INFORMATION PROCESSING DEVICE, VIRTUAL MACHINE CREATION METHOD, AND APPLICATION DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM

• US 20120260250A1
• Filed: 03/08/2011
• Published: 10/11/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/16/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Maeda, Manabu, Matsushima, Hideki, Haga, Tomoyuki, Nicolson, Kenneth Alexander
• Granted Patent: US 9,081,596 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 718/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2009/45562 Creating, deleting, cloning virtual machine instances
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2009/45587 Isolation or security of virtual machine instances
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/53 by executing in a restricted environment, e.g. sandbox or secure virtual machine
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45533 Hypervisors; Virtual machine monitors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4843 by program, e.g. task dispatcher, supervisor, operating system

Abstract

A device (110) according to an implementation of the present invention, having a plurality of virtual machines (1002, 1003, 1004, and 1005), includes a virtualization software (1001) which manages the virtual machines. The virtualization software includes an application VM creating unit (1300) which creates a virtual machine for executing a program. A first virtual machine (1002) determines whether a first program is to be executed on the first virtual machine or to be executed on a virtual machine other than the first virtual machine. When the first virtual machine determines that the first program is to be executed on the other virtual machine, the application VM creating unit creates a second virtual machine for executing the first program.

Claims

1-13. -13. (canceled)

14. An information processing device having a plurality of virtual machines, said information processing device comprising

a virtual machine managing unit configured to manage the virtual machines,

wherein said virtual machine managing unit includes an application virtual machine (VM) creating unit configured to create a virtual machine for executing a program,

a first virtual machine determines whether a first program is to be executed on the first virtual machine or to be executed on a virtual machine other than the first virtual machine, the first virtual machine being one of the virtual machines, and the first program being executable on the first virtual machine,

said application VM creating unit is configured to create a second virtual machine for executing the first program, when the first virtual machine determines that the first program is to be executed on the other virtual machine,

when the first program is a program obtained from an other device, the first virtual machine determines that the first program is to be executed on the other virtual machine,

the second virtual machine includes an OS process requesting unit configured to send, to said virtual machine managing unit, an OS process request for requesting the other virtual machine to execute an OS process that is inexecutable on an operating system for the second virtual machine,

said virtual machine managing unit further includes:

an OS process request control unit configured to request the other virtual machine to execute the OS process, when said virtual machine managing unit receives the OS process request from the second virtual machine; and

a policy managing unit configured to determine, for each of functions achieved through the OS process request, whether or not it is possible to request the other virtual machine to execute an OS process corresponding to the function, and

said OS process request control unit is configured to request the first virtual machine to execute the OS process, when said policy managing unit determines that it is possible to request the other virtual machine to execute the OS process.

15. The information processing device according to claim 14,

wherein when the first program includes a device driver software program obtained from another device, the first virtual machine determines that the first program is to be executed on the other virtual machine.

16. The information processing device according to claim 15, further comprising

a storage unit configured to store an operating system (OS) program for VM,

wherein the first virtual machine further determines whether a second program is to be executed on the first virtual machine or to be executed on the other virtual machine, the second program being different from the first program and executable on the first virtual machine, and

said application VM creating unit is configured to (i) create a third virtual machine for executing the second program, when the first virtual machine determines that the second program is to be executed on the other virtual machine, and (ii) create, using the OS program for VM, an operating system for the second virtual machine and an operating system for the third virtual machine.

17. The information processing device according to claim 14, further comprising

a storage unit configured to store an operating system (OS) program for VM,

wherein the first virtual machine further determines whether a second program is to be executed on the first virtual machine or to be executed on the other virtual machine, the second program being different from the first program and executable on the first virtual machine, and

said application VM creating unit is configured to (i) create a third virtual machine for executing the second program, when the first virtual machine determines that the second program is to be executed on the other virtual machine, and (ii) create, using the OS program for VM, an operating system for the second virtual machine and an operating system for the third virtual machine.

18. The information processing device according to claim 14,

wherein said virtual machine managing unit further includes a parent and child relationship managing unit configured to manage a parent and child relationship of the virtual machines,

said parent and child relationship managing unit is configured to manage a parent and child relationship in which the first virtual machine that requests the creation of the second virtual machine is a parent and the second virtual machine created according to the request is a child, and

said OS process request control unit is configured to request the first virtual machine to execute the OS process, when said virtual machine managing unit receives the OS process request from the second virtual machine, the first virtual machine being managed as the parent of the second virtual machine.

