Systems and method for determining performance metrics for constructing information systems

• US 6,990,437 B1
• Filed: 06/29/2000
• Issued: 01/24/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/02/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: X-Act Science Inc.
• Original Assignee: Nabil A. Abu El Ata
• Inventors: Abu El Ata, Nabil A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Phan, Thai
• Application Number:
  US09/606,869
• Time in Patent Office: 2,035 Days
• Field of Search: 703/2, 703/22, 707/2, 707/102, 707/5, 707/513, 709/220, 709/221, 709/223, 705/7, 705/35, 715/513, 711/159
• US Class Current: 703/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/04 Forecasting or optimisation specially adapted for administrative or management purposes, e.g. linear programming or "cutting stock problem" market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities G06Q30/0202
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99932 Access augmentation or optimizing

Abstract

A method and apparatus for designing an optimal IS architecture of a business entity is disclosed. In different levels of abstraction, a business operations model, an applications model, a physical requirements model and technical infrastructure model are produced. The models in a stepwise manner generate an IS architecture meeting desired performance criteria of the business entity. An optimizer evaluates, in a numerical manner, implementations of the IS architecture and design alternatives such that an optimal IS architecture is determined. Subsequent continual refinement of the IS architecture is achieved by remodeling the physical requirements and the technical infrastructure, and by evaluating through the optimizer the then produced IS architecture.

Claims

1. Apparatus for designing an optimal information system architecture of a business entity, comprising:

a model generator for producing one or more models representing the business entity'"'"'s IS architecture needs at different levels of abstraction, at least one model representing an IS architecture meeting desired performance criteria of the business entity; and

an optimizer coupled to receive the at least one model and evaluate, in a numerical manner, implementations of the corresponding IS architecture such that an optimal IS architecture is determined, the optimizer modeling memory performance by determining a probability of accessing desired pages of page sets in an active zone memory, wherein the active zone memory includes a portion of rarely referenced pages, determining a probability of accessing the desired pages in the active zone memory comprises;

for each page set, determining a probability of any page being present in the active zone memory;

for each page set, determining a number of distinct pages accessed;

for each page set, determining a number of pages present in the active zone memory from the number of distinct pages accessed and the probability of any page being present in the active zone memory; and

determining a hit ratio as the number of pages present in the active zone memory relative to the total number of page accesses.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the model generator produces (i) a business process model representing business operations of the business entity, (ii) an applications model representing software elements for carrying out the business operations, (iii) a data model representing physical requirements to support the software elements, (iv) a technical infrastructure model representing an IS architecture design for implementations meeting the physical requirements.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein:

the business process model is at one level of abstraction;

the applications model is at a succeeding and less abstract level of abstraction than the one level;

the data model is at a next level of abstraction; and

the technical infrastructure model is at a lowest level of abstraction.

4. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein the software elements represented by the applications model includes software components and structures.

5. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein the data model is independent of computer platform and operating system.

6. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein the physical requirements represented by the data model includes data requirements, constraints and communications requirements.

7. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein the technical infrastructure model is dependent on computer platform and operating system.

8. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the desired performance criteria are defined at the various levels of abstraction.

9. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 further comprising a refinement member for continually refining the optimal IS architecture by iteratively remodeling and evaluating the IS architecture through the model generator and optimizer.

10. A method for modeling memory performance, comprising:

in a first level of abstraction, modeling operations in a subject business entity;

in a succeeding and less abstract level of abstraction, modeling software elements for carrying out the business entity operations, including modeling the software elements accessing desired pages of page sets in memory during business entity operations;

in a next less abstract level of abstraction, modeling physical requirements to support the software elements, including the physical requirements of an active zone memory, the active zone memory being upper memory providing temporary storage of pages accessed from page sets in lower memory;

in a lowest level of abstraction, modeling technical infrastructure to determine an IS architecture meeting desired performance criteria; and

determining a probability of accessing the desired pages of the page sets in the active zone memory during the business entity operations;

wherein the active zone memory includes a portion of rarely referenced pages, determining a probability of accessing the desired pages in the active zone memory comprises;

for each page set, determining a probability of any page being present in the active zone memory;

for each page set, determining a number of distinct pages accessed during the operations of the subject business entity;

for each page set, determining a number of pages present in the active zone memory from the number of distinct pages accessed and the probability of any page being present in the active zone memory; and

determining a hit ratio as the number of pages present in the active zone memory relative to the total number of page accesses during the operations of the subject business entity.

11. An optimal information system architecture for a business entity, produced by the process of claim 10.

12. An optimal information system architecture as claimed in claim 11 wherein the step of modeling physical requirements is independent of computer platform.

13. An optimal information system architecture as claimed in claim 11 wherein the step of modeling physical requirements includes data requirements, constraints and communications requirements.

14. An optimal information system architecture as claimed in claim 11 wherein the step of modeling technical infrastructure is with respect to computer platform and operating system.

15. An optimal information system architecture as claimed in claim 11 wherein in the step of modeling technical infrastructure the desired performance criteria are defined at the various levels of abstraction.

