System and method for orchestrating composite web services in constrained data flow environments

• US 7,606,832 B2
• Filed: 11/12/2004
• Issued: 10/20/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation, ServiceNow Incorporated
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Nanda, Mangala G., Mann, Vijay, Chandra, Sunil, Chafle, Girish B., Ghosal, Sugata
• Primary Examiner(s): Woo; Isaac M
• Application Number:
  US10/987,997
• Publication Number:
  US 20060106748A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,803 Days
• Field of Search: 707 1- 10, 707100-1041, 707200-206
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5061 Partitioning or combining of resources
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image

Abstract

A technique for orchestrating composite web services in a constrained data flow environment. Data flow constraints represent the restrictions which the domains involved in composition might want to impose on access to the data they provide or the source from which they can accept data. The data flow constraints are overcome by breaking down an input composite web service specification into topologies (a topology is a set of partitions communicatively connected with one another at runtime). The system applies a rule-based filtering mechanism to choose a topology that does not violate any data flow constraints. Each of the partitions belonging to the chosen topology is executed within the same domain as the corresponding web service it invokes, thus having the same access rights as the corresponding web service. The composite web service is orchestrated in a decentralized fashion using these partitions, thereby ensuring that no data flow constraints are violated.

Claims

1. A system for orchestrating composite web services in a constrained data flow environment, said system comprising:

an input device for receiving an input composite web service specification;

a processor that processes instructions from a program storage device;

a build time module comprising logic circuitry adapted to;

receive a composite web service specification;

partition said composite web service specification into multiple topologies, wherein each topology comprises a set of composite web service partitions that are communicatively connected with each other at runtime, and wherein each composite web service partition comprises a functionally complete composite web service; and

select a topology for deployment;

at least one runtime module comprising logic circuitry adapted to verify and deploy partitions of the selected topology within a corresponding component web service domain, and

an output device that outputs at least one output of said set of composite web service partitions from said deployed partitions of said the selected topology within said corresponding component web service domain,

wherein said build time module comprises a topology filter comprising a rule-based filtering mechanism adapted to select said topology that adheres to all data flow constraints provided by component web service domains, and

wherein said runtime module comprises a runtime constraint reinforcer adapted to generate an additional set of constraints based on said composite web service partitions received in said runtime modules and data flow constraints of a corresponding component web service domain.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said data flow constraints are expressed as rules specified in terms of a 3-tuple group of a source of said data, a destination of said data, and a message type and are represented by an eXtensible Markup Language (XML) representation.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said build time module comprises a constraint reinforcer adapted to ensure that said data flow constraints are applied to any new message type generated as a result of data transformations being applied to a message type that is part of an original data flow constraint.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said build time module comprises a deployment manager adapted to send said web service partitions to multiple runtime modules residing at said component web service domains.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein said runtime module comprises a partition deployer adapted to verify that said composite web service partitions adhere to said data flow constraints of a receiving component web service domain.

6. A computer-implemented method of orchestrating composite web services in a constrained data flow environment, said method comprising:

inputting a composite web service specification into a build time module of a computer;

partitioning said composite web service specification into multiple topologies using said computer, wherein each topology comprises a set of composite web service partitions that are communicatively connected with each other at runtime, and wherein each composite web service partition comprises a functionally complete composite web service;

selecting a topology for deployment using a rule-based filtering mechanism using said computer, said selected topology adheres to all data flow constraints provided by component web service domains;

deploying partitions of the selected topology within a corresponding component web service domain using said computer, and

generating an additional set of constraints based on said composite web service partitions received in said runtime modules and the data flow constraints provided by a receiving component web service domain, using said computer.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein said data flow constraints are expressed as rules specified in terms of a 3-tuple group of a source of said data, a destination of said data, and a message type and are represented by an eXtensible Markup Language (XML) representation.

8. The method of claim 6 further comprising that said data flow constraints are applied to any new message type generated as a result of data transformations being applied to a message type that is part of an original data flow constraint.

