Abstract: An example method of virtualizing a hardware accelerator in a host cluster of a virtualized computing system includes: commanding, at an initiator host in the host cluster, a programmable expansion bus device to reconfigure as a virtual accelerator based on specifications of a hardware accelerator in a target host of the host cluster; executing, in the programmable expansion bus device, software to emulate the virtual accelerator as connected to an expansion bus of the initiator host; receiving, at the programmable expansion bus device, compute tasks from an application executing in the initiator host; and sending, to the target host, the compute tasks for processing by the hardware accelerator.

Abstract: This disclosure is directed to automated processes for attesting to trustworthiness of a host considered for connection to a data center network. The attestation process is performed in two attestation phases. In the first phase, attestation is performed on a smart network interface controller (“SNIC”) connected to an internal bus of the host using a first trusted platform module (“TPM”) of the SNIC. In the second phase, attestation is performed on the host by the SNIC using a second TPM connected to the internal bus of the host in response to a determination that the SNIC is trustworthy. The host is connected to the data center network in response to a determination by the SNIC that the host is trustworthy.

Abstract: The current document is directed to methods and systems that place and manage workloads across heterogeneous hosts within distributed computer systems. In a disclosed method, the functionality of an existing distributed-computer-management system designed for managing homogeneous hosts is modified and improved for application to distributed-computer systems that include heterogeneous hosts. Much of the functionality needed for managing heterogeneous hosts is obtained by modifying implementation of managed objects employed by host agents without affecting the interface between the distributed-computer-management system and the host agents. In addition, host-selection functionality within the distributed-computer-management system can be extended and improved to consider heterogeneous-host characteristics both for placing workloads across heterogeneous hosts and for live migration of virtual machines among different types of hosts.

Abstract: This disclosure is directed to automated processes for attesting to trustworthiness of a host considered for connection to a data center network. The attestation process is performed in two attestation phases. In the first phase, attestation is performed on a smart network interface controller (“SNIC”) connected to an internal bus of the host using a first trusted platform module (“TPM”) of the SNIC. In the second phase, attestation is performed on the host by the SNIC using a second TPM connected to the internal bus of the host in response to a determination that the SNIC is trustworthy. The host is connected to the data center network in response to a determination by the SNIC that the host is trustworthy.

Abstract: System and methods for evaluating license information in a computer cluster are described. An example method may include retrieving a cluster-license-info from a peer-node selected from a plurality of cluster nodes in the computer cluster, wherein the cluster-license-info contains a plurality of peer-license-info collected from the plurality of cluster nodes, receiving a revised cluster-license-info generated by detecting license violations in the cluster-license-info, and transmitting the revised cluster-license-info to the peer-node.

Abstract: An example method of virtualizing a hardware accelerator in a host cluster of a virtualized computing system includes: commanding, at an initiator host in the host cluster, a programmable expansion bus device to reconfigure as a virtual accelerator based on specifications of a hardware accelerator in a target host of the host cluster; executing, in the programmable expansion bus device, software to emulate the virtual accelerator as connected to an expansion bus of the initiator host; receiving, at the programmable expansion bus device, compute tasks from an application executing in the initiator host; and sending, to the target host, the compute tasks for processing by the hardware accelerator.

Abstract: System and methods for replicating and enforcing license information in a computer cluster are described. The method may include: receiving, by a core-node in the computer cluster, a plurality of peer-license-info from a plurality of peer-nodes selected from a plurality of cluster nodes. Each of the plurality of peer-license-info may include license-info collected by and associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of peer-nodes. The method may include generating, by the core-node, a first cluster-license-info based on the plurality of peer-license-info. The method may further include propagating, by the core-node, the first cluster-license-info to each of the plurality of peer-nodes. The first cluster-license-info is configured for detecting license violations among the plurality of cluster nodes.

Abstract: A computing environment can include a host system that maintains a guest system, and a hardware component configured to implement artificial intelligence (“AI”) methods of processing and analyzing date. The guest system can provide a virtual computing environment that receives a request to implement an AI application, and utilize a framework and a guest library to convert data from the AI application into an intermediate representation (“IR”). The host system can receive the IR with a virtual device (“VD”), and utilize an IR backend to translate the IR into hardware operations for the hardware component. Translated hardware operations can be provided to, and carried out by, the hardware component to provide an implementation of the AI application. Results of the hardware operations can be transmitted from the VD of the host system to a VD driver of the guest system, virtualizing the hardware component relative to the guest system.

Abstract: A computing environment can include a host system that maintains a guest system, and a hardware component configured to implement artificial intelligence (“AI”) methods of processing and analyzing date. The guest system can provide a virtual computing environment that receives a request to implement an AI application, and utilize a framework and a guest library to convert data from the AI application into an intermediate representation (“IR”). The host system can receive the IR with a virtual device (“VD”), and utilize an IR backend to translate the IR into hardware operations for the hardware component. Translated hardware operations can be provided to, and carried out by, the hardware component to provide an implementation of the AI application. Results of the hardware operations can be transmitted from the VD of the host system to a VD driver of the guest system, virtualizing the hardware component relative to the guest system.

Abstract: A computing environment can include a host system that maintains a guest system, and a hardware component configured to implement artificial intelligence (“AI”) methods of processing and analyzing date. The guest system can provide a virtual computing environment that receives a request to implement an AI application, and utilize a framework and a guest library to convert data from the AI application into an intermediate representation (“IR”). The host system can receive the IR with a virtual device (“VD”), and utilize an IR backend to translate the IR into hardware operations for the hardware component. Translated hardware operations can be provided to, and carried out by, the hardware component to provide an implementation of the AI application. Results of the hardware operations can be transmitted from the VD of the host system to a VD driver of the guest system, virtualizing the hardware component relative to the guest system.

Abstract: System and methods for replicating and enforcing license information in a computer cluster are described. The method may include: receiving, by a core-node in the computer cluster, a plurality of peer-license-info from a plurality of peer-nodes selected from a plurality of cluster nodes. Each of the plurality of peer-license-info may include license-info collected by and associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of peer-nodes. The method may include generating, by the core-node, a first cluster-license-info based on the plurality of peer-license-info. The method may further include propagating, by the core-node, the first cluster-license-info to each of the plurality of peer-nodes. The first cluster-license-info is configured for detecting license violations among the plurality of cluster nodes.

Abstract: A method for interactively visualizing a graph includes maintaining objects, operations, reactions, and interactions in volatile memory, receiving user input of interactions each specifying one or more reactions to visually transform one object when selected by one or more operations, and writing the objects, the operations, the reactions, and the interactions in a computer-readable file. The method further includes exporting a number of the objects to a render function in an application framework to render them, receiving an event from an event listener in the application framework, determining an operation selecting an object based on the event, determining an interaction corresponding to the object and the operation, determining at least one reaction corresponding to the interaction, and instructing the render function to visually transform the object with the at least one reaction.

Abstract: A method for interactively visualizing a graph includes maintaining objects, operations, reactions, and interactions in volatile memory, receiving user input of interactions each specifying one or more reactions to visually transform one object when selected by one or more operations, and writing the objects, the operations, the reactions, and the interactions in a computer-readable file. The method further includes exporting a number of the objects to a render function in an application framework to render them, receiving an event from an event listener in the application framework, determining an operation selecting an object based on the event, determining an interaction corresponding to the object and the operation, determining at least one reaction corresponding to the interaction, and instructing the render function to visually transform the object with the at least one reaction.