IP Library Granted Patent US 8,966,082
Granted Patent B2
US 8,966,082 · App. 12/368,489 · Granted Feb 24, 2015

Virtual machine address management

View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 8,966,082
App. No.
12/368,489
Granted
Feb 24, 2015
Kind
B2
Abstract

Apparatus, systems, and methods may operate to receive reports at a server node, the reports indicating a change in virtual machine status for virtual machines hosted on a virtual machine host node; and to allocate/de-allocate addresses to the virtual machines based on the change in virtual machine status and one or more policies. Some embodiments may operate to detect, at a virtual machine host node, a change in virtual machine status for virtual machines hosted on the host node; and to transmit reports to a server node from the host node, the reports indicating the change in virtual machine status, to enable the server node to allocate/de-allocate addresses to the virtual machines based on the change in virtual machine status and one or more policies. Additional apparatus, systems, and methods are disclosed.

Claims (49)

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a server node; and

a virtual machine state change receiver module to receive reports at the server node, the reports indicating a change in virtual machine status for virtual machines hosted on a virtual machine host node, the change in virtual machine status including at least one of virtual machine creation, virtual machine cloning, virtual machine destruction, virtual machine suspension, virtual machine pausing, or virtual machine resumption, the server node to allocate or de-allocate interact protocol (IP) addresses to the virtual machines based on the change in virtual machine stares as determined by the reports and at least one policy previously stored in the sever node, the at least one policy including a lifecycle-event based restriction to be used to determine whether to allocate a new IP address to a cloned virtual machine;

wherein the reports comprise: at least one of a status or a change in stares of at least one of the virtual machines, and at least one of a media access control (MAC) address or a universally unique identifier (UUID) of the at least one of the virtual machines.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the server node comprises a dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) server node.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the virtual machine state change receiver module forms part of a leasing module to receive the reports as part of leasing messages transmitted from the host node to the server node.

4. An apparatus, comprising:

a virtual machine host node to host a plurality of virtual machines; and

a virtual machine state change notifier module to:

detect, at the virtual machine host node, a change in virtual machine status for the virtual machines, the change in virtual machine status including at least one of virtual machine creation, virtual machine cloning, virtual machine destruction, virtual machine suspension, virtual machine pausing, or virtual machine resumption: and

transmit reports to a server node, the reports indicating the change in virtual machine status, to enable the server node to allocate or de-allocate internet protocol (IP) addresses to the virtual machines based on the change in virtual machine status as determined by the reports and at least one policy previously stored in the server node the at least one policy including a lifecycle-event based restriction to be used to determine whether to allocate a new IP address to a cloned virtual machine;

wherein the reports comprise: at least one of a status or a change in stares of at least one of the virtual machines, and at least one of a media access control (MAC) address or a universally unique identifier (UUID) of the at least one of the virtual machines.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the virtual machine state change notifier module forms part of a hypervisor module to monitor operations of the virtual machines on the virtual machine host node.

6. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the virtual machine state change notifier module can be coupled to a Common Information Model (CIM) provider module as part of a dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) client on the host node, the CIM provider module to generate the reports.

7. A method of managing internet protocol addresses implemented in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium and adapted to be executed by a processor for performing the method, comprising:

receiving reports at a server node, the reports indicating a change in virtual machine status for virtual machines hosted on a virtual machine host node, the change in virtual machine status including at least one of virtual machine creation, virtual machine cloning, virtual machine destruction, virtual machine suspension, virtual machine pausing, or virtual machine resumption; and

allocating or de-allocating the internet protocol (IP) addresses to the virtual machines based on the change in virtual machine status as determined by the reports and at least one policy previously stored in the server node, the at least one policy including a lifecycle-event based restriction to be used to determine whether to allocate a new IP address to a cloned virtual machine;

wherein the reports comprise: at least one of a status or a change in stares of at least one of the virtual machines, and at least one of a media access control (MAC) address or a universally unique identifier (UUID) of the at least one of the virtual machines.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the allocating comprises:

calling a leasing module that refers to the at least one policy to determine the allocating or the de-allocating.

9. The method of claim 7 , wherein the life cycle events comprise at least one of creation, destruction, cloning, suspension, resumption, or pausing.

10. The method of claim 7 , wherein the change in virtual machine status is determined directly from a single one of the reports.

11. The method of claim 7 , wherein the change in virtual machine status is determined indirectly from multiple ones of the reports.

12. The method of claim 7 , wherein the allocating comprises:

denying allocation of at least one of the internet protocol addresses.

13. The method of claim 7 , further comprising:

receiving extensions to the at least one policy as definitions provided by a system administrator.

14. The method of claim 7 , further comprising:

publishing content from the reports to a system administrator.

15. The method of claim 7 , wherein the reports comprise:

at least an identity of at least one of the virtual machines, and a state of the at least one of the virtual machines.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the identity comprises:

at least one of a media access control (MAC) address or a universally unique identifier (UUID).

