Asymmetric Information Issues and Solutions for the Broker Executing SLA-based Workflows

Abstract

In the business Grid environment, the user should ask the broker to execute the workflow for him and then pays the broker for the workflow execution service. As the sub-jobs of the workflow must be distributed over many Grid resource providers to ensure the QoS, the broker knows about all aspects of all service providers while it is difficult for user to have this information. Thus, there is an asymmetric information situation. The asymmetric information may bring a negative effect to the broker. This paper will analyze the asymmetric information issues and propose possible solutions to solve the problem.