Intelligent workload management
Encyclopedia
Intelligent workload management (IWM) is an emerging paradigm for IT systems management arising from the intersection of dynamic infrastructure
, virtualization
, identity management
, and the discipline of software appliance development
. IWM enables the management and optimization of computing resources in a secure and compliant manner across physical, virtual and cloud environments to deliver business services for end customers.
The IWM paradigm builds on the traditional concept of workload management
whereby processing resources are dynamically assigned to tasks, or "workloads," based on criteria such as business process
priorities (for example, in balancing business intelligence queries against online transaction processing), resource availability, security protocols, or event scheduling, but extends the concept into the structure of individual workloads themselves.
management, a "workload" can be broadly defined as "the total requests made by users and applications of a system." However, it is also possible to break down the entire workload of a given system into sets of self-contained units. Such a self-contained unit constitutes a "workload" in the narrow sense: an integrated stack consisting of application
, middleware
, database
, and operating system
devoted to a specific computing task. Typically, a workload is "platform agnostic," meaning that it can run in physical, virtual or cloud computing environments. Finally, a collection of related workloads which allow end users to complete a specific set of business tasks can be defined as a "business service."
Dynamic Infrastructure
Dynamic Infrastructure is an information technology paradigm concerning the design of data centers so that the underlying hardware and software can respond dynamically to changing levels of demand in more fundamental and efficient ways than before...
, virtualization
Hardware virtualization
Computer hardware virtualization is the virtualization of computers or operating systems. It hides the physical characteristics of a computing platform from users, instead showing another abstract computing platform...
, identity management
Identity management
Identity management is a broad administrative area that deals with identifying individuals in a system and controlling access to the resources in that system by placing restrictions on the established identities of the individuals.Identity management is multidisciplinary and covers many...
, and the discipline of software appliance development
Software appliance
A software appliance is a software application that might be combined with just enough operating system for it to run optimally on industry standard hardware or in a virtual machine....
. IWM enables the management and optimization of computing resources in a secure and compliant manner across physical, virtual and cloud environments to deliver business services for end customers.
The IWM paradigm builds on the traditional concept of workload management
Workload Manager
In IBM mainframes, Workload Manager is a base component of MVS/ESA mainframe operating system, and its successors up to and including z/OS. It controls the access to system resources for the work executing on z/OS based on administrator-defined goals. Workload Manager components also exist for...
whereby processing resources are dynamically assigned to tasks, or "workloads," based on criteria such as business process
Business process
A business process or business method is a collection of related, structured activities or tasks that produce a specific service or product for a particular customer or customers...
priorities (for example, in balancing business intelligence queries against online transaction processing), resource availability, security protocols, or event scheduling, but extends the concept into the structure of individual workloads themselves.
Definition of Workload
In the context of IT systems and data centerData center
A data center is a facility used to house computer systems and associated components, such as telecommunications and storage systems...
management, a "workload" can be broadly defined as "the total requests made by users and applications of a system." However, it is also possible to break down the entire workload of a given system into sets of self-contained units. Such a self-contained unit constitutes a "workload" in the narrow sense: an integrated stack consisting of application
Application software
Application software, also known as an application or an "app", is computer software designed to help the user to perform specific tasks. Examples include enterprise software, accounting software, office suites, graphics software and media players. Many application programs deal principally with...
, middleware
Middleware
Middleware is computer software that connects software components or people and their applications. The software consists of a set of services that allows multiple processes running on one or more machines to interact...
, database
Database
A database is an organized collection of data for one or more purposes, usually in digital form. The data are typically organized to model relevant aspects of reality , in a way that supports processes requiring this information...
, and operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
devoted to a specific computing task. Typically, a workload is "platform agnostic," meaning that it can run in physical, virtual or cloud computing environments. Finally, a collection of related workloads which allow end users to complete a specific set of business tasks can be defined as a "business service."
Making the Workload "Intelligent"
A workload is considered "intelligent" when it a) understands its security protocols and processing requirements so it can self-determine whether it can deploy in the public cloud, the private cloud or only on physical machines; b) recognizes when it is at capacity and can find alternative computing capacity as required to optimize performance; c) carries identity and access controls as well as log management and compliance reporting capabilities with it as it moves across environments; and d) is fully integrated with the business service management layer, ensuring that end user computing requirements are not disrupted by distributed computing resources, and working with current and emergent IT management frameworks.Intelligent Workloads and Security in the Cloud
The deployment of individual workloads and workload-based business services in the "hybrid distributed data center," - including physical machines, data centers, private clouds, and the public cloud - raises a host of issues for the efficient management of provisioning, security, and compliance. By making workloads "intelligent" so that they can effectively manage themselves in terms of where they run, how they run, and who can access them, intelligent workload management addresses these issues in a way that is efficient, flexible, and scalable.See also
- Cloud computingCloud computingCloud computing is the delivery of computing as a service rather than a product, whereby shared resources, software, and information are provided to computers and other devices as a utility over a network ....
- Dynamic infrastructureDynamic InfrastructureDynamic Infrastructure is an information technology paradigm concerning the design of data centers so that the underlying hardware and software can respond dynamically to changing levels of demand in more fundamental and efficient ways than before...
- Identity managementIdentity managementIdentity management is a broad administrative area that deals with identifying individuals in a system and controlling access to the resources in that system by placing restrictions on the established identities of the individuals.Identity management is multidisciplinary and covers many...
- Portable applicationPortable applicationA portable application , sometimes also called standalone, is a computer software program designed to run independently from an operating system...
- Software applianceSoftware applianceA software appliance is a software application that might be combined with just enough operating system for it to run optimally on industry standard hardware or in a virtual machine....
- Virtual applianceVirtual applianceA virtual appliance is a virtual machine image designed to run on a virtualization platform ....
- Network Operating System