ZERO-DOWNTIME, REVERSIBLE, CLIENT-DRIVEN SERVICE MIGRATION

• US 20160164722A1
• Filed: 12/04/2014
• Published: 06/09/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/04/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Zhu, Kai, Gopal, Burra, Wu, Zhongqin, Macatangay, Darell, Taboada, Roberto
• Granted Patent: US 9,722,873 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• 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: H04L 41/082 the condition being updates or upgrades of network functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5041 characterised by the time relationship between creation and deployment of a service
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5096 wherein the managed service relates to distributed or central networked applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services

Abstract

A computer system may provide zero-downtime, reversible, client-driven service migration to migrate a client from a current service to a new service. The computer system may configure the client to operate in a dual-write, old-read mode in which the client issues write requests to both the current service and the new service and issues read requests only to the current service. The computer system may configure the client to operate in a dual-write, new-read mode in which the client issues write requests to both the current service and the new service and issues read requests only to the new service.

Claims

1. A computer system for maintaining accessibility to service functionality during service migration, the computer system comprising:

at least one processor configured to execute computer-executable instructions; and

memory storing computer-executable instructions configured to implement;

a current service that exposes a current service contract for the current service;

a new service that exposes the current service contract for the current service; and

a migration module for enabling one or more clients to migrate from the current service to the new service by;

controlling the one or more clients to operate in a dual-write, old-read mode in which the one or more clients issue write requests to both the current service and the new service and issue read requests only to the current service;

switching the one or more clients from operating in the dual-write, old-read mode to operate in a dual-write, new-read mode in which the one or more clients issue write requests to both the current service and the new service and issue read requests only to the new service; and

switching the one or more clients from operating in the dual-write, new-read mode to operate in a new-read, new-write mode in which the one or more clients issue write requests and read requests only to the new service.

2. The computer system of claim 1, wherein:

the current service is a cloud-based service, and

the new service is a new version of the cloud-based service.

3. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the current service contract exposed by the current service and the new service supports only idempotent create, read, update, and delete operations.

4. The computer system of claim 1, wherein:

the new service further exposes a new service contract that includes one or more different methods than the current service contract for the current service.

5. The computer system of claim 1, wherein:

the migration module is implemented by a client object model, and

the new service is implemented by a server object model.

6. The computer system of claim 1, wherein:

the computer system hosts the one or more clients, and

the one or more clients are triggered to call the current service in response to a remote user interacting with a web page.

7. A computing device for maintaining accessibility to service functionality during service migration, the computing device configured to:

detect a write request issued by a client for writing service data associated with a particular tenant to a current service;

determine that the client is to operate in a dual-write, old-read mode in which the client issues write requests to both the current service and a new service and issues read requests only to the current service;

issue an additional write request for writing the service data associated with the particular tenant to the new service;

detect a subsequent write request issued by the client for writing additional service data associated with the particular tenant to the new service;

determine that the client is to operate in a dual-write, new-read mode in which the client issues write requests to both the current service and the new service and issues read requests only to the new service; and

issue an additional write request for writing the additional service data associated with the particular tenant to the current service.

8. The computing device of claim 7, further configured to:

check a database that stores flags indicating a particular mode for the client.

9. The computing device of claim 7, further configured to:

send a query to the new service to inquire whether service data associated with the particular tenant exists in a new data store associated the new service.

10. A computer-implemented method for maintaining accessibility to service functionality during service migration, the computer-implemented method comprising:

hosting, by a computer system having at least one processor, a current service that provides an interface for receiving write requests and read requests from a client;

hosting, by the computer system, a new service to which the client is to be migrated;

publishing an interface for the new service;

enabling, by the computer system, the client to communicate with the interface for the new service;

configuring, by the computer system, the client to operate in a dual-write, old-read mode during a preliminary stage of service migration in which the client issues write requests to both the interface for the current service and the interface for the new service and issues read requests only to the interface for the current service; and

configuring, by the computer system, the client to operate in a dual-write, new-read mode during an evaluation stage of service migration in which the client issues write requests to both the interface for the current service and the interface for the new service and issues read requests only to the interface for the new service.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, wherein:

the interface for the current service exposes a current service contract for the current service, and

the interface for the new service exposes the current service contract for the current service.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein:

the interface for the new service is a Representational State Transfer interface, and

the current service contract supports only idempotent create, read, update, and delete operations.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, further comprising:

migrating service data from a current data store associated with current service to a new data store associated with the new service when the client is operating in the dual-write, old-read mode.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 13, wherein:

the current data store includes a database containing service data for a set of tenants,

migrating service data comprises distributing the service data for the set of tenants across multiple databases included in the new data store, each of the multiple databases being associated with a different subset of tenants, and

new or updated service data for a tenant is written to the new service and stored in the new data store within a particular database that is associated with the tenant in response the client issuing a write request to the interface for the new service.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, further comprising:

switching, by the computer system, the client from operating in the dual-write, new-read mode to fall back to operating in the dual-write, old-read mode.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, further comprising:

configuring, by the computer system, the client to operate in an old-write, old-read mode in which the client issues write requests and read requests only to the interface for the current service.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 16, wherein:

the computer system configures the client to operate in the old-write, old-read mode in response to detecting a problem with the new service.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 17, further comprising:

switching, by the computer system, the client from operating in the old-write, old-read mode to operate in the dual-write, new-read mode when the problem with the new service is corrected; and

replicating service data that was written to the current service when the client was operating in old-write, old-read mode from a current data store associated with the current service to a new data store associated with the new service.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 17, further comprising:

terminating, by the computer system, the interface for the new service.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, further comprising:

configuring, by the computer system, the client operate in a new-write, new-read mode during a committed stage of service migration in which the client issues write requests and read requests only to the interface for the new service.