Endpoint-to-endpoint communications status monitoring

• US 8,634,328 B2
• Filed: 12/03/2010
• Issued: 01/21/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/03/2010
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Mishra, Rajeev, Russell, Lance W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Phillips, Hassan
• Assistant Examiner(s): SWEET, LONNIE V
• Application Number:
  US12/959,556
• Publication Number:
  US 20120140675A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,145 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/254
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/062 related to network traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0811 by checking connectivity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/55 Testing of service level quality, e.g. simulating service usage

Abstract

Communication ability between nodes in a cluster-based computer system is tracked to inform applications executing on the nodes of the existence and quality of the endpoint-to-endpoint communications available between the nodes. Communications between a node and other nodes are tracked, and a database records the communication ability between the node and the other nodes for each link between the nodes. The tracking and recording are repeated at the other nodes. A registration by an application executing at a particular one of the nodes to receive notifications of changes in the communication ability with another node over a particular link (or in general) will cause notification of the application when the link status changes.

Claims

1. A computer system comprising a processing cluster including a plurality of physical or virtual processing nodes, the computer system comprising at least one processor for executing program instructions and at least one memory coupled to the processor for executing the program instructions, wherein the program instructions are program instructions for determining communication status among a cluster of the physical or virtual processing nodes, the program instructions comprising program instructions for:

at a node within the cluster of nodes, tracking communications received from other nodes within the cluster of nodes;

recording a result of the tracking to provide a database of communication ability between the node and the other nodes;

repeating the tracking and recording at the other nodes in the cluster of nodes to generate additional databases of communication ability at corresponding ones of the other nodes that track the ability of the corresponding node to communicate with remaining nodes in the cluster;

at a particular one of the nodes, receiving a registration request from an application executing at the particular one of the nodes to receive information indicative of the ability of the application to communicate with another specified node within the cluster of nodes; and

responsive to receiving the registration request, subsequently providing notifications to the application if the ability to communicate with the another specified node changes, wherein the notifications contain information indicative of the ability of the application to communicate with the another specified node.

2. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the program instructions for tracking track ordinary communications among the cluster of nodes.

3. The computer system of claim 2, further comprising program instructions for generating traffic among the cluster of nodes in order to increase the amount of information available to the tracking, and wherein the program instructions for tracking track both the generated traffic and the ordinary communications.

4. The computer system of claim 1, further comprising program instructions for generating traffic among the cluster of nodes in order to increase the amount of information available to the tracking, and wherein the program instructions for tracking track only the generated traffic.

5. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the program instructions for recording further record an indication of one or more hardware interfaces over which the tracked communications occur for the corresponding other nodes, and wherein the program instructions for notifying further provide the indication of the one or more hardware interfaces to the application as part of the information indicative of the ability of the application to communicate with the another specified node.

6. The computer system of claim 5, wherein the program instructions for recording further record a type of the hardware interfaces over which the tracked communications occur, and wherein the program instructions for notifying further provide the type of the one or more hardware interfaces to the application as part of the information indicative of the ability of the application to communicate with the another specified node.

7. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the program instructions for recording further record an indication of time at which the tracked communications last occurred for the corresponding other nodes, and wherein the program instructions for notifying further provide the indication of the time that the tracked communication last occurred from the another node as part of the information indicative of the ability of the application to communicate with the another specified node.

8. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage device storing program instructions for execution within a computer system, the computer system comprising a processing cluster including a plurality of physical or virtual processing modes, wherein the program instructions are program instructions for determining communication status among a cluster of the physical or virtual processing nodes, the program instructions comprising program instructions for:

at a node within the cluster of nodes, tracking communications received from other nodes within the cluster of nodes;

recording a result of the tracking to provide a database of communication ability between the node and the other nodes;

repeating the tracking and recording at the other nodes in the cluster of nodes to generate additional databases of communication ability at corresponding ones of the other nodes that track the ability of the corresponding node to communicate with remaining nodes in the cluster;

at a particular one of the nodes, receiving a registration request from an application executing at the particular one of the nodes to receive information indicative of the ability of the application to communicate with another specified node within the cluster of nodes; and

responsive to receiving the registration request, subsequently providing notifications to the application if the ability to communicate with the another specified node changes, wherein the notifications contain information indicative of the ability of the application to communicate with the another specified node.

9. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the program instructions for tracking track ordinary communications among the cluster of nodes.

10. The computer program product of claim 9, further comprising program instructions for generating traffic among the cluster of nodes in order to increase the amount of information available to the tracking, and wherein the program instructions for tracking track both the generated traffic and the ordinary communications.

11. The computer program product of claim 8, further comprising program instructions for generating traffic among the cluster of nodes in order to increase the amount of information available to the tracking, and wherein the program instructions for tracking track only the generated traffic.

12. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the program instructions for recording further record an indication of one or more hardware interfaces over which the tracked communications occur for the corresponding other nodes, and wherein the program instructions for notifying further provide the indication of the one or more hardware interfaces to the application as part of the information indicative of the ability of the application to communicate with the another specified node.

13. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the program instructions for recording further record a type of the hardware interfaces over which the tracked communications occur, and wherein the program instructions for notifying further provide the type of the one or more hardware interfaces to the application as part of the information indicative of the ability of the application to communicate with the another specified node.

14. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the program instructions for recording further record an indication of time at which the tracked communications last occurred for the corresponding other nodes, and wherein the program instructions for notifying further provide the indication of the time that the tracked communication last occurred from the another node as part of the information indicative of the ability of the application to communicate with the another specified node.