A Truthful and Fair Multi-Attribute Combinatorial Reverse Auction for Resource Procurement in Cloud Computing

Abstract

Resource procurement using reverse auction in Cloud computing is an interesting but a complex problem as it involves many attributes and constraints. Reverse auction is a mechanism in which a customer prepares call for proposal of resource requirement and publicizes it in order to get the attention of eligible service providers. This work proposes a multi-attribute combinatorial reverse auction for Cloud resource procurement which considers price as well as non-price attributes such as quality of service parameters, reputation etc. in the determination of winning service providers. For this, the problem is formulated using approximation algorithm and near optimal solution is obtained in polynomial time. Auction mechanism allows providers to reveal true information in order to maximize their profit. It also imposes a penalty on the providers who cheat i.e., do not offer the agreed upon services. This makes the system robust as it maintains the utility of the customer. It also maintains a healthy competition among the providers. Performance evaluation and a comparative study with some base line models exhibit that the proposed method performs better.