19. The information processing device according to claim 14,

wherein said OS process requesting unit is configured to (i) determine that the second virtual machine executes the OS process, when the first program includes the device driver software program obtained from the other device and the device driver software program can execute the OS process, and (ii) send the OS process request to said virtual machine managing unit when the device driver software program cannot execute the OS process.

20. The information processing device according to claim 14,

wherein the OS process request control unit is configured to request the other virtual machine to execute the OS process, using a callback function, dedicated interruption, or a system call.

21. The information processing device according to claim 16,

wherein the second virtual machine includes a VM image file stopped in a state immediately before a program is loaded after an operating system for a virtual machine starts.

22. The information processing device according to claim 17,

wherein the second virtual machine includes a VM image file stopped in a state immediately before a program is loaded after an operating system for a virtual machine starts.

25. An application distribution system which distributes a program via a network, said application distribution system comprising:

said information processing device according to claim 14; and

an application distribution server,

wherein said application distribution server includes;

an application holding unit configured to hold a program to be distributed; and

an application transmission processing unit configured to transmit the program to said information processing device, and

when the first program is the program transmitted by said application transmission processing unit, the first virtual machine determines that the first program is to be executed on the other virtual machine.

23. A virtual machine creation method performed by an information processing device which has a plurality of virtual machines and includes a virtual machine managing unit that manages the virtual machines, said virtual machine creation method comprising:

creating a virtual machine for executing a program, said creating being performed by the virtual machine managing unit;

determining whether a first program is to be executed on a first virtual machine or to be executed on a virtual machine other than the first virtual machine, said determining of whether a first program being performed by the first virtual machine, the first virtual machine being one of the virtual machines, and the first program being executable on the first virtual machine,

wherein when the first virtual machine determines that the first program is to be executed on the other virtual machine, a second virtual machine for executing the first program is created in said creating,

said virtual machine creation method further comprising;

determining that the first program is to be executed on the other virtual machine, when the first program is a program obtained from another device, said determining that the first program being performed by the first virtual machine;

sending, to the virtual machine managing unit, an OS process request for requesting the other virtual machine to execute an OS process that is inexecutable on an operating system for the second virtual machine, said sending being performed by the second virtual machine;

requesting the other virtual machine to execute the OS process, when the virtual machine managing unit receives the OS process request from the second virtual machine, said requesting being performed by the virtual machine managing unit; and

determining, for each of functions achieved through the OS process request, whether or not it is possible to request the other virtual machine to execute an OS process corresponding to the function, said determining of whether or not it is possible being performed by the virtual machine managing unit, and

when it is determined in said determining of whether or not it is possible that it is possible to request the other virtual machine to execute the OS process, the first virtual machine is requested to execute the OS process in said requesting.

24. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium for use in a computer, the recording medium having a computer program recorded thereon for causing the computer to execute the virtual machine creation method according to claim 23.

26. A semiconductor integrated circuit having a plurality of virtual machines, said semiconductor integrated circuit comprising

a virtual machine managing unit configured to manage the virtual machines,

wherein said virtual machine managing unit includes an application virtual machine (VM) creating unit configured to create a virtual machine for executing a program,

a first virtual machine determines whether a first program is to be executed on the first virtual machine or to be executed on a virtual machine other than the first virtual machine, the first program being executable on the first virtual machine, and the first virtual machine being one of the virtual machines,

said application VM creating unit is configured to create a second virtual machine for executing the first program, when the first virtual machine determines that the first program is to be executed on the other virtual machine,

when the first program is a program obtained from another device, the first virtual machine determines that the first program is to be executed on the other virtual machine,

the second virtual machine includes an OS process requesting unit configured to send, to said virtual machine managing unit, an OS process request for requesting the other virtual machine to execute an OS process that is inexecutable on an operating system for the second virtual machine,

said virtual machine managing unit further includes:

an OS process request control unit configured to request the other virtual machine to execute the OS process, when said virtual machine managing unit receives the OS process request from the second virtual machine; and

a policy managing unit configured to determine, for each of functions achieved through the OS process request, whether or not it is possible to request the other virtual machine to execute an OS process corresponding to the function, and

said OS process request control unit is configured to request the first virtual machine to execute the OS process, when said policy managing unit determines that it is possible to request the other virtual machine to execute the OS process.