[occi-wg] Nouns and Verbs (was: Syntax of OCCI API)

[Edmonds, AndrewX]

Have added a "Design Principles" section in the APIDesign wiki page and included contribs from Simon - we can look later to merging these with general requirements from other projects and use cases. Add more where appropriate...

Andy

-----Original Message-----
From: Alexis Richardson [mailto:alexis.richardson at gmail.com]
Sent: 17 April 2009 12:47
To: Edmonds, AndrewX
Cc: simon.wardley at canonical.com; Sam Johnston; occi-wg at ogf.org
Subject: Re: [occi-wg] Nouns and Verbs (was: Syntax of OCCI API)

If there is consensus on the language Andy just highlighted, please
get it on the wiki.


On Fri, Apr 17, 2009 at 12:34 PM, Edmonds, AndrewX
<andrewx.edmonds at intel.com> wrote:
> +1 +$0.00001 :-)
>
> Excellent principles;
> "simplify to actual actions on the server resource itself" - yes
>
> " define a range of nouns for common resources, a limited set of verbs for actions and a range of attributes to describe common characteristics." Yes, perfect.
>
> And a resounding yes to the aspect of "attribute changes that are transitory at this moment in time"
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: occi-wg-bounces at ogf.org [mailto:occi-wg-bounces at ogf.org] On Behalf Of Simon Wardley
> Sent: 17 April 2009 12:18
> To: Sam Johnston
> Cc: occi-wg at ogf.org
> Subject: Re: [occi-wg] Nouns and Verbs (was: Syntax of OCCI API)
>
> Hi Sam,
>
> My $0.00001 worth and sorry if these questions / observations are dumb.
>
>> {noun{verb{attribute}}} vector
>
> +1 for this.
>
>> I specifically don't like the idea of differentiating between physical
>> and virtual resources
>
> I couldn't agree more with this statement.
>
> The language used should be consistent regardless of the mechanism of
> implementation of a resource. If I'm using a remote infrastructure
> service, there should be no reason for me to care how that
> infrastructure is delivered other than that resource has certain
> attributes (e.g. persistence etc).
>
> In the format of {noun{verb{attribute}}}
>
> The approach of {resource_provider/my_id/servers {create{attributes}}
> should simply create a server with the attributes given.
>
>> Ok so nouns and verbs (ignoring CRUD which is common anyway):
>> storage:
>>  - snapshot?
>>  - backup?
>
> My really dumb questions are:-
>
> 1. In the format of {noun{verb{attribute}}}  shouldn't back-up and
> snapshot simply be:-
>
> {resource_provider/my_id/storage/my_backup_store {update
> {other_resource_provider/my_id/storage/my_store}}
>
> 2. When it comes to stopping and starting servers, aren't these simply
> attributes of the server. Whether its active state is on or off seems
> little different from other attributes of that specific resource.
>
> The only reason why we describe a process of stopping or starting a
> server at this moment in time is because of hardware constraints, but
> then I'm an old git and remember the 5 minutes or so that I use to have
> to wait to "park" my winchester drives before switching off the power.
>
> I fully expect future SSD to have near instantaneous changes in state.
>
> So my question is, are we describing verbs for attribute changes that
> are transitory at this moment in time?
>
> Should we not simplify to actual actions on the server resource itself,
> i.e. :-
>
> creating a server
> {resource_provider/my_id/servers {create{attributes}}
>
> deleting a server
> {resource_provider/my_id/servers/some_server {delete{...}}
>
> reading characteristics of a server
> {resource_provider/my_id/servers/some_server {read{some attribute}}
>
> cloning a server
> {resource_provider/my_id/servers/some_server
> {update{resource_provider/my_id/servers/some_other_server}}
>
> stopping / starting a server
> {resource_provider/my_id/servers/some_server {update{state attribute}}
>
> list all servers (or servers with a specific attribute such as running)
> {resource_provider/my_id/servers {read{{...}}
>
> The same seems to be generally true with other resources (i.e. storage,
> networks, servers etc).
>
> Just my thoughts, I'd define a range of nouns for common resources, a
> limited set of verbs for actions and a range of attributes to describe
> common characteristics.
>
> Feel free to ignore me if I've missed the point.
>
> --
> Simon Wardley
> Software Services Manager,
> Canonical Ltd.
> TEL: +44 (0)207 630 2451
> MOB : +44 (0)7972 911 449
> TWITTER: http://www.twitter.com/swardley/
>
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