Dynamic operations
WebSphere Virtual Enterprise contains functionality to monitor the application server environment and make optimizations or recommendations that are based on the data observed. This capability is referred to as dynamic operations.
Dynamic operations is a fluid and dynamic environment, supporting the continuous availability of applications through...
- The virtualization of resources
- The dynamic placement of applications
- Prioritization and flow control of work to the applications
- Integrating with overall dynamic operations infrastructure management
In a typical WebSphere Application Server environment, there are sometimes static islands of dedicated resources to particular applications. This static structure leads to an inefficient use of resources. Some servers are not used to their full capability, and other servers are overloaded.
WebSphere Virtual Enterprise dynamic operations consist of autonomic managers that maximize utilization using defined business goals. These autonomic managers...
- Monitor performance metrics
- Analyze the monitored data
- Offer a plan for running actions
- Start these actions in response to the flow of work
WebSphere Virtual Enterprise offers the following autonomic managers as part of the dynamic operation functionality:
- Autonomic request flow manager (ARFM)
- Controls the order of requests into the application server tier and the rate of request flows. Using classification and the defined service goals, the ARFM decides how and when to dispatch HTTP requests to the next tier. The ARFM also decides when IIOP and JMS requests are run at the application server tier, even though these requests are not routed through the ODR. For IIOP requests, only standalone EJB) clients are supported. Note that JMS support is only for message-driven beans.
- Dynamic workload manager (DWLM)
- Performs load balancing across available application servers. In particular, for a given request flow, DWLM balances requests across the available nodes to regulate response times. DWLM dynamically updates the application status as the application placement controller modifies a running application infrastructure.
- Application placement controller
- Creates and removes application instances to manage HTTP, IIOP, and SIP traffic. The application placement controller can dynamically address periods of intense workflow that otherwise require the manual intervention of a system administrator. For IIOP requests, only standalone EJB clients are supported.
- Health management
- Maintains a robust application server environment using a health policy to identify the criteria that require action. When the criteria is met, action is taken to ensure that the environment remains healthy.
Autonomic managers with the on demand router (ODR) are the primary functional parts of dynamic operations. An ODR can be defined and started before any service policies are defined, but operational policies can be defined before the appearance of the work to which they apply. However, if policies are not defined, the early work is handled by the default policies. When work enters the ODR, an optimization effort achieves a balance of performance results. As the work flows, the dynamic workload manager balances the load. As work variations change and the balance of work in the nodes is upset, the application placement controller, autonomic request flow manager, and the dynamic workload manager rebalance running applications to ensure efficient work flows.
The combination of these autonomic managers provides a seamless, end-to-end dynamic runtime ability.
Related concepts
Overview of dynamic operationsComponents of dynamic operations
Dynamic operations environment
Dynamic application placement
Related information
Product overview