A Proxyless Service Mesh Solution Based on Java Agent

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What is Sermant?

Sermant (also known as Java-mesh) is a proxyless service mesh technology based on Java Agent . It leverages the Java Agent to instrument the host application with enhanced service governance function, in order to solve the service governance problem, in the massive micro-service architecture.

Sermant's purpose also includes building a plugin-development ecosystem to help developers develop the service governance function more easily while not interfering the business code. The Sermant architecture is depicted as follows.

As described above, Sermant's Java Agent has two layers of functions.

• Framework core layer. The core layer provides Sermant's basic framework capability, in order to ease the plugin development. The function of this layer includes heart beat, data transmit, dynamic configuration, etc.
• Plugin service layer. The plugin provides actual governance service for the application. The developer can either develop simple plugin by directly leveraging framework core service, or can develop complex plugin by developing plugin's own complex service-governance function.

Sermant's Java Agent widely adopts class isolation technology in order to eliminate the class load conflicts between framework code, plugin code, and application code.

A microservice architecture using Sermant has the following three components, which is depicted in the following diagram.

• Sermant Java Agent: dynamically instrument the application for the service governance capability.
• Sermant Backend: provide the connection and the pre-processing service for the Java Agents' all uploaded-data.
• Dynamic configuration center: Providing the instructions by dynamically update the config to the listening Java Agent. Dynamic configuration center is not directly provided by Sermant project. The projects currently support servicecomb-kie, etc.

Quick Start

Below is a simple demo that guides new users to use Sermant in just 4 steps.

Preparation

• Download Sermant package
• Download demo application
• Download and start zookeeper

Compile demo application

Execute the following command in the ${path}/Sermant-examples/flowcontrol-demo/spring-cloud-demo/spring-provider/ directory:

# windows linux mac
mvn clean package

After successful packaging，GET spring-provider.jar in ${path}/Sermant-examples/flowcontrol-demo/spring-cloud-demo/spring-provider/target

Note: path is the path where the demo application is downloaded

Modify the Sermant configuration

Modify the agent.config.serviceBlackList configuration in the ${path}/sermant-agent-x.x.x/agent/config/config.properties file to be empty, as shown below:

agent.config.serviceBlackList=

Note: path is the path where the Sermant package is downloaded

Start Backend

Execute the following command in the ${path}/sermant-agent-x.x.x/server/sermant directory:

java -jar sermant-backend-lite.jar

Note: path is the path where the Sermant package is downloaded

Start demo application

Execute the following command in the ${path}/Sermant-examples/sermant-template/demo-application/targetdirectory：

# linux mac
java -javaagent:${path}/sermant-agent-x.x.x/agent/sermant-agent.jar -jar spring-provider.jar

# windows
java -javaagent:${path}\sermant-agent-x.x.x\agent\sermant-agent.jar -jar spring-provider.jar

Note: path is the path where the Sermant package is downloaded

Verification

Check running status of Sermant. In this example, open the browser and navigate to the URL http://localhost:8900.

More Documents to Follow

Please refer to the Sermant Document

License

Sermant adopts Apache 2.0 License.

How to Contribute

Please read Contribute Guide to refer how to join the contribution.

Declaration

• Apache/Servicecomb-java-chassis: Sermant refer the service governance algorithm from Apache Servicecomb project.
• Apache/Servicecomb-kie: Sermant uses servicecomb-kie as the default dynamic configuration center.
• Apache/SkyWalking: The plugin architecture in this project is refered to Apache Skywalking. Part of the framework code in Sermant is built based on Apache Skywalking project as well.
• Alibaba/Sentinel: Sermant's flow-control plugin is built based on Alibaba Sentinel project.

Contact Us

• Gitter: Sermant's chat room for community messaging, collaboration and discovery.
• WeChat Group: Please apply for Sermant Xiao Er as a friend first, and will pull you into the group after passing, please note the company + position when applying, thank you.