The computer program product of claim 14, further comprising instructions to:

receive status information about the first job by receiving notifications from computers in a computer installation; and

determine whether the first job has created a child job by evaluating the received status information.

18. The computer program product of claim 14, further comprising instructions to:

start the second job when the adjusted start condition is satisfied.

19. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the first job is started on a first computer and the second job is started on a distinct second computer.

20. The computer program product of claim 19, wherein:

instructions to determine whether the first job has created a child job comprises instructions to determine whether the first job has created at least one child job on a distinct third computer.

21. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein:

the first job is started on a first computer; and

instructions to determine whether the first job has created a child job comprise instructions to determine whether the first job has created a child job on a distinct second computer.

22. A computer program product, tangibly embodied in an information carrier, for job management in a computer installation where a static dependency exists between a first job and a second job as an initial start condition for the second job, whereby the start of the second job depends on the completion of the first job, the computer program product comprising instructions operable to cause data processing apparatus to:

start the first job using a local job administration program; and

send status information about the first job from the local job administration program to a scheduler, the status information indicating that the First job has created a child job, to enable the scheduler to change the initial start condition for the second job into an adjusted start condition for the second job by adding an implicit dependency so that the start of the second job further depends on the completion of the child job.

23. The computer program product of claim 22, wherein:

in the initial start condition, the start of the second job depends on the error-free completion of the first job; and

in the adjusted start condition, the start of the second job depends on the error-free completion of the at least one child job.

24. The computer program product of claim 22, further comprising instructions to:

start the first job using a local job administration program on a first computer; and

send the status information to a scheduler running on a distinct second computer.

25. A computer program product, tangibly embodied in an information carrier, for managing jobs, the computer program product comprising instructions operable to cause data processing apparatus to:

establish a representation of jobs and dependencies, including child jobs and implicit dependencies;

track current status of jobs and update the representation to reflect the current status of jobs; and

use the representation to avoid starting a second job when the representation indicates that the second job implicitly depends on a first job that is not completed.

26. The computer program product of claim 25, further comprising instructions to:

cause the first job to be run on a first computer; and

cause the second job be run on a distinct second computer.