DIAGNOSTIC VIRTUAL MACHINE

• US 20150193256A1
• Filed: 03/17/2015
• Published: 07/09/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Citrix Systems, Inc. (Cloud Software Group)
• Original Assignee: Citrix Systems, Inc. (Cloud Software Group)
• Inventors: Vittal, Chiradeep, Huang, Alex, Kluge, Kevin
• Granted Patent: US 9,563,459 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3006 where the computing system is distributed, e.g. networked systems, clusters, multiprocessor systems multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46; allocation of resources G06F9/50
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/34 Recording or statistical evaluation of computer activity, e.g. of down time, of input/output operation ; Recording or statistical evaluation of user activity, e.g. usability assessment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3452 Performance evaluation by statistical analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2009/45591 Monitoring or debugging support
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2009/45595 Network integration; Enabling network access in virtual machine instances
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/815 Virtual
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45533 Hypervisors; Virtual machine monitors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45558 Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5072 Grid computing

Abstract

A diagnostic virtual machine having access to resources of an infrastructure as a service cloud may be created. A user device may be provided access to the diagnostic virtual machine. In some embodiments, the diagnostic virtual machine may be configured to monitor a cluster of hypervisors, and the resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud which the diagnostic virtual machine has access to may include physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud that are associated with the cluster of hypervisors.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

creating a diagnostic virtual machine having access to a plurality of resources of an infrastructure as a service cloud; and

providing a user device access to the diagnostic virtual machine.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the diagnostic virtual machine is configured to monitor a cluster of hypervisors, the plurality of resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud comprising physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud associated with the cluster of hypervisors.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the user device receives input from an administrator of the cluster of hypervisors, and wherein at least a portion of the physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud associated with the cluster of hypervisors support a virtual machine hosted by the cluster of hypervisors, the virtual machine receiving input from a user requesting assistance from the administrator of the cluster of hypervisors.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein creating the diagnostic virtual machine is performed in response to the user requesting assistance from the administrator of the cluster of hypervisors, and wherein the diagnostic virtual machine is configured to provide access to the portion of the physical resources supporting the virtual machine receiving input from the user requesting assistance from the administrator of the cluster of hypervisors.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the virtual machine hosted by the cluster of hypervisors is hosted by one or more specific hypervisors of the cluster of hypervisors, and wherein the diagnostic virtual machine is configured to be hosted by the one or more specific hypervisors hosting the virtual machine.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the virtual machine hosted by the cluster of hypervisors is configured to operate within a network isolated from one or more other virtual machines supported by the infrastructure as a service cloud, and wherein the diagnostic virtual machine is configured to operate within the network isolated from the one or more other virtual machines supported by the infrastructure as a service cloud.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the network isolated from the one or more other virtual machines supported by the infrastructure as a service cloud comprises at least one of a Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN), a Generic Routing Encapsulation (GRE) tunnel, or a Virtual eXtensible Local Area Network (VxLAN).

8. The method of claim 2, comprising reporting, by the diagnostic virtual machine and to a resource management service of the infrastructure as a service cloud, one or more performance metrics related to at least some of the physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud associated with the cluster of hypervisors.

9. The method of claim 8, comprising:

determining, by the resource management service and based on the one or more performance metrics, that additional physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud should be allocated to the cluster of hypervisors;

triggering, by the resource management service, allocation of the additional physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud to the cluster of hypervisors; and

triggering, by the resource management service, creation of a new diagnostic virtual machine having access to the additional physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the diagnostic virtual machine is configured to provide the user device with at least one performance metric of the plurality of resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud, the at least one performance metric comprising at least one of processor utilization, memory utilization, network utilization, or storage utilization.

11. A computing system comprising:

at least one processor; and

a memory storing instructions that when executed by the at least one processor cause the computing system to;

create a diagnostic virtual machine having access to a plurality of resources of an infrastructure as a service cloud; and

provide a user device access to the diagnostic virtual machine.

12. The computing system of claim 11, wherein the diagnostic virtual machine is configured to monitor a cluster of hypervisors, the plurality of resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud comprising physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud associated with the cluster of hypervisors.

13. The computing system of claim 12, wherein the user device receives input from an administrator of the cluster of hypervisors, and wherein at least a portion of the physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud associated with the cluster of hypervisors support a virtual machine hosted by the cluster of hypervisors, the virtual machine receiving input from a user requesting assistance from the administrator of the cluster of hypervisors.

14. The computing system of claim 13, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the computing system to create the diagnostic virtual machine in response to the user requesting assistance from the administrator of the cluster of hypervisors, and wherein the diagnostic virtual machine is configured to provide access to the portion of the physical resources supporting the virtual machine receiving input from the user requesting assistance from the administrator of the cluster of hypervisors.

15. The computing system of claim 13, wherein the virtual machine hosted by the cluster of hypervisors is hosted by one or more specific hypervisors of the cluster of hypervisors, and wherein the diagnostic virtual machine is configured to be hosted by the one or more specific hypervisors hosting the virtual machine.

16. The computing system of claim 12, wherein the virtual machine hosted by the cluster of hypervisors is configured to operate within a network isolated from one or more other virtual machines supported by the infrastructure as a service cloud, and wherein the diagnostic virtual machine is configured to operate within the network isolated from the one or more other virtual machines supported by the infrastructure as a service cloud.

17. The computing system of claim 16, wherein the network isolated from the one or more other virtual machines supported by the infrastructure as a service cloud comprises at least one of a Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN), a Generic Routing Encapsulation (GRE) tunnel, or a Virtual eXtensible Local Area Network (VxLAN).

18. The computing system of claim 12, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the diagnostic virtual machine to report, to a resource management service of the infrastructure as a service cloud, one or more performance metrics related to at least some of the physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud associated with the cluster of hypervisors.

19. The computing system of claim 18, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the resource management service to:

determine, based on the one or more performance metrics, that additional physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud should be allocated to the cluster of hypervisors;

trigger allocation of the additional physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud to the cluster of hypervisors; and

trigger creation of a new diagnostic virtual machine having access to the additional physical resources of the infrastructure as a service cloud.

20. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media having instructions stored thereon that when executed by one or more computers cause the one or more computers to provide a user device with access to a diagnostic virtual machine having access to a plurality of resources of an infrastructure as a service cloud.