| 1 | = Fedd and GENI Clearinghouses = |
| 2 | |
| 3 | The contents and function oa a GENI clearinghouse are evolving as GENI's control frameworks put usable systems on the ground. The clearinghouse itself is a collection of functionality generally related to helping users acquire and use experimental resources (slices). |
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| 5 | An exact definition of a clearinghouse is somewhat difficult to nail down. The [GeniControlFrameworkRequirements GENI Control Framework Requirements document] does not directly state clearinghouse requirments, but the functional diagrams indicate that a clearinghouse is responsible for organizing principals, slices, and components as well as providing ancillary functions controlling resource allocations (tickets) and software distribution. Chip Elliot's [http://groups.geni.net/geni/attachment/wiki/Gec4presentations/GEC%204%20-%202.%20Chip%20wrap-up%20-%20draft%2030%20Mar%2009.ppt comments] at the [wiki:Gec4Agenda 4th GEC] outline a different set of requirements, including acting as a meeting point for resource users and providers, recording transactions, and implementing global policies. |
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| 7 | It seems to us at TIED that the clearinghouse concept remains somewhat nebulous. That is a bit distressing, given that we are obligated to run one. |
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| 9 | This page describes what we perceive to be the key aspects of a clearinghouse and how TIED implements them through [http://fedd.isi.deterlab/net fedd], though we will undercut that defintion somewhat by arguing that the aspects are largely orthogonal and grouped together somewhat arbitrarily. |
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| 11 | == What is a Clearinghouse and Do We Need One? == |
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| 13 | To the extent that there is agreement, a clearing house seems to: |
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| 15 | * Register information about principals that is relevant to resource allocation |
| 16 | * Enable principals to find resources |
| 17 | * Enable principals to allocate resources into slices, which are resource sets managed together, and manage them |
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| 19 | In the course of constructing and manipulating a slice, records of the transactions are maintained and policies known to the clearinghouse can be enforced, in addition to policies that individual resource owners might enforce. |
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| 21 | These functions are essential at some level, and it is clear that a control framework must provide them. What is less clear to us is that they interdepend to such an extent that they need to have a name around them. Even more to the point, we are concerned that GENI requirements may put unnecessary requirements around the clearinghouse set rather than around the orthogonal functions. |
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| 23 | Basically, while many useful functions have been attached to a clearinghouse, we have not been convinced that the clearinghouse is a necessary grouping. Furthermore, because of its ill-defined boundaries, additional functions and data requirements seem to adhere to clearinghouses. Architecturally we prefer to limit ourselves to essential well-defined abstractions and remove the rest. As a result we do not usually consider clearinghouses when defining TIED operations and implelentations. |
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| 25 | == Fedd functions == |
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