System and method for transferring code to a data producer

• US 8,504,999 B2
• Filed: 10/05/2006
• Issued: 08/06/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/05/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Palo Alto Research Center, Inc. (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Partridge, Kurt E., Chu, Maurice K., Begole, James M. A., Newman, Mark W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dao, Thuy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Smith, Cheneca
• Application Number:
  US11/543,738
• Publication Number:
  US 20080098367A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,497 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 717/136
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 21/00 Measuring or testing not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• 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: H04W 28/06 Optimizing the usage of the radio link, e.g. header compression, information sizing , discarding information system modifying transmission characteristic according to link quality by modifying frame length H04L1/0007; dynamic adaptation of the packet size for flow control or congestion control H04L47/365

Abstract

One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that selectively transfers code to a data producer in a networked system. In this system, the data producer generates data and then sends the data to a device. The device receives the data from the data producer, and then uses code on the device to perform a processing operation on the data. Next, the system analyzes characteristics of the data to determine whether performing the processing operation on the data producer can reduce resource usage. If so, the system transfers the code from the device to the data producer, and subsequently executes the code on the data producer. By executing the code on the data producer, the system can optimize resource usage in the networked system.

Claims

1. A method for selectively transferring code to a data producer in a networked system, wherein the data producer generates data and sends the data to a local computing device, comprising:

receiving, by the local computing device, the data from the data producer;

performing a processing operation on the data to produce processed data;

analyzing characteristics of the processed data to determine whether the processing operation reduces resource utilization including reducing the size of the data, wherein analyzing the characteristics of the processed data involves using a distributed framework that manages location and routing information, wherein the distributed framework monitors the needs and characteristics of a set of distributed applications executing simultaneously, and wherein the distributed framework determines whether performing the move would improve system performance and/or resource utilization; and

responsive to determining that the processing operation reduces resource utilization, transferring the processing operation to the data producer so that the data producer resumes the processing operation, wherein transferring the processing operation involves;

retrieving a binary executable version of code associated with the processing operation;

collecting current processing states of the processing operation;

destroying an instance of the processing operation on the local computing device;

packaging the collected processing states and the retrieved binary executable version of the code; and

transferring the package from the local computing device to the data producer to facilitate the data producer to resume execution of the code, wherein the package includes the collected processing states and the retrieved binary executable version of the code.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein performing the processing operation involves one or more of the following:

preprocessing the data;

compressing the data;

removing an item from the data;

adding an item to the data;

filtering the data;

transforming the data from a first format to a second format; and

/or

archiving an item from the data at the location where the code executes.

3. The method of claim 2,

wherein executing the code on the data producer reduces the amount of data transferred from the data producer to the device;

and

wherein reducing the amount of data transferred saves power and/or consumes less network bandwidth.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the data producer and the device communicate through a wireless network.

5. The method of claim 1,

wherein the binary executable version of the code is cached on a device and/or a central repository;

and

wherein transferring the package that includes the retrieved binary executable version of the code from the device to the data producer involves one or more of the following;

determining whether the binary executable version of the code is already available on the data producer; and

/or

sending to the data producer information that allows the data producer to find and retrieve the binary executable version of the code.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein transferring the package that includes the binary executable version of the code from the device to the data producer further involves:

receiving an event on the device while transferring the package; and

forwarding information related to the event to the data producer along with the package;

wherein forwarding information related to the event enables the distributed framework to deliver and/or handle events that might otherwise be ignored while the package is transferring.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein forwarding the information related to the event involves one or more of the following:

handling the event on the device and transferring state information to the data producer when the code begins executing on the data producer;

storing the event on the device and then transferring the event to the data producer when the code begins executing on the data producer; and

