Facilitating overall grid environment management by monitoring and distributing grid activity

• US 7,761,557 B2
• Filed: 01/06/2005
• Issued: 07/20/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/06/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Hamilton, Rick Allen II, Seaman, James W., Joseph, Joshy, Fellenstein, Craig William
• Primary Examiner(s): Osman; Ramy M
• Assistant Examiner(s): McLeod; Marshall
• Application Number:
  US11/031,490
• Publication Number:
  US 20060150158A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,021 Days
• Field of Search: 709/205, 709/218, 709/224, 709/220, 709/249
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3433 for load management allocation of a server based on load conditions G06F9/505; load rebalancing G06F9/5083; redistributing the load in a network by a load balancer H04L67/1029
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3442 for planning or managing the needed capacity
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3495 for systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/815 Virtual
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

A method, system, and program for facilitating overall grid environment management by monitoring grid activity across disparate grid resources and distributing grid activity to decisional grid modules are provided. A grid workload controller within a computational grid environment monitors real-time grid activity at an application level from multiple disparate grid application environments. The grid workload controller then determines a selection of grid modules within the computational grid environment that require the real-time grid activity to make decisions about the management of the computational grid environment. The grid workload controller distributes the real-time grid activity to the selection of grid modules, wherein the selection of grid modules then make automated decisions within the grid environment to maintain performance requirements.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for managing workload within a grid environment, comprising:

implementing a grid environment comprising a plurality of computing systems each comprising at least one resource and each of said plurality of computing systems communicatively connected over a network through a grid management system to share each said at least one resource through a plurality of web services implemented within a web services layer extended by an open grid services infrastructure atop a grid service layer comprising a plurality of grid services of said grid management system implemented within an open grid services architecture, said plurality of grid services used by a plurality of separate applications;

storing, by a grid workload controller from among said plurality of grid services, in a module database, identifiers for a plurality of grid modules from among said plurality of grid services, a plurality of monitoring rules specifying a first selection of said plurality of grid modules to monitor for grid activity and a separate type of grid activity from among a plurality of types of grid activity to monitor from each of said first selection of grid modules, and a plurality of distribution rules specifying a second selection of said plurality of grid modules to distribute grid activity to and a separate type of grid activity from among said plurality of types of grid activity to distribute to each of said second selection of grid modules;

managing by each of a plurality of grid manager modules from among said plurality of modules, a separate one of a plurality of disparate grid application environments within said grid environment, wherein a first disparate grid application environment comprises a first selection of grid nodes dedicated to executing jobs requiring a parallel database environment provided by a first application from among said plurality of separate applications, a second disparate grid application environment comprises a second selection of grid nodes dedicated to executing jobs requiring a standard database environment provided by a second application from among said plurality of separate applications, a third disparate grid application environment comprises a third selection of grid nodes dedicated to executing jobs requiring additional processor power and high complied code, and a fourth disparate grid application environment comprises a fourth selection of resources from among said at least one resource currently not assigned and currently available for incorporation into another grid application environment;

monitoring according to said monitoring rules, at a grid workload controller, real-time grid activity comprising current performance characteristics for each said at least one resource monitored by each of said plurality of grid manager modules, current grid jobs scheduled with each of said plurality of grid manager modules, current allocations from among said fourth selection of resources from said plurality of grid manager modules;

determining according to said plurality of distribution rules a selection of grid modules that require said real-time grid activity to make decisions about the management of said grid environment; and

distributing, from said grid workload controller, said real-time grid activity to said second selection of grid modules comprising a grid discounting module for determining whether to offer discounted pricing for jobs based on said current grid jobs scheduled, a grid allocation module for determining whether to deallocate a particular grid node within one of said first disparate grid application environment and reallocate said particular grid node within said second disparate grid application environment based on said current performance characteristics and for determining whether to allocate a particular resource from the fourth selection of resources to said first disparate grid application environment based on said current performance characteristics, and a grid pricing module for determining whether to adjust a price for performing a particular job based on said current allocations from among said fourth selection of resources, wherein said second selection of grid modules make automated decisions within said grid environment to maintain workload performance requirements within said grid environment.

2. The computer-implemented method for managing workload according to claim 1, wherein monitoring, at a grid workload controller, real-time grid activity at an application level from a plurality of disparate grid application environments within a computational grid environment, further comprises:

monitoring, at said grid workload controller, said real-time grid activity received in a plurality of protocols requiring adaptation to a particular protocol used by said grid workload controller.

3. A system for managing workload within a grid environment, comprising:

a grid workload controller implemented within a grid environment comprising a plurality of computing systems each comprising at least one resource and each of said plurality of computing systems communicatively connected over a network through a grid management system to share each said at least one resource through a plurality of web services implemented within a web services layer extended by an open grid services infrastructure atop a grid service layer comprising a plurality of grid services of said grid management system implemented within an open grid services architecture, said plurality of grid services used by a plurality of separate applications;

said grid workload controller from among said plurality of grid services for storing, in a module database, identifiers for a plurality of grid modules from among said plurality of grid services, a plurality of monitoring rules specifying a first selection of said plurality of grid modules to monitor for grid activity and a separate type of grid activity from among a plurality of types of grid activity to monitor from each of said first selection of grid modules, and a plurality of distribution rules specifying a second selection of said plurality of grid modules to distribute grid activity to and a separate type of grid activity from among said plurality of types of grid activity to distribute to each of said second selection of grid modules;

