Modeling price and demand in cloud computing systems

The purpose of this thesis is to explore the behavior of pricing and demand within cloud computing systems. As cloud computing has become increasingly popular, research has been focused on finding a mechanism to optimize social welfare. Current schemes typically charge users at a fixed price per time unit. Theoretical research alternatives to this include combinatorial auctions. Analyses of these systems often utilize a simplistic model of a user. This thesis aims to introduce a more realistic user model and analyze optimization from the user's perspective in an environment similar to that of the Amazon EC2 spot instance market. It is shown that the optimal strategy of a user with a deadline and sequential load can be derived from a set of dynamic programming equations, the results of which can be implemented without knowledge of the current price. Additionally, it is shown that this strategy is closely approximated by an expected rate user model. Finally, it is shown that these types of users are elastic and the load on the system can be controlled through the price mechanism.

Name thesis:degree_name

M.S.

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Electrical & Computer Engr

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2015

Author dc:creator

• Schmid, Kevin Doherty

• cloud computing
• demand
• model
• optimization
• sequential load
• auction

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2015 Kevin Doherty Schmid

Language dc:language

en

Handle dc:identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/78408

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/78408