/or

detecting that the event is a duplicate event which was received on both the data producer and the device, thereby obviating the need to forward the information related to the event to the data producer.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein transferring the package that includes the retrieved binary executable version of the code from the device to the data producer further involves:

stopping the execution of the code on the device;

maintaining a copy of the code on the device;

detecting an error in the transfer of the code; and

re-starting the code on the device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the data producer is a computing device with limited resources that include one or more of the following:

a limited power source;

a network connection with limited bandwidth and/or high latency;

a processor with limited computation capability; and

/or

a small memory.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the data producer is a sensor in a sensor network.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that when executed by a computer cause the computer to perform a method for selectively transferring code to a data producer in a networked system, wherein the data producer generates data and sends the data to a local computing device, the method comprising:

receiving, at the local computing device, the data from the data producer;

performing a processing operation on the data to produce processed data;

analyzing characteristics of the processed data to determine whether the processing operation reduces resource utilization including reducing the size of the data, wherein analyzing the characteristics of the processed data involves using a distributed framework that manages location and routing information, wherein the distributed framework monitors the needs and characteristics of a set of distributed applications executing simultaneously, and wherein the distributed framework determines whether performing the move would improve system performance and/or resource utilization; and

responsive to determining that the processing operation reduces resource utilization, transferring the processing operation to the data producer so that the data producer resumes the processing operation, wherein transferring the processing operation involves;

retrieving a binary executable version of code associated with the processing operation;

collecting current processing states of the processing operation;

destroying an instance of the processing operation on the local computing device;

packaging the collected processing states and the retrieved binary executable version of the code; and

transferring the package from the local computing device to the data producer to facilitate the data producer to resume execution of the code, wherein the package includes the collected processing states and the retrieved binary executable version of the code.

12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein performing the processing operation involves one or more of the following:

preprocessing the data;

compressing the data;

removing an item from the data;

adding an item to the data;

filtering the data;

transforming the data from a first format to a second format; and

/or

archiving an item from the data at the location where the code executes.

13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12,

wherein executing the code on the data producer reduces the amount of data transferred from the data producer to the device;

and

wherein reducing the amount of data transferred saves power and/or consumes less network bandwidth.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13,

wherein the data producer and the device communicate through a wireless network;

and

wherein the data producer is a computing device with limited resources that include one or more of the following;

a limited power source;

a network connection with limited bandwidth and/or high latency;

a processor with limited computation capability; and

/or

a small memory.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11,

wherein the binary executable version of the code is cached on a device and/or a central repository;

and

wherein transferring the package that includes the retrieved binary executable version of the code from the device to the data producer involves one or more of the following;

determining whether the binary executable version of the code is already available on the data producer; and

/or

sending to the data producer information that allows the data producer to find and retrieve the binary executable version of the code.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein transferring the package that includes the retrieved binary executable version of the code from the device to the data producer further involves:

receiving an event on the device while transferring the package; and

forwarding information related to the event to the data producer along with the package;

wherein forwarding information related to the event enables the distributed framework to deliver and/or handle events that might otherwise be ignored while the package is transferring.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein forwarding the information related to the event involves one or more of the following:

handling the event on the device and transferring state information to the data producer when the code begins executing on the data producer;

storing the event on the device and then transferring the event to the data producer when the code begins executing on the data producer; and

/or

detecting that the event is a duplicate event which was received on both the data producer and the device, thereby obviating the need to forward the information related to the event to the data producer.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein transferring the package that includes the retrieved binary executable version of the code from the device to the data producer further involves:

stopping the execution of the code on the device;

maintaining a copy of the code on the device;

detecting an error in the transfer of the code; and

re-starting the code on the device.

19. An apparatus that selectively transfers code to a data producer in a networked system, wherein the data producer generates data and sends the data to a local computing device, comprising:

a receiving mechanism that is coupled to a processor and receives the data from the data producer, the processor configured to perform a processing operation on the data, at the device;

a determination mechanism configured to analyze characteristics of the processed data to determine whether the processing operation reduces resource utilization including reducing the size of the data, wherein analyzing the characteristics of the processed data involves using a distributed framework that manages location and routing information, wherein the distributed framework monitors the needs and characteristics of a set of distributed applications executing simultaneously, and wherein the distributed framework determines whether performing the move would improve system performance and/or resource utilization; and

a moving mechanism configured to transfer the processing operation to the data producer so that the data producer resumes the processing operation, in response to the determination mechanism determining that the processing operation reduces resource utilization, wherein transferring the processing operation involves;

retrieving a binary executable version of code associated with the processing operation;

collecting current processing states of the processing operation;

destroying an instance of the processing operation on the local computing device;

packaging the collected processing states and the retrieved binary executable version of the code; and

transferring the package from the local computing device to the data producer to facilitate the data producer to resume execution of the code, wherein the package includes the collected processing states and the retrieved binary executable version of the code.