9. The method of claim 6 further comprising sending said composite web service partitions to multiple runtime modules residing at said component web service domain.

10. The method of claim 6 further comprising verifying that said composite web service partitions adhere to said data flow constraints of a receiving component web service domain.

11. A program storage medium readable by computer, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by said computer to perform a method of orchestrating composite web services in a constrained data flow environment, said method comprising:

inputting a composite web service specification into a build time module;

partitioning said composite web service specification into multiple topologies, wherein each topology comprises a set of composite web service partitions that are communicatively connected with each other at runtime, and wherein each composite web service partition comprises a functionally complete composite web service;

selecting a topology for deployment using a rule-based filtering mechanism; and

deploying partitions of the selected topology within a corresponding component web service domain,

wherein said rule-based filtering mechanism selects a topology that adheres to all data flow constraints provided by component web service domains, and

wherein said method further comprises generating an additional set of constraints based on said composite web service partitions received in said runtime modules and the data flow constraints provided by a receiving component web service domain.

12. The program storage device of claim 11, wherein said data flow constraints are expressed as rules specified in terms of a 3-tuple group of a source of said data, a destination of said data, and a message type and are represented by an eXtensible Markup Language (XML) representation.

13. The program storage device of claim 11, wherein said method further comprises assuring that said data flow constraints are applied to any new message type generated as a result of data transformations being applied to a message type that is part of an original data flow constraint.

14. The program storage device of claim 11, wherein said method further comprises sending said composite web service partitions to multiple runtime modules residing at said component web service domain.

15. The program storage device of claim 11, wherein said method further comprises verifying that said composite web service partitions adhere to said data flow constraints of a receiving component web service domain.

16. A computer-implemented service for orchestrating composite web services in a constrained data flow environment, said service:

inputting, using a computing device, a composite web service specification into a build time module;

partitioning, using a computing device, said composite web service specification into multiple topologies, wherein each topology comprises a set of composite web service partitions that are communicatively connected with each other at runtime, and wherein each composite web service partition comprises a functionally complete composite web service;

selecting, using a computing device, a topology for deployment using a rule-based filtering mechanism, wherein said selected topology adheres to all data flow constraints provided by component web service domains;

deploying, using a computing device, partitions of the selected topology within a corresponding component web service domain;

outputting data from each of said partitions of the selected topology within said corresponding component web service domain; and

generating an additional set of constraints based on said composite web service partitions received in said runtime modules and the data flow constraints provided by a receiving component web service domain.

17. The service of claim 16, wherein said data flow constraints are expressed as rules specified in terms of a 3-tuple group of a source of said data, a destination of said data, and a message type and are represented by an eXtensible Markup Language (XML) representation.

18. The service of claim 16, further comprising ensuring that said data flow constraints are applied to any new message type generated as a result of data transformations being applied to a message type that is part of an original data flow constraint.

19. The service of claim 16, further comprising sending said composite web service partitions to multiple runtime modules residing at said component web service domain.

20. The service of claim 16, further comprising verifying that said composite web service partitions adhere to said data flow constraints of a receiving component web service domain.

21. A system for orchestrating composite web services in a constrained data flow environment, said system comprising:

an input device for receiving an input composite web service specification;

a processor that processes instructions from a program storage device;

means for inputting a composite web service specification into a build time module;

means for partitioning said composite web service specification into multiple topologies, wherein each topology comprises a set of composite web service partitions that are communicatively connected with each other at runtime, and wherein each composite web service partition comprises a functionally complete composite web service;

means for selecting a topology for deployment using a rule-based filtering mechanism;

means for deploying partitions of the selected topology within a corresponding component web service domain, and

an output device that outputs at least one output of said set of composite web service partitions from said deployed partitions of said the selected topology within said corresponding component web service domain,

wherein said means for deploying partitions comprises means for constraint reinforcing that generates an additional set of constraints based on said composite web service partitions received in said runtime modules and data flow constraints of a corresponding component web service domain.