Hierarchical API for a SDDC

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10812337-B2
Application number	US-201816200677-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 27, 2018
Priority date	Jun 15, 2018
Publication date	Oct 20, 2020
Grant date	Oct 20, 2020

Abstract

Some embodiments of the invention provide a method for deploying software-implemented resources in a software defined datacenter (SDDC). The method initially receives a hierarchical API command that, in a declarative format, specifies several operation requests for several software-defined (SD) resources at several resource levels of a resource hierarchy in the SDDC. The method parses the API command to identify the SD resources at the plurality of resource levels. Based on the parsed API command, the method deploys the SD resources by using a deployment process that ensures that any first SD resource on which a second SD resource depends is deployed before the second resource. In some embodiments, a second SD resource depends on a first SD resource when the second SD resource is a child of the first SD resource. Alternatively, or conjunctively, a second SD resource can also depend on a first SD resource in some embodiments when the second SD resource has some operational dependency on the first SD resource. In some embodiments, the method parses the API command by identifying several sets of SD resources, with each set having one or more SD resources at one resource level. The deployment in some embodiments deploys the identified SD resource sets at higher resource levels before deploying SD resources at lower resource levels.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of deploying software-implemented resources in a software defined datacenter, the method comprising:
receiving a hierarchical Application Programming Interface (API) command that in a declarative format specifies a plurality of software-defined (SD) resources at a plurality of resource levels of a resource hierarchy in the software defined datacenter;
parsing the hierarchical API command to identify the plurality of SD resources at the plurality of resource levels; and
based on the parsed hierarchical API command, deploying the SD resources by using a deployment process that ensures that any first SD resource on which a second SD resource depends is deployed before the second SD resource.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein
the parsing comprises identifying a plurality of sets of SD resources, each set having one or more SD resources at one resource level, and
the deploying comprises deploying identified SD resource sets at higher resource levels before deploying SD resources at lower resource levels.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one SD resource comprises an SD forwarding element.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein at least one SD resource further comprises an SD service module for performing a middlebox service operation.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the SD service module is a service machine.

6. The method of claim 4 , wherein the SD service module is a service filter on a host machine.

7. The method of claim 4 , wherein the middlebox service operation include one of a firewall operation, a load balancing operation, a network address translation operation, an encryption operation, an intrusion detection operation, and an intrusion prevention operation.

8. The method of claim 3 , wherein the SD resources further comprise workloads.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein
the hierarchical API command includes a set of parameters to update an earlier deployed SD resource, and
deploying the SD resources comprises updating the earlier deployed SD resource based on the set of parameters specified in the parsed hierarchical API command.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein
the hierarchical API command includes a set of parameters that define a new SD resource, and
deploying the SD resources comprises deploying the new SD resource based on the set of parameters specified in the parsed hierarchical API command.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising sending, after determining that the identified SD resources are deployable, a confirmation that the hierarchical API command has been successfully processed to a source that produced the hierarchical API command.

12. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
determining that one of the SD resources cannot be deployed, and
sending a message that the hierarchical API command has not been successfully processed to a source that produced the hierarchical API command.

13. A non-transitory machine readable medium storing a program for deploying software-defined (SD) resources in a software defined datacenter, the program comprising sets of instructions for:
receiving a hierarchical Application Programming Interface (API) command that in a declarative format specifies a plurality of SD resources at a plurality of resource levels of a resource hierarchy in the software defined datacenter;
parsing the hierarchical API command to identify the plurality of SD resources at the plurality of resource levels; and
based on the parsed hierarchical API command, deploying the SD resources by using a deployment process that ensures that any first SD resource on which a second SD resource depends is deployed before the second SD resource.

14. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 13 , wherein
the set of instructions for parsing comprises a set of instructions for identifying a plurality of sets of SD resources, each set having one or more SD resources at one resource level, and
the set of instructions for deploying comprises a set of instructions for deploying identified SD resource sets at higher resource levels before deploying SD resources at lower resource levels.

15. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 13 , wherein at least one SD resource comprises an SD forwarding element.

16. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 15 , wherein at least one SD resource further comprises an SD service module for performing a middlebox service operation.

17. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the SD service module is a service machine.

18. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the SD service module is a service filter on a host machine.

19. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the middlebox service operation include one of a firewall operation, a load balancing operation, a network address translation operation, an encryption operation, an intrusion detection operation, and an intrusion prevention operation.

20. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the SD resources further comprise workloads.

21. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 13 , wherein
the hierarchical API command includes a set of parameters to update an earlier deployed SD resource, and
the set of instructions for deploying the SD resources comprises a set of instructions for updating the earlier deployed SD resource based on the set of parameters specified in the parsed hierarchical API command.

22. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 13 , wherein
the hierarchical API command includes a set of parameters that define a new SD resource, and
the set of instructions for deploying the SD resources comprise a set of instructions for deploying the new SD resource based on the set of parameters specified in the parsed hierarchical API command.

23. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 13 , wherein the program further comprises a set of instructions for sending, after determining that the identified SD resources are deployable, a confirmation that the hierarchical API command has been successfully processed to a source that produced the hierarchical API command.

24. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 13 , wherein the program further comprises sets of instructions:
determining that one of the SD resources cannot be deployed, and

sending a message that the hierarchical API command has not been successfully processed to a source that produced the hierarchical API command.

Assignees

• Vmware Inc

Inventors

• Vaidya Sachin Mohan
• Dhas Mayur
• Ramaswamy Naveen
• Margarian Pavlush
• Aharchaou Hamza

Classifications

• H04L41/40

  using virtualisation of network functions or resources, e.g. SDN or NFV entities · CPC title

• H04L41/0889 Primary

  Techniques to speed-up the configuration process · CPC title

• H04L67/10

  in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network (software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46) · CPC title

• H04L41/0806

  for initial configuration or provisioning, e.g. plug-and-play · CPC title

• H04L41/5051 Primary

  Service on demand, e.g. definition and deployment of services in real time · CPC title