The Xen API Project
A project to define an XML-RPC protocol for remote and local management of Xen-based systems
This project is collaborating around a central document, titled "Xen Management API", presenting our ideas in terms of a data model, with an implied binding to XML-RPC calls. These XML-RPC calls can then be used (over one of a number of transports) to manage a Xen-based system.
The intention is to standardise both the data model and XML-RPC calls (one implying the other) and then the Xen project will guarantee that that wire protocol would be supported for the long term.
Behind that interface, we would then be free to improve Xend, and at the same time we give a solid foundation for third-party tools (in particular libvirt-based applications), GUIs, and so on. The API becomes effectively part of the "guarantees" of the Xen project.
The XML-RPC calls are the fixed standard, but we also have bindings to that XML-RPC for Python, C and Java. These are a thin translation from the host language's values and types onto the XML-RPC, so that they can be kept stable so that third-party applications can rely upon them in the long term. Cleverer facilities (such as