The Case for VM-Based Cloudlets in Mobile Computing

Resource poverty is a fundamental constraint that severely limits the class of applications that can be run on mobile devices. The authors present a vision of mobile computing that breaks free of this fundamental constraint. In this vision, mobile users seamlessly utilize nearby computers to obtain the resource benefits of cloud computing without incurring WAN delays, jitter, congestion, and failures. Rather than relying on a distant "cloud," a mobile user instantiates a "cloudlet" on nearby infrastructure and uses it via a wireless LAN. Crisp interactive response for immersive applications that augment human cognition is then much easier to achieve because of the cloudlet's proximity. The authors also confirm that a critical aspect of this visionnamely, rapid customization of cloudlet infrastructureis achievable through dynamic VM synthesis. © 2006 IEEE.