Central service control

• US 8,903,969 B2
• Filed: 09/28/2007
• Issued: 12/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Alexandrou, Leon James, Baker, Graham
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Jimmy H
• Application Number:
  US11/863,866
• Publication Number:
  US 20090089360A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,622 Days
• Field of Search: 709/223, 709/217, 709/224, 709/225, 709/226
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/16 Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs coordinating program control therefor G06F9/52; in regulating and control system G05B

Abstract

Central service control may be provided. First, a control message from one of a plurality of framework applications may be inserted into a database. In response to the inserted control message, a trigger may be actuated in the database. In response to the trigger, the control message may be transmitted from the database and received by a plurality of redundant services. Next, from each of the plurality of redundant services in response to the received control message, the control message may be transmitted to each of a plurality of servers. From each of the plurality of servers, acknowledgements of receipt of the transmitted control message transmitted from each of the plurality of redundant services may be received. In addition, from each of the plurality of servers, status and results of an action requested by the received control message may be received.

Claims

1. A method for providing central service control, the method comprising:

receiving usage feedback indicating trends relative to a server farm'"'"'s capacity and loading, wherein the server farm comprises a plurality of servers;

compiling the trends relative to the server farm'"'"'s capacity and loading into a plurality of metrics;

aggregating the metrics into a grade for each server in the server farm, the grade for each server corresponding to a capacity and a load for each server;

inserting a control message from one of a plurality of framework applications into a database, the control message being directed to balancing a load on at least one of the plurality of servers in the server farm based on the grade for the at least one server in the server farm;

actuating a trigger in the database in response to the inserted control message;

registering a plurality of redundant services with the database, wherein registering the plurality of redundant services comprises notifying the database that each of the plurality of redundant services is turned on;

transmitting, in response to the trigger, the control message from the database to each of the registered plurality of redundant services;

receiving the control message transmitted from the database at each of the registered plurality of redundant services;

transmitting, from each of the registered plurality of redundant services in response to the received control message, the control message to each of the registered plurality of servers;

receiving, from each of the registered plurality of servers, acknowledgements of receipt of the transmitted control message transmitted from each of the registered plurality of redundant services; and

receiving, from each of the registered plurality of servers, status and results of an action requested by the received control message.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein inserting the control message from the one of the plurality of framework applications into the database comprises inserting the control message into the database comprising a structured query language (SQL) database.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein inserting the control message from the one of the plurality of framework applications into the database comprises inserting the control message from the one of the plurality of framework applications comprising one of the following applications:

usage feedback, provisioning, rebalancing, and service updates.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving, from each of the plurality of servers, the acknowledgements of receipt of the transmitted control message transmitted from each of the plurality of redundant services comprises receiving the acknowledgements from each of the plurality of servers asynchronously.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving, from each of the plurality of servers, the status of the action requested by the received control message comprises receiving the status of the action requested by the received control message from each of the plurality of servers asynchronously.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving, from each of the plurality of servers, the acknowledgements of receipt of the transmitted control message transmitted from each of the plurality of redundant services comprises receiving the acknowledgements from each of the plurality of servers at at least one of the following:

each of the plurality of redundant services and the database.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving, from each of the plurality of servers, the status of the action requested by the received control message comprises receiving the status of the action requested by the received control message from each of the plurality of servers at at least one of the following:

each of the plurality of redundant services and the database.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving, from each of the plurality of servers, the acknowledgements of receipt of the transmitted control message transmitted from the each of the plurality of redundant services comprises receiving the acknowledgements from each of the plurality of servers at the each of the plurality of redundant services wherein each of the plurality of redundant services passes the acknowledgements to the database.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving, from each of the plurality of servers, the status and results of the action requested by the received control message comprises receiving the status of the action requested by the received control message from each of the plurality of servers at each of the plurality of redundant services wherein each of the plurality of redundant services passes the status and results to the database.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting, from each of the plurality of redundant services in response to the received control message, the control message to each of the plurality of servers comprises transmitting the control message to each of the plurality of servers being disposed in the server farm.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting, from each of the plurality of redundant services in response to the received control message, the control message to each of the plurality of servers comprises transmitting the control message to each of the plurality of servers wherein each of the plurality of redundant services maintains and manages bidirectional connections to each of the plurality of servers.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting, from each of the plurality of redundant services in response to the received control message, the control message to each of the plurality of servers comprises transmitting the control message to each of the plurality of servers wherein each of the plurality of redundant services maintains and manages bidirectional connections to each of the plurality of servers wherein the bidirectional connections use transmission control protocol (TCP).

13. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting, from each of the plurality of redundant services in response to the received control message, the control message to each of the plurality of servers comprises transmitting the control message to each of the plurality of servers wherein the control message identifies each of the plurality of servers.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising performing, by each of the plurality of servers, the action requested by the control message.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising performing, by each of the plurality of servers, the action requested by the control message wherein each of the plurality of servers performs the action asynchronously.

16. A computer-readable storage device which stores a set of instructions which when executed performs a method for providing central service control, the method executed by the set of instructions comprising:

inserting a control message from one of a plurality of framework applications into a database, wherein inserting the control message from one of the plurality of framework applications into the database comprises inserting the control message by a provision application configured to;

gather usage feedback indicating trends relative to a server farm'"'"'s capacity and loading, wherein the server farm comprises a plurality of servers;

compiling the trends into a plurality of metrics;

gather at least one metric for each of the plurality of servers, the metrics corresponding to a load and a capacity for each of the plurality of servers,

grade each server of the plurality of servers based on the metrics, and

insert the control message to direct balancing a load on at least one of the plurality of servers based on a grade for the at least one server, the load balancing being directed based on the metrics associated with the load and the capacity for the at least one server;

actuating a trigger in the database in response to the inserted control message;

registering a plurality of redundant services with the database, wherein registering the plurality of redundant services comprises notifying the database that each of the plurality of redundant services is turned on;

transmitting, in response to the trigger, the control message from the database to the plurality of redundant services;

receiving the control message transmitted from the database at each of the plurality of redundant services;

transmitting, from each of the plurality of redundant services in response to the received control message, the control message to each of the plurality of servers;

monitoring, by each of the plurality of redundant services, control message acknowledgements and status indications from each of the plurality of servers; and

managing control message retransmissions to ensure consistent control message execution across each of the plurality of servers.

17. The computer-readable storage device of claim 16, wherein inserting the control message from the one of the plurality of framework applications into the database comprises inserting the control message into the database comprising a structured query language (SQL) database.

18. The computer-readable storage device of claim 16, wherein inserting the control message from the one of the plurality of framework applications into the database comprises inserting the control message from the one of the plurality of framework applications comprising one of the following applications:

usage feedback, provisioning, rebalancing, and service updates.

19. A system for providing central service control, the system comprising:

a memory storage; and

a processing unit coupled to the memory storage, wherein the processing unit is operative to;

insert a control message from a provision application into a database comprising a structured query language (SQL) database, wherein the provision application is configured to;

gather usage feedback indicating trends relative to a server farm'"'"'s capacity and loading, wherein the server farm comprises a plurality of servers;

compiling the trends into a plurality of metrics;

gather at least one metric for each of the plurality of servers, the at least one metric indicating a capacity of each of the plurality of servers,

grade each one of the plurality of servers based on the at least one metric, the grade corresponding to at least one of the following;

a red server state, a yellow server state, and a green server state, the grade corresponding to a capacity of each one of the plurality of servers, and

provide the control message directed to balancing a load on at least one of the plurality of servers based on the grade of the at least one of the plurality of servers;

actuate a trigger in the database in response to the inserted control message;

register a plurality of redundant services with the database, wherein registering the plurality of redundant services comprises notifying the database that each of the plurality of redundant services is turned on;

transmit, in response to the trigger, the control message from the database to a plurality of redundant services;

receive the control message transmitted from the database at each of the plurality of redundant services;

transmit, from the each of the plurality of redundant services in response to the received control message, the control message to each of the plurality of servers;

monitor for control message acknowledgements and status indications from each of the plurality of servers;

receive, from each of the plurality of servers, acknowledgements of receipt of the transmitted control message transmitted from each of the plurality of redundant services asynchronously; and

receive, from each of the plurality of servers, status of an action and results requested by the received control message asynchronously.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the processing unit is further operative to perform, by each of the plurality of servers that received the control message, the action requested by the control message wherein each of the plurality of servers performs the action asynchronously.