A Programming Model for Reliable and Efficient Edge-Based Execution under Resource Variability

Zheng Song, Eli Tilevich

Abstract: Edge computing applications use the computational, sensor, and networking resources of nearby mobile and stationary computing devices. Because dissimilar devices can provide these resources, one cannot predict which exact combinations of resources will be available at runtime. The resulting variability hinders the development of edge computing applications. To address this problem, we present a new programming model that employs a domain-specific language (DSL), through which the developer declaratively specifies a collection of microservices and how they invoke each other. Given a concise declarative service suite specification, the DSL compiler automatically generates an execution plan, carried out by our distributed runtime. The resulting programming model is both reliable and efficient. The reliability is achieved by enabling the developer to provide equivalent microservices as switch-over recovery strategies. The efficiency is achieved by the DSL compiler orchestrating the speculatively parallel execution of certain equivalent microservices. Our evaluation demonstrates the reliability, efficiency, and expressiveness of the programming model, which can help developers who need to cope with variable resources at the edge.