Abstract:
We present methods for optimally adapting Web
processes to exogenous events while preserving inter-service
constraints that necessitate coordination. For example, in a
supply chain process, orders placed by a manufacturer may get
delayed in arriving. In response to this event, the manufacturer
has the choice of either waiting out the delay or changing the
supplier. Additionally, there may be compatibility constraints
between the different orders, thereby introducing the problem of
coordination between them if the manufacturer chooses to change
the suppliers. We adopt the paradigm that an abstract Web
process flow is pre-specified, and service managers are tasked
with interacting with the actual Web services. We focus on the
decision making models of the managers who must adapt to
external events while satisfying the coordination constraints. We
use Markov decision processes as the underlying models for the
managers, and show how they can be formulated offline resulting
in policies that guide the managers’ actions. Our methods range
from being centralized and globally optimal in their adaptation
but not scalable, to decentralized that is suboptimal but scalable
to multiple managers. We also develop a hybrid approach that
improves on the performance of the decentralized approach with
a minimal loss of scalability.