Abstract: The present disclosure relates to techniques for managing client computing systems, such as a client distributed-computing system. In one embodiment, a desired state of the client distributed-computing system and a current state of the client distributed-computing system are received. Measurement data generated by a plurality of components of the client distributed-computing system is received. The measurement data is processed using one or more analytical or statistical techniques to generate distilled data. Based on one or more policies and the desired state, the distilled data and the current state are analyzed to determine one or more actions predicted to converge the current state of the client distributed-computing system towards the desired state. One or more control commands corresponding to the one or more actions are provided to the client distributed-computing system. The one or more control commands cause the client distributed-computing system to perform the one or more actions.

Abstract: System and method for automatic remediation for a distributed file system uses a file system (FS) remediation module running in a cluster management server and FS remediation agents running in a cluster of host computers. The FS remediation module monitors the cluster of host computers for related events. When a first file system service (FSS)-impacting event is detected, a cluster-level remediation action is executed at the cluster management server by the FS remediation module in response to the detected first FSS-impacting event. When a second FSS-impacting event is detected, a host-level remediation action is executed at one or more of the host computers in the cluster by the FS remediation agents in response to the detected second FSS-impacting event.

Abstract: A user interface for managing allocations of network resources in a virtualized computing environment provides a graphical overview of the virtual computing environment that allows the user to visualize the virtual network, including the connections between the virtual network adapters and the uplink port groups that provide physical network resources for the virtual machines included in the virtualized computing environment. The user interface also provides graphical elements that allow the user to modify the virtual network, to migrate virtual machines from individual virtual switches to a distributed virtual switch, and/or to modify the arrangement of physical network adapters that provide network backing for the virtual machines. By providing these features, the user interface according to one or more embodiments of the present invention can allow the user to efficiently and safely manage the virtual network in the virtual computing environment.

Abstract: A virtualized application runs on top of a guest operating system (OS) of a virtual machine and is supported by a file system of the guest OS. The method of supporting the virtualized application with the file system includes provisioning a first virtual disk as a data store of the file system and a second virtual disk for the virtualized application, wherein the first and second virtual disks store first and second files of the virtualized application, respectively, retrieving metadata of the virtualized application, updating a master file table of the file system according to the retrieved metadata to map the first files to logical blocks of the file system, updating the master file table to map the second files to additional logical blocks according to the retrieved metadata, and creating a mapping for the additional logical blocks, that is used during an input/output operation, according to the retrieved metadata.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide novel methods for performing services for machines operating in one or more datacenters. For instance, for a group of related guest machines (e.g., a group of tenant machines), some embodiments define two different forwarding planes: (1) a guest forwarding plane and (2) a service forwarding plane. The guest forwarding plane connects to the machines in the group and performs L2 and/or L3 forwarding for these machines. The service forwarding plane (1) connects to the service nodes that perform services on data messages sent to and from these machines, and (2) forwards these data messages to the service nodes. In some embodiments, the guest machines do not connect directly with the service forwarding plane. For instance, in some embodiments, each forwarding plane connects to a machine or service node through a port that receives data messages from, or supplies data messages to, the machine or service node.

Abstract: Certain embodiments described herein relate to a method for performing dead peer detection (DPD) by a local gateway. The method includes periodically examining one or more array elements of a timestamp array. The method further includes, for each of the examined one or more array elements, determining whether a corresponding idle timeout threshold is met. The method further includes, upon determining that the corresponding idle timeout threshold is not met, refraining from causing a notification to be transmitted to a peer gateway. The method also includes, upon determining that the corresponding idle timeout threshold is met, causing a notification to be transmitted to the peer gateway to determine whether the peer gateway is responsive with respect to a tunnel associated with the examined array element.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a novel method for collecting and reporting attributes of data flows associated with machines executing on a plurality of host computers to an analysis appliance. Some embodiments collect, each time a request for a new data message flow is initiated, a set of contextual attributes (i.e., context data) associated with the requested new data message flow. The method, in some embodiments, generates a correlation data set and provides the correlation data set to be included in flow data regarding the requested data message flow to be used by the analysis appliance to correlate context data and flow data received as separate data sets from multiple host computers.

Abstract: Example methods and systems for pre-validation of network configuration are disclosed. One example may comprise: detecting a request for network configuration to be implemented in a physical network environment; and identifying a set of physical network elements associated with the network configuration. The method may further comprise emulating the set of physical network elements to determine a physical network behaviour caused by the network configuration; and assessing validity of the network configuration based on the physical network behaviour. The set of physical network elements may be emulated using (a) multiple first physical network element emulators and (b) a second physical network element emulator that aggregates the multiple first physical network element emulators.

Abstract: A system and method for supplying on-premise hyper-converged systems uses a cloud service to receive orders for the on-premise hyper-converged systems from customers and to request a system integrator to procure hardware components of the on-premise hyper-converged systems and to assemble hardware components to produce assembled systems. Software components are remotely installed and configured in the assembled systems from the cloud service using bring-up appliances in virtual private clouds created for the on-premise hyper-converged systems to deploy software-defined data centers (SDDCs) in the on-premise hyper-converged systems. The resulting on-premise hyper-converged systems with the deployed SDDCs can then used by the customers.

Abstract: Example methods are provided a first host to perform packet flow monitoring in a software-defined networking (SDN) environment. One example may comprise the first host receiving a request to monitor a packet flow and triggering a telemetry process based on a predetermined event associated with the packet flow. The method may also comprise: in response to the triggered telemetry process and detecting an egress packet associated with the packet flow, generating an encapsulated packet by encapsulating the egress packet with an outer header; configuring a telemetry instruction in the outer header; and sending the encapsulated packet with the telemetry instruction to the second host via one or more intermediate network devices. The telemetry instruction may be configured to cause the one or more intermediate network devices to add, to the encapsulated packet, metadata associated with a network state experienced by the encapsulated packet.

