International Business Machines Corporation

Luisa Attanasio

Francesco Lecciso

Luigi Pichetti

Stefano Sidoti

Giuseppe Ciano

Giancarlo Carbone

Gianluca Mariani

Gianluca Gigliarelli

Antonio Secomandi

Domenico D'Alterio

Bruno Portaluri

Predetermined multimedia services are provided to a plurality of users through a IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS). A request is received at a placement server of a multimedia service by at least one user, and the placement server retrieves on a presence server information about the at least one user. The placement server identifies application servers including a multimedia application capable of providing the requested multimedia service, and the placement server selects an application server that is located a minimum average distance from at least one user. In response to the minimum average distance being greater than a predetermined threshold, a local application server is selected with an average distance from the user that is less than the predetermined threshold. A virtual image of the multimedia application is created on the selected local application server, and a connection is established between the user and the selected local application server.

Optimization of multimedia service over an IMS network

A method, system and computer program product for managing system management agent configurations which include agent system management programs and program parameters in a distributed environment. A configuration management server sends upon request from the agents installed on the distributed system a description of their configuration. To this effect, the configuration management server maintains a database storing the agent configuration information, this database being usually updated by a system management administrator. The agents get from the server the list of peer distributed systems having the same agent configuration and their configuration from one distributed system of the list or obtain an agent configuration directly from the configuration management server if the peer distributed systems have modified their configuration. The agents advise the system management server when a new configuration has been installed.

Managing configurations of system management agents in a distributed environment

A method includes connecting a communications device to an Internet Multimedia Subsystem network. The method includes transmitting presence information indicating multimedia capabilities of the communications device and requesting multimedia content from a multimedia server to cause the multimedia server to transmit multimedia content. The method includes detecting connection of a peripheral device to the communications device and determining that the multimedia capabilities have increased due to the connection of the peripheral device. The method includes updating the presence information to indicate the increased multimedia capabilities and transmitting the updated presence information to cause the multimedia server to transmit the multimedia content adjusted for the increased multimedia capabilities indicated in the updated presence information. The method includes receiving the multimedia content adjusted for the increased multimedia capabilities and presenting at least some of the adjusted multimedia content on the peripheral device.

Dynamically optimizing delivery of multimedia content over a network

A request from an installer of a software application to configure the computer system for installation of the software application is received at a configuration client. Upon receiving the request, a message is sent to a local agent of the computer system to request a configuration for the installation of the software application. The message includes an identifier of the software application used by a configuration management server to identify the configuration corresponding to the software application. A configuration element is received from the local agent in response to the message. The configuration element includes a variable for holding a value that represents a characteristic of the computer system. The value of the variable is configured as a function of the computer system. The configuration element, including the configured variable value, is provided to the installer of the software application and is used for the installation of the software application.

Configuring a computer system for a software package installation

A provisioning method and a corresponding apparatus for managing a data processing system including a plurality of exploiter entities and a plurality of resources, the system maintaining a repository with system requirements of the plurality of exploiter entities. The provisioner monitors any possible needs for further resources of the exploiters. When such needs arise, the provisioner select an available resource within a pool of possible available resources. Such selection is done so that the effort for configuring the resource according to exploiter requirements is reduced. One feature of the method of the present invention is that two levels of requirements are defined: the 'Hard Properties', i.e. those system features which cannot be easily configured; and the 'Soft Properties', i.e. those features which can be easily configured. Of course the definition of Hard and Soft can be customized according to predetermined conditions. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, Hard Properties are those features which cannot be automatically configured and which may require an operator intervention or long awaiting times, while Soft Properties are those which can be automatically modified.

Dynamic resource allocation using a resource configuration effort score

Communication device capabilities may change during an established multimedia session due to connection of a peripheral device. For example, a user listens to an Internet radio service on a mobile phone through a set of headphones. Later, the user connects the mobile phone to stereo system in a car. The mobile phone can leverage the car's stereo system to present higher quality audio than it could present with the headphones. Functionality can be implemented in a communication device to detect connection of a peripheral device and determine multimedia capabilities of the peripheral device. The communication device updates its presence information to indicate the multimedia capabilities of the peripheral device. In response, a multimedia server determines multimedia capabilities indicated in the presence information have changed and optimizes delivery of multimedia content based on the updated multimedia capabilities.

A heterogeneous environment having applications and application enablers operating on application servers organized as a cluster is managed. The application servers are managed by a cluster management application. A system management application permits access to computing performance data provided by an operating system and reported to the system management application. Performance data of the applications and application enablers is collected from an application agent through the application servers. Topology information regarding the application servers is collected via the cluster management application. The performance data and the topology information are retrieved and sent to the system management application. Access to the performance data via the system management application is permitted. The system management application links to the computing performance data using the topology information.

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Moliterno, Italy

Luisa Attanasio