Fault handling in a distributed IT environment

A system for fault handling in an IT environment comprising:

• an externalized storage repository having a fault handling descriptions catalogue comprising a plurality of fault handling descriptions;
• and
• a processor executing a workflow runtime environment for developing and executing at least one workflow application and interacting with at least one application using interface information about the at least one application, wherein the workflow runtime environment:
• stores, within an enterprise systems registry of the externalized storage repository, the plurality of fault handling descriptions in an implementation-independent meta language, wherein the implementation-independent meta language describes the externalized storage repository, wherein the implementation-independent meta language is associated with the at least one application, and wherein the externalized storage repository is located external to the at least one workflow application;
• associates the interface information about the at least one application with one or more fault handling descriptions of the plurality of fault handling descriptions based on a fault handling policy which is created based on at least one service definition, wherein the fault handling policy corresponds to a fault response;
• adapts meta information of one or more fault handling descriptions that are pointed to by the fault handling policy to the workflow runtime environment in order to generate a fault handler, wherein the fault handler may be changed at any time during a lifetime of the at least one workflow application and the at least one application without interrupting, modifying, redeploying, and restarting the at least one application and at least one workflow application, wherein the fault handler is executable and interpretable in a specific target platform language associated with the workflow runtime environment, and wherein the implementation-independent meta language is different from the specific target platform language;
• in response to receiving a first instance of the fault response from the at least one application, performs, using the fault handler, a first lookup within the externalized storage repository of the fault handling policy corresponding to the fault response, wherein the corresponding fault handling policy points to a first one or more fault handling descriptions within the fault handling descriptions catalogue of the externalized storage repository;
• loads the first one or more fault handling descriptions and using the first one or more fault handling descriptions to continue execution of the at least one workflow application;
• in response to receiving a second instance of the fault response from the at least one application, performs, using the fault handler, a second lookup of the fault handling policy within the externalized storage repository, wherein the fault handling policy has been updated within the externalized storage repository, after the first lookup, to point to a second one or more fault handling descriptions;
• loads the second one or more fault handling descriptions;
• and
• apply the second one or more fault handling descriptions to continue execution of the at least one workflow application.

A computer program product stored on a non-transitory computer readable storage device and comprising computer-readable program code that when run on a computer causes the computer to perform a method for fault handling in an IT environment, the IT environment having a workflow runtime environment that executes at least one workflow application that is interacting with at least one application by using interface information about the at least one application, the method comprising:

• storing, within an enterprise systems registry of an externalized storage repository, a plurality of handling descriptions in an implementation-independent meta language, wherein the implementation-independent meta language describes the externalized storage repository, wherein the implementation-independent meta language is associated with the at least one application, and wherein the externalized storage repository is located external to the at least one workflow application;
• associating the interface information about the at least one application with one or more fault handling descriptions of the plurality of fault handling descriptions based on a fault handling policy which is created based on at least one service definition, wherein the fault handling policy corresponds to a fault response;
• adapting meta information of the one or more fault handling descriptions that are pointed to by the fault handling policy to the workflow runtime environment in order to generate a fault handler, wherein the fault handler may be changed at any time during a lifetime of the at least one workflow application and the at least one application without interrupting, modifying, redeploying, and restarting the at least one application and at least one workflow application, wherein the fault handler is executable and interpretable in a specific target platform language associated with the workflow runtime environment, and wherein the implementation-independent meta language is different from the specific target platform language;
• in response to receiving a first instance of the fault response from the at least one application, performing, via the fault handler of the workflow runtime environment, a first lookup, within the externalized storage repository, of the fault handling policy corresponding to the fault response, wherein the corresponding fault handling policy points to a first one or more fault handling descriptions within a fault handling descriptions catalogue of the externalized storage repository;
• loading, via the fault handler, the first one or more fault handling descriptions and using the first one or more fault handling descriptions to continue execution of the at least one workflow application;
• in response to receiving a second instance of the fault response from the at least one application, performing, via the fault handler, a second lookup of the fault handling policy within externalized storage repository, wherein the fault handling policy has been updated within the externalized storage repository after the first lookup to point to a second one or more fault handling descriptions;
• and
• loading, via the fault handler, the second one or more fault handling descriptions and applying the second one or more fault handling descriptions to continue execution of the at least one workflow application.