Architectural Requirements for Computing with Coalitions of Resources

Widespread use of the Internet is enabling a fundamentally new approach to software development: computing through dynamically formed, task-specific, coalitions of distributed autonomous resources. The resources may be information, calculation, communication, control, or services. Unlike traditional software systems, the coalitions lack direct control over the incorporated resources, which are independently created and managed. Moreover, the resources may be transient, either because of the resource manager’s actions or because of service interruptions. Development tools for resource coalitions will require new degrees of autonomy and automation in order to identify, compose, and track the resources. An economically viable reward structure will be required to establish a rich population of available resources. Evaluation will require new models of adequacy rather than classical full correctness. Computing through resource coalitions will thus create novel architectural challenges and opportunities.