Methods and systems for automated migration of cloud processes to external clouds

• US 8,316,125 B2
• Filed: 08/31/2009
• Issued: 11/20/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Red Hat, Inc. (International Business Machines Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Red Hat, Inc. (International Business Machines Corporation)
• Inventors: DeHaan, Michael Paul
• Primary Examiner(s): Shin, Kyung H
• Application Number:
  US12/551,459
• Publication Number:
  US 20110055377A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,177 Days
• Field of Search: 709/224, 709/226, 709/238, 709/230, 717/100
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4856 resumption being on a different machine, e.g. task migration, virtual machine migration G06F9/5088 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5072 Grid computing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5077 Logical partitioning of resources; Management or configuration of virtualized resources specific details on emulation or internal functioning of virtual machines G06F9/455
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0816 the condition being an adaptation, e.g. in response to network events
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0897 by horizontal or vertical scaling of resources, or by migrating entities, e.g. virtual resources or entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/40 using virtualisation of network functions or resources, e.g. SDN or NFV entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

A cloud management system can receive rules for altering the virtual machines based on demands on the virtual machines and/or computing resources supporting the virtual machines. The cloud management system can receive data from the internal monitoring agents and/or external monitoring agents and to determine when the conditions of the rules are met. Once the conditions are met, the cloud management system can migrate the virtual machines to an external cloud.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

instantiating, by a cloud management computing device that is managing a first cloud, a virtual machine on a computing device of the first cloud according to a request from a user;

receiving, by the cloud management computing device, a rule defined by the user, wherein the rule specifies a condition that triggers a migration of the virtual machine;

receiving, from the user, a specification of a monitoring agent to monitor the virtual machine;

directing the monitoring agent to monitor for the occurrence of the condition;

communicating with an independent cloud management computing device that manages a second cloud external to the first cloud to determine;

available computing resources in the second cloud; and

a configuration management scheme utilized by the independent cloud management computing device to instantiate and communicate with virtual machines on the second cloud; and

when the monitoring agent determines that the monitored condition occurred, migrating, by the cloud management computing device, the virtual machine to another computing device of the second cloud based on the available computing resources in the second cloud and per the configuration management scheme utilized by the independent cloud management computing device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein migrating the virtual machine to the another computing device of the second cloud, comprises:

instantiating the virtual machine on the another computing device of the second cloud.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein migrating the virtual machine to the another computing device of the second cloud, comprises:

providing the virtual machine or details of the virtual machine to the independent cloud management computing devices of the second cloud; and

providing a request to the independent cloud management computing device to instantiate the virtual machine on the another computing device of the second cloud.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition comprises at least one of demand on the virtual machine, usage of the virtual machine, demand on the computing system, and usage of the computing system.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein monitoring for the condition comprises receiving data indicating the occurrence of the condition.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating an interface to receive the rule.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the rule is formatted in a text-based language.

8. A system comprising:

a network interface to a set of computing devices in a first cloud and a second set of computing devices in a second cloud, wherein the first and second clouds are external to each other and managed by different cloud computing management devices;

a memory containing instructions that implement a cloud management system in the cloud computing management device of the first cloud; and

a processor communicatively connected with the network interface and the memory, the processor executing the instructions that implement the cloud management system, which is configured to perform operations comprising;

instantiating a virtual machine on the set of computing devices in the first cloud according to a request from a user;

receiving a rule defined by the user, wherein the rule specifies a condition that triggers a migration of the virtual machine;

receiving, from the user, a specification of a monitoring agent to monitor the virtual machine;

directing the monitoring agent to monitor for the occurrence of the condition;

communicating with an independent cloud management computing device that manages a second cloud external to the first cloud to determine;

available computing resources in the second cloud; and

a configuration management scheme utilized by the independent cloud management computing device to instantiate and communicate with virtual machines on the second cloud; and

when the monitoring agent determines that the monitored condition occurred, migrating the virtual machine to one of the computing devices in the second cloud based on the available computing resources in the second cloud and per the configuration management scheme utilized by the independent cloud management computing device.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein migrating the virtual machine to the one of the computing devices in the second cloud, comprises:

instantiating the virtual machine on the one of the computing devices in the second cloud.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein migrating the virtual machine to the one of the computing devices in the second cloud, comprises:

providing the virtual machine or details of the virtual machine to the independent cloud computing management device of the second cloud; and

providing a request to the independent cloud computing management device of the second cloud to instantiate the virtual machine on the one of the computing devices in the second cloud.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the condition comprises at least one of demand on the virtual machine, usage of the virtual machine, demand on the set of computing systems, and usage of the set of computing systems.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein monitoring for the condition comprises receiving data indicating the occurrence of the condition.

13. The system of claim 8, the cloud management system being further configured to—

generate an interface to receive the rule.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein the rule is formatted in a text-based language.

15. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising instructions for causing a processing system to perform a method comprising:

instantiating, by a cloud management computing device that is managing a first cloud, a virtual machine on a computing device of the first cloud according to a request from a user;

receiving, by the cloud management computing device, a rule defined by the user, wherein the rule specifies a condition that triggers a migration of the virtual machine;

receiving, from the user, a specification of a monitoring agent to monitor the virtual machine;

directing the monitoring agent to monitor for the occurrence of the condition;

communicating with an independent cloud management computing device that manages a second cloud external to the first cloud to determine;

available computing resources in the second cloud; and

a configuration management scheme utilized by the independent cloud management computing device to instantiate and communicate with virtual machines on the second cloud; and

when the monitoring agent determines that the monitored condition occurred, migrating, by the cloud management computing device, the virtual machine to another computing device in the second cloud based on the available computing resources in the second cloud and per the configuration management scheme utilized by the independent cloud management computing device.

16. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein migrating the virtual machine to the another computing device of the second cloud, comprises:

instantiating the virtual machine on the another computing device of the second cloud.

17. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein migrating the virtual machine to the another computing device of the second cloud, comprises:

providing the virtual machine or details of the virtual machine to the independent cloud management computing device of the second cloud; and

providing a request to the independent cloud management computing device to instantiate the virtual machine on the another computing device of the second cloud.

18. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the condition comprises at least one of demand on the virtual machine, usage of the virtual machine, demand on the computing system, and usage of the computing system.

19. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein monitoring for the condition comprises receiving data indicating the occurrence of the condition.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, further comprising:

generating an interface to receive the rule.

21. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the rule is formatted in a text-based language.