Mechanisms for Executing a Process in a Cloud Computing Environment

A method for executing a process specified by a user and charging the user for the same by using a computer system, comprising:

• receiving an instruction to execute the specified process by a receiving part, and a service level request to be satisfied by a resource which executes the specified process;
• determining an external resource to provision from a first other computer system for a charge by using a determining part;
• securing the external resource on the first other computer system by using an external resource securing part;
• securing an internal resource of the computer system by using an internal resource security part;
• and
• causing the external resource to execute at least a part of the specified process and the internal resource to execute the other part of the specified process by using an executing part, wherein:
• the determining includes determining whether or not to execute provisioning to replace an operating system or an application program running on at least one of the resources of the computer system with another operating system or application program, and
• secures the resources which satisfy the service level request and also require the minimum cost of support including the cost required for provisioning among available resources of the computer system and the first other computer system, as the internal resource and the external resource.

A computer program product which, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to function as a computer system which executes a process specified by a user and charges the user for the same, wherein the program product causes the computer to function as the computer system by:

• receiving an instruction to execute the specified process by a receiving part, and a service level request to be satisfied by a resource which executes the specified process;
• determining an external resource to provision from a first other computer system for charge a determining part;
• securing the external resource on the first other computer system by using an external resource securing part;
• securing an internal resource of the computer system by using an internal resource security part;
• and
• causing the external resource to execute at least a part of the specified process and the internal resource to execute the other part of the specified process by using an executing part, wherein:
• the determining includes determining whether or not to execute provisioning to replace an operating system or an application program running on at least one of the resources of the computer system with another operating system or application program, and
• secures the resources which satisfy the service level request and also require the minimum cost of support including the cost required for provisioning among available resources of the computer system and the first other computer system, as the internal resource and the external resource.