The Anatomy of the Grid: Enabling Scalable Virtual Organizations
đ Abstract
The sharing that we are concerned with is not primarily file exchange but rather direct access to computers, software, data, and other resources, as is required by a range of collaborative problem-solving and resource-brokering strategies emerging in industry, science, and engineering. We refer to this new paradigm as the "Grid," in analogy to the electric power grid, which provides pervasive access to the resources that are essential to daily life. We address the essence of the Grid concept and the need for a new set of protocols and services that enable the creation of distributed systems that address these concerns. We review the "Grid problem," which is defined as the flexible, secure, coordinated resource sharing among dynamic collections of individuals, institutions, and resourcesâwhat we refer to as virtual organizations. We believe that the Grid concept has the potential to fundamentally enhance how we conceptualize, design, and use distributed systems.
⨠Summary
The paper âThe Anatomy of the Grid: Enabling Scalable Virtual Organizationsâ by Ian Foster, Carl Kesselman, and Steven Tuecke is seminal in its introduction of the concept of Grid computing. Published in 2001, it laid foundational principles for Grid computing, emphasizing scalable resource sharing across virtual organizations. The authors equate the Grid paradigm to an electrical gridâs shared access to resources, stressing the necessity for new protocols that support distributed computing by facilitating dynamic and secure collaboration.
This paper significantly influenced the development of distributed and cloud computing technologies. It has been extensively cited in literature related to Grid computing and was instrumental in shaping the discussion around virtual organizations and resource sharing. A Google Scholar search reveals numerous citations, underscoring its impact within academic and industry settings. One notable citation is the work on âCloud Computing and Emerging IT Platforms: Vision, Hype, and Reality for Delivering Computing as the 5th Utility,â which references this paperâs ideas on extending IT infrastructure [1].
Through its exploration of the complex coordination required in distributed systems, the paper highlights challenges and solutions inherent in creating scalable systems that are secure and collaborative, influencing subsequent protocol and middleware developments for distributed computing.
References 1. Buyya, R., Yeo, C. S., & Venugopal, S. (2009). Cloud Computing and Emerging IT Platforms: Vision, Hype, and Reality for Delivering Computing as the 5th Utility. Future Generation Computer Systems, 25(6), 599-616.