inCoord: Intent-based Coordination in the Multi-domain Cloud-Edge Continuum

The computing continuum aims to break the isolation of edge and cloud computing, creating a smooth and heterogeneous infrastructure surface for deploying applications.However, the continuum is practically fragmented, with infrastructure managed in isolation by various parties in a vertical dimension, i.e., edge, fog, and cloud layers, and horizontally, i.e., computing, network, and storage domains. This scenario negatively impacts the fulfillment of the application objectives.We propose inCoord, an intent-aware solution that enables the creation of a unified computing continuum by coordinating its instances to fulfill application objectives. Each instance represents a cluster of (compute, storage, or network) nodes with their own manager component. Traditionally, systems take low-level actions on these instances. In contrast, inCoord learns their emerging behaviors and adapts their managers’ objectives to fulfill the application’s intents.Here, through a Reinforcement-Learning-based Proof of Concept, we show the potential of this system to understand emerging behavior and manage multi-domain, independently managed instances.