Logic-based decision support for computer capacity planning

✍ Scribed by Stephen D. Burd; Suleiman K. Kassicieh

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1987
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 967 KB
• Volume: 13
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0378-7206
• DOI: 10.1016/0378-7206(87)90020-6

✦ Synopsis

This paper reports on a decision support system for computer capacity planning. The system is currently under development for Sandia National Laboratories to support planning in an environment characterized by large scale scientific as well as more traditional administrative computing needs, governmental budgetary limitations, and specific planning documentation required by the funding source. The implementation vehicle for this system is an extended version of Prolog which allows interactions with externally defined computational routines and sources of data. This provides for the integration of various data sources with a set of models for estimating capacity requirements and optimizing different objective functions subject to budgetary constraints.

This paper outlines the decision environment, pointing out the benefits of using a DSS to support management in forecasting user requirements and optimizing their supercomputer acquisitions, subject to cost, time, financial options and user needs.