each of a plurality of grid manager modules from among said plurality of modules for managing a separate one of a plurality of disparate grid application environments within said grid environment, wherein a first disparate grid application environment comprises a first selection of grid nodes dedicated to executing jobs requiring a parallel database environment provided by a first application from among said plurality of separate applications, a second disparate grid application environment comprises a second selection of grid nodes dedicated to executing jobs requiring a standard database environment provided by a second application from among said plurality of separate applications, a third disparate grid application environment comprises a third selection of grid nodes dedicated to executing jobs requiring additional processor power and high complied code, and a fourth disparate grid application environment comprises a fourth selection of resources from among said at least one resource currently not assigned and currently available for incorporation into another grid application environment;

said grid workload controller for monitoring according to said monitoring rules, at a grid workload controller, real-time grid activity comprising current performance characteristics for each said at least one resource monitored by each of said plurality of grid manager modules, current grid jobs scheduled with each of said plurality of grid manager modules, current allocations from among said fourth selection of resources from said plurality of grid manager modules;

said grid workload controller for determining according to said plurality of distribution rules a selection of grid modules that require said real-time grid activity to make decisions about the management of said grid environment; and

said grid workload controller for distributing said real-time grid activity to said second selection of grid modules comprising a grid discounting module for determining whether to offer discounted pricing for jobs based on said current grid jobs scheduled, a grid allocation module for determining whether to deallocate a particular grid node within one of said first disparate grid application environment and reallocate said particular grid node within said second disparate grid application environment based on said current performance characteristics and for determining whether to allocate a particular resource from the fourth selection of resources to said first disparate grid application environment based on said current performance characteristics, and a grid pricing module for determining whether to adjust a price for performing a particular job based on said current allocations from among said fourth selection of resources, wherein said second selection of grid modules make automated decisions within said grid environment to maintain workload performance requirements within said grid environment.

4. The system for managing workload according to claim 3, wherein said means for monitoring real-time grid activity at an application level from a plurality of disparate grid application environments within said computational grid environment, further comprises:

means for monitoring said real-time grid activity received in a plurality of protocols requiring adaptation to a particular protocol used by said grid workload controller.

5. A computer program product, residing on a computer readable medium, for managing workload within a grid environment, comprising:

means for implementing a grid environment comprising a plurality of computing systems each comprising at least one resource and each of said plurality of computing systems communicatively connected over a network through a grid management system to share each said at least one resource through a plurality of web services implemented within a web services layer extended by an open grid services infrastructure atop a grid service layer comprising a plurality of grid services of said grid management system implemented within an open grid services architecture, said plurality of grid services used by a plurality of separate applications;

means for storing, by a grid workload controller from among said plurality of grid services, in a module database, identifiers for a plurality of grid modules from among said plurality of grid services, a plurality of monitoring rules specifying a first selection of said plurality of grid modules to monitor for grid activity and a separate type of grid activity from among a plurality of types of grid activity to monitor from each of said first selection of grid modules, and a plurality of distribution rules specifying a second selection of said plurality of grid modules to distribute grid activity to and a separate type of grid activity from among said plurality of types of grid activity to distribute to each of said second selection of grid modules;

means for managing by each of a plurality of grid manager modules from among said plurality of modules, a separate one of a plurality of disparate grid application environments within said grid environment, wherein a first disparate grid application environment comprises a first selection of grid nodes dedicated to executing jobs requiring a parallel database environment provided by a first application from among said plurality of separate applications, a second disparate grid application environment comprises a second selection of grid nodes dedicated to executing jobs requiring a standard database environment provided by a second application from among said plurality of separate applications, a third disparate grid application environment comprises a third selection of grid nodes dedicated to executing jobs requiring additional processor power and high complied code, and a fourth disparate grid application environment comprises a fourth selection of resources from among said at least one resource currently not assigned and currently available for incorporation into another grid application environment;

means for enabling monitoring according to said monitoring rules, at a grid workload controller, of real-time grid activity comprising current performance characteristics for each said at least one resource monitored by each of said plurality of grid manager modules, current grid jobs scheduled with each of said plurality of grid manager modules, current allocations from among said fourth selection of resources from said plurality of disparate grid application environments within a computational grid environment;

means for determining according to said plurality of distribution rules a selection of grid modules that require said real-time grid activity to make decisions about the management of said grid environment; and

means for controlling from said grid workload controller, said real-time grid activity to said second selection of grid modules comprising a grid discounting module for determining whether to offer discounted pricing for jobs based on said current grid jobs scheduled, a grid allocation module for determining whether to deallocate a particular grid node within one of said first disparate grid application environment and reallocate said particular grid node within said second disparate grid application environment based on said current performance characteristics and for determining whether to allocate a particular resource from the fourth selection of resources to said first disparate grid application environment based on said current performance characteristics, and a grid pricing module for determining whether to adjust a price for performing a particular job based on said current allocations from among said fourth selection of resources.

6. The computer program product for managing workload according to claim 5, wherein said means for enabling monitoring of real-time grid activity at an application level from a plurality of disparate grid application environments within a computational grid environment, further comprises:

means for enabling monitoring of said real-time grid activity received in a plurality of protocols requiring adaptation to a particular protocol used by said grid workload controller.