Abstract: In a computer-implemented method for adapting time series database schema, a plurality of queries to a time series database received over a time period is accessed, wherein time series data is ingested into the time series database according to a time series database schema, wherein time series data comprises a plurality of dimensions. The plurality of queries of the time period is analyzed to determine a relative frequency of the plurality of dimensions within the plurality of queries over the time period. It is determined whether to adapt the time series database schema based at least in part on the relative frequency of the plurality of dimensions within the plurality of queries over the time period.

Abstract: Techniques for implementing early acknowledgement for translation lookaside buffer (TLB) shootdowns are provided. In one set of embodiments, a first (i.e., remote) processing core of a computer system can receive an inter-processor interrupt (IPI) from a second (i.e., initiator) processing core of the computer system for performing a TLB shootdown of the first processing core. Upon receiving the IPI, an interrupt handler of the first processing core can communicate an acknowledgement to the second processing core that the TLB of the first processing core has been flushed, prior to actually flushing the TLB.

Abstract: In an architecture of a virtualized computing system plugins are less tightly integrated with a core user interface of a management server. Rather than being installed and executed at the management server as local plugins, the plugins are served as remote plugins from a plugin server, and may be accessed by a web client through a reverse proxy at the management server. Plugin operations may be executed at the plugin server and/or invoked from a user device where the web client resides. Furthermore, a plugin sandbox and other isolation configurations are provided at the user device, so as to further control access capability and interaction of the plugins.

Abstract: Examples described herein include systems and methods performing scalable and dynamic data processing and extraction. A first example method relates to processing events from a source. The method can include detecting an event generated by the source and predicting a probability of that event being part of a span including multiple events. The method can include waiting for the additional multiple events to occur within the predicted timeframe and, if occurring, packaging the events together for handling by a single dynamic function. Otherwise, the events can each be handled by separate dynamic functions. A second example method relates to performing dynamic data extraction from a source. The method can include waking up a function based on a regular poll interval, determining a probability of a data change at the source based on historical data extractions, and invoking an extraction function based on the probability of the data change.

Abstract: An example method of testing a cluster network for an application management system having a cluster of virtual machines (VMs) is described. The VMs execute on a virtualization layer in a cluster of hosts connected to a physical network, and the application management system integrated with the virtualization layer. The method includes: receiving, at an edge node from an external network, a plurality of test applications; executing, at the edge node, the plurality of test applications, the edge node connected to the cluster network, the plurality of test applications communicating, through the cluster network, with a master server of the application management system, and with applications executing in the VMs managed by the master server; and returning, from the edge node, responses generated by the plurality of test applications to the external network.

Abstract: The current document is directed to methods and systems that process, classify, efficiently store, and display large volumes of event messages generated in modern computing systems. In a disclosed implementation, received event messages are assigned to event-message clusters based on non-parameter tokens identified within the event messages. A parsing function is generated for each cluster that is used to extract data from incoming event messages and to prepare event records from event messages that more efficiently and accessible store event information. The parsing functions also provide an alternative basis for assignment of event messages to clusters. Event types associated with the clusters are used for gathering information from various information sources with which to automatically annotate event messages displayed to system administrators, maintenance personnel, and other users of event messages.

Abstract: System and methods for simulating an end-to-end upgrade process are provided. The method may include collecting, by an upgrade simulator, a system inventory from a production system. The system inventory includes the production system's hardware configuration. The method may include, in response to a determination that the system inventory is compatible with an upgrade software, configuring, by the upgrade simulator, a simulated system having a downsized hardware configuration compared to the production system's hardware configuration. The method may further include upgrading, by the upgrade simulator, the simulated system using the upgrade software, and evaluating, by the upgrade simulator, the simulated system operating with the upgrade software.

Abstract: Techniques for the increased efficiency of storing data objects storage in the object storage of a software designed data center (SDDC) are provided. The techniques include the efficient storage of data, while enabling snapshots of each updating of the data. The snapshots of the data may be efficiently recovered via the techniques. Difference-level mappings for each snapshot are encoded in compact self-balancing data trees included in the object's metadata. The metadata mappings include mappings between various address spaces employed by the SDDC, as well as the address spaces employed by data stores that store the data on physical medium. Because the metadata is efficiently structured, the metadata for an object may be cached for quick lookups during data access and/or snapshot recovery. The techniques also provide low-latency recovery and/or system rollback in the event of any failure in the SDDC.

Abstract: Techniques disclosed herein encrypt sensitive data being transmitted from one endpoint to another endpoint through intermediary cloud(s) so that the sensitive data is not visible to the intermediary cloud(s). Double data encryption, utilizing public and private key pairs generated at the endpoints, is used to anonymize the sensitive data, while other data transmitted along with the sensitive data remains unencrypted so that intermediary cloud(s) can process the unencrypted data. In a particular embodiment, one of the endpoints is an application running in a first cloud, the other endpoint is a web browser executing a web application, and the intermediary cloud(s) are additional cloud(s) with applications running therein that provide services to the first cloud or coordinate with the application running in the first cloud to provide a service.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method and system for protecting a host computer in a computer network from security threats uses local security-relevant data for the host computer, as well as global security-relevant data for other components in the computer network downloaded from a security information plane system to the host computer, to determine a security threat to the host computer. When a security threat is determined to be a legitimate threat, a security alert is issued, and then an action is initiated in response to the security alert.