ITR: Collaborative Research: (ASE+ECS)-(int+dmc+soc) - Environment Computing for Global Grids

该ITR提案是一项资金申请，旨在解决大规模网格计算的两个关键扩展问题。当前部署的网格系统的经验清楚地表明，虽然这些系统对数十个站点和数十名全职管理人员来说是实用的，但它们不能扩展到大型科学合作或更大的全球规模所需的数百或数千个站点。两个基本的非缩放效应是：(a)软件环境计算（SEC）：缺乏定义良好的机制来可靠、安全、无人为干预地在远程站点上构建和操作软件环境，这是非缩放行为的主要来源。提出的解决方案是定义和实现一个基础设施，其中软件环境的创建和操作是网格计算的基本元素。他们建议使用Pacman包作为SEC的第一个实现；(b)有效的资源分配：由于缺乏控制资源分配的网格级机制，随着网格规模的扩大，网格将变得难以管理，对典型用户来说效率低下。提出的解决方案是引入一种通用的网格货币来引导经济并促进政策决策。SEC和RA都需要新的方法来实现网格计算和IT的质的飞跃。这些问题的最终解决方案将是IT领域的一个重大智力进步，为进一步的研究提供理论理解和实践工具。广泛影响：通过识别和解决当代网格计算中的基本问题，这项工作将使网格的大小朝着我们目前无法计算的极限增长。网格的急剧增长将导致为广泛的科学和其他计算项目提供接近seti家庭规模的计算，并将构成国家计算格局的真正变化。

This ITR proposal is a request for funding to address the two critical scaling problems for large scale grid computing. Experience with the current generation of deployed grid systems makes it clear that, while these systems are practical for tens of sites, with tens of full-time managers, they do not scale to the hundreds or thousands of sites required by large scientific collaborations or to larger global scales. The two essential non-scaling effects are: (a) Software Environment Computing (SEC): a lack of well-defined mechanisms for constructing and manipulating software environments on remote sites reliably, safely and without human intervention is a major source of non-scaling behavior. The solution proposed is to define and implement an infrastructure where software environment creation and manipulation are basic elements of grid computing. They propose to use the Pacman package as a first implementation of SEC; (b) Effective Resource Allocation (RA): a lack of grid-level mechanisms for controlling allocation of resources will cause grids to become difficult to manage and inefficient for typical users as the grids scale up in size. The solution proposed is to introduce a common grid currency to bootstrap an economy and promote policy decisions. Both SEC and RA require new approaches in order to achieve a qualitative leap forward in grid computing and in IT. Definitive solution of these problems would be a major intellectual advance in IT providing both theoretical understanding and practical tools that would be the basis of further research. Broad Impact: By identifying and unblocking the essential problems in contemporary grid computing, this work will enable grids to grow in size towards limits that we are not currently able to calculate. A dramatic growth in grids will result in near SETI-at-home scale computing for broad ranges of scientific and other computing projects and would constitute a true change in the national computing landscape.