Edge Computing

In our academic final year BTech project , we built a Linux cluster to demonstrate how an on demand SaaS philosophy (actually we didn't know the term at that time !) application could be implemented.It was not a 100% ideological demonstration.We could run the cluster of 4 nodes in the lab and the application ... but not the grid level implementation . We as a team did work well to make it happen.It was cutting edge at a smaller level...

Edge computing ... ?

I did write an article on CDNs(Content Delivery Network) before. But I didn't know about the concept of edge computing even when I saw Beijing Olympics through NBC online. I never guessed when i watched Youtube videos. The real transformation that is happening in this web 2.0 cyberspace.The web uses additional metadata to cache and transport data than traditional web caching.Its content-aware caching(CAC).This form of computing is made available to on demand applications too. All those web 2.0 mashups,widget networks, etc I thinks its too complex in the architectural and deep theoretical level to understand the technology, because it seems so "cloudy".All these data network latencies, jittering, content replications ,databases spread throughout... and so on.The request to an html or javascript are delivered from a nearby cdn node in networks like Akamai or Limelight (used by Youtube) to our pc/gadget. What about the personlized pages? They also need dynamically generated content.They get data from databases.The databases are spread across the web. The database cache mechanisms deliver the data. What about business applications ? Their database results are to be cached.Suppose two queries having same subset of data . They are to be cached reducing frequent database access.Using query templates and containment check it can be done. I saw a ppt from here explaining web application replication strategies. .Technologies like sharding using MysQl , database clustering etc are used these days.There were a lot papers published on this technology for a long time.Its practical and becoming the backbone of internet for technologies like video streaming , VOIP, mashup services ,even illegal botnets !! etc these days.Its providing high QoS, availability,virtualized computing,but security through firewalls at all the nodes (centralized as well as network level).So the internet at the network level is becoming strong needing more complex administration.... cool for network engineers.Its complex it sounds interesting and promising.

Its about data ...More curious What about the computing and implementation level ?

I grabbed an article from Akamai regarding the deployment of java enterprise applications in their CDNs from here

Another article was found about Objectweb's JonAS application server working on a self-* autonomic computing based on IBM research.

From the manifesto i read about the comparison of today's internet autonomic computing and our autonomic nervous system, freeing the conscious mind with all those involuntary activities .....

Many intelligent students,professors, engineers working on it .Yes the collective intelligence is in the embryo stage....