A SLA graph model for data services

Abstract

Cloud computing has given rise to on-demand service provisioning and massive outsourcing of IT infrastructures and applications to virtual, commoditized ones. Despite the broad Service Level Agreement (SLA) usage in scientific settings, their role in cloud markets is peripheral and misinterpreted. The paper introduces a SLA graph data model that supports automated SLA formalization and data management through a property digraph. The data model is described as a directed graph (digraph). We elaborate on node and edge properties that indicate dependencies in the SLA data management flow. We sketch a realistic scenario of cloud data service provisioning to extract attributes that characterize the data service. The SLA graph model and data service attributes are used to demonstrate the formalization of a SLA template that is managed as a property graph. The graph structure enables the manipulation of SLA information in a modular, extensible way that considers the data flow and all inclusive data dependencies.