17. A method of managing internet protocol addresses implemented in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium and adapted to be executed by a processor for performing the method, comprising:

detecting, at a virtual machine host node, a change in virtual machine status for virtual machines hosted on the host node, the change in virtual machine status including at least one of virtual machine creation, virtual machine cloning, virtual machine destruction, virtual machine suspension, virtual machine pausing, or virtual machine resumption; and

transmitting reports to a server node from the host node, the reports indicating the change in virtual machine status, to enable the server node to allocate or de-allocate the interact protocol (IP) addresses to the virtual machines based on the change in virtual machine status as determined by the reports and at least one policy previously stored in the sever node, the at least one policy including a lifecycle-event based restriction to be used to determine whether to allocate a new IP address to a cloned virtual machine;

wherein the reports comprise: at least one of a status or a change in stares of at least one of the virtual machines, and at least one of a media access control (MAC) address or a universally unique identifier (UUID) of the at least one of the virtual machines.

18. The method of claim 17 , further comprising:

registering, using a virtual machine state change notifier module, with a hypervisor operating on the host node to receive the virtual machine status.

19. The method of claim 17 , wherein the transmitting comprises:

transmitting the reports from a virtual machine state change notifier module residing on the host node to a virtual machine state change receiver module residing on the server node.

20. The method of claim 17 , wherein the transmitting comprises:

transmitting the reports directly from a hypervisor operating on the host node.

21. The method of claim 17 , further comprising:

modifying a lease message to include at least one of the reports.

22. The method of claim 17 , further comprising:

installing a Common Information Model (CIM) provider module to couple to a dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) client on the host node, the CIM provider module to generate the reports.

23. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the server node is configured to reject an IP address allocation request coming from a virtual machine hosted on another virtual machine host node.

24. The apparatus of claim 23 , wherein the IP address allocation request is rejected based on determining that a first MAC address reported by the other virtual machine host node as being associated with the virtual machine is different from a second MAC address reported by the virtual machine.

Assignments (13)
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST REEL/FRAME 035656/0251 Recorded Feb 2, 2023
From: JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A.
To: BORLAND SOFTWARE CORPORATION; ATTACHMATE CORPORATION; NETIQ CORPORATION; MICRO FOCUS (US), INC.; MICRO FOCUS SOFTWARE INC. (F/K/A NOVELL, INC.)
Reel/Frame 062623/0009 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST REEL/FRAME 044183/0718 Recorded Feb 2, 2023
From: JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A.
To: MICRO FOCUS LLC (F/K/A ENTIT SOFTWARE LLC); BORLAND SOFTWARE CORPORATION; MICRO FOCUS (US), INC.; SERENA SOFTWARE, INC; ATTACHMATE CORPORATION; MICRO FOCUS SOFTWARE INC. (F/K/A NOVELL, INC.); NETIQ CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 062746/0399 →
CORRECTIVE ASSIGNMENT TO CORRECT THE TO CORRECT TYPO IN APPLICATION NUMBER 10708121 WHICH SHOULD BE 10708021 PREVIOUSLY RECORDED ON REEL 042388 FRAME 0386. ASSIGNOR(S) HEREBY CONFIRMS THE NOTICE OF SUCCESSION OF AGENCY. Recorded Jul 26, 2018
From: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., AS PRIOR AGENT
To: JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A., AS SUCCESSOR AGENT
Reel/Frame 048793/0832 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Oct 11, 2017
From: ATTACHMATE CORPORATION; BORLAND SOFTWARE CORPORATION; NETIQ CORPORATION; MICRO FOCUS (US), INC.; MICRO FOCUS SOFTWARE, INC.; ENTIT SOFTWARE LLC; ARCSIGHT, LLC; SERENA SOFTWARE, INC.
To: JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A.
Reel/Frame 044183/0718 →
NOTICE OF SUCCESSION OF AGENCY Recorded May 2, 2017
From: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., AS PRIOR AGENT
To: JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A., AS SUCCESSOR AGENT
Reel/Frame 042388/0386 →
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Sep 13, 2016
From: NOVELL, INC.
To: MICRO FOCUS SOFTWARE INC.
Reel/Frame 040020/0703 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded May 13, 2015
From: MICRO FOCUS (US), INC.; BORLAND SOFTWARE CORPORATION; ATTACHMATE CORPORATION; NETIQ CORPORATION; NOVELL, INC.
To: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.
Reel/Frame 035656/0251 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST RECORDED AT REEL/FRAME 028252/0316 Recorded Nov 24, 2014
From: CREDIT SUISSE AG
To: NOVELL, INC.
Reel/Frame 034469/0057 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST RECORDED AT REEL/FRAME 028252/0216 Recorded Nov 24, 2014
From: CREDIT SUISSE AG
To: NOVELL, INC.
Reel/Frame 034470/0680 →
GRANT OF PATENT SECURITY INTEREST SECOND LIEN Recorded May 23, 2012
From: NOVELL, INC.
To: CREDIT SUISSE AG, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 028252/0316 →
GRANT OF PATENT SECURITY INTEREST FIRST LIEN Recorded May 23, 2012
From: NOVELL, INC.
To: CREDIT SUISSE AG, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 028252/0216 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY IN PATENTS SECOND LIEN (RELEASES RF 026275/0018 AND 027290/0983) Recorded May 22, 2012
From: CREDIT SUISSE AG, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
To: NOVELL, INC.
Reel/Frame 028252/0154 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST IN PATENTS FIRST LIEN (RELEASES RF 026270/0001 AND 027289/0727) Recorded May 22, 2012
From: CREDIT SUISSE AG, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
To: NOVELL, INC.
Reel/Frame 028252/0077 →