Enabling Seamless Container Migration in Edge Platforms

Abstract

Fog and cloud computing are becoming increasingly popular as computational offloading platforms. However, many areas throughout the world either do not have a stable enough network connection to effectively use cloud computing, or do not have the required infrastructure or resources to set up fog nodes. Moreover, many application categories such as cognitive assistance and augmented reality applications require single digit latency, which both cloud and fog cannot provide. As such, these areas can benefit tremendously from edge computing. To ensure single digit latency, Edge nodes are typically other co-located devices within single-hop proximity. Having said that, due to user mobility, single edge devices set up at home will not provide the required latency if the user is on the move. Therefore, we introduce Teddybear, a Docker based system that seamlessly and efficiently migrates server containers between edge computing platforms by utilizing both the Internet and the user's mobile device as a carrier for the container. We show how Teddybear can continue to provide ultra-low latency services to users on the move, with minimal service downtime as they change locations.