16. An optimal information system architecture as claimed in claim 11 further comprising the step of iterating through the modeling of physical requirements and modeling of technical infrastructure until desired performance criteria is met.

17. An optimal information system architecture as claimed in claim 11 wherein the step of modeling software elements includes modeling software components and structures.

18. An optimal information system architecture as claimed in claim 11 wherein the step of modeling technical infrastructure includes generating alternative information system architecture designs meeting the performance criteria;

and

further comprising the step of evaluating implementations of the alternative information system architecture designs using a numerical analysis for quantitative relative comparison between alternatives, such that an optimal information system architecture results.

19. An optimal information system architecture as claimed in claim 11 further comprising the step of continually refining the IS architecture by remodeling the physical requirements and the technical infrastructure.

20. The method as claimed in claim 10, further comprising:

modifying one or more of the abstract levels in order to increase the probability of accessing the desired pages in the active zone memory during the operations of the subject business entity.

21. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the probability of a page being present in an active zone is based on a page access rate of a corresponding page set and a page replacement age associated with the active zone.

22. The method as claimed in claim 21, wherein the page access rate and the page replacement age follow a Poisson law distribution.

23. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the active zone memory is cache memory.

24. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the active zone memory is at least a portion of external storage.

25. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the active zone memory is a buffer pool.

26. A method for modeling memory performance, comprising:

in a first level of abstraction, modeling operations in a subject business entity;

in a succeeding and less abstract level of abstraction, modeling software elements for carrying out the business entity operations, including modeling the software elements accessing desired pages of page sets in memory during business entity operations;

in a next less abstract level of abstraction, modeling physical requirements to support the software elements, including the physical requirements of an active zone memory, the active zone memory being upper memory providing temporary storage of pages accessed from page sets in lower memory;

in a lowest level of abstraction, modeling technical infrastructure to determine an IS architecture meeting desired performance criteria; and

determining a probability of accessing the desired pages of the page sets in the active zone memory during the business entity operations,

wherein the active zone memory is free of a portion of rarely referenced pages, determining a probability of accessing the desired pages in the active zone memory comprises;

for each page set, determining a probability of any page being present in the active zone memory;

for each page set, determining a number of all pages accessed during the operations of the subject business entity;

for each page set, determining a number of pages present in the active zone memory from the number of all pages accessed and the probability of any page being present in the active zone memory; and

determining a hit ratio as the number of pages present in the active zone memory relative to the total number of page accesses during the operations of the subject business entity.

27. Apparatus for modeling memory performance, comprising:

a model generator producing (i) a business process model representing business operations of a business entity, (ii) an applications model representing software elements for carrying out the business operations, including modeling the software elements accessing desired pages of page sets in memory during business entity operations, (iii) a data model representing physical requirements to support the software elements, including the physical requirements of an active zone memory, the active zone memory being upper memory providing temporary storage of pages accessed from page sets in lower memory, (iv) a technical infrastructure model representing an IS architecture design for implementations meeting the physical requirements; and

an optimizer determining a probability of accessing the desired pages of the page sets in the active zone memory during the business entity operations;

wherein the active zone memory includes a portion of rarely referenced pages, the optimizer determining a probability of accessing the desired pages in the active zone memory comprises;

for each page set, the optimizer determining a probability of any page being present in the active zone memory;

for each page set, the optimizer determining a number of distinct pages accessed during the operations of the subject business entity;

for each page set, the optimizer determining a number of pages present in the active zone memory from the number of distinct pages accessed and the probability of any page being present in the active zone memory; and

the optimizer determining a hit ratio as the number of pages present in the active zone memory relative to the total number of page accesses during the operations of the subject business entity.

28. Apparatus as claimed in claim 27, further comprising:

the model generator modifying one or more of the abstract levels in order to increase the probability of accessing the desired pages in the active zone memory during the operations of the subject business entity.

29. Apparatus for modeling memory performance, comprising:

a model generator producing (i) a business process model representing business operations of a business entity, (ii) an applications model representing software elements for carrying out the business operations, including modeling the software elements accessing desired pages of page sets in memory during business entity operations, (iii) a data model representing physical requirements to support the software elements, including the physical requirements of an active zone memory, the active zone memory being upper memory providing temporary storage of pages accessed from page sets in lower memory, (iv) a technical infrastructure model representing an IS architecture design for implementations meeting the physical requirements; and

an optimizer determining a probability of accessing the desired pages of the page sets in the active zone memory during the business entity operations, wherein the active zone memory is free of a portion of rarely referenced pages, the optimizer determining a probability of accessing the desired pages in the active zone memory comprises;

for each page set, the optimizer determining a probability of any page being present in the active zone memory;

for each page set, the optimizer determining a number of all pages accessed during the operations of the subject business entity;

for each page set, the optimizer determining a number of pages present in the active zone memory from the number of all pages accessed and the probability of any page being present in the active zone memory; and

the optimizer determining a hit ratio as the number of pages present in the active zone memory relative to the total number of page accesses during the operations of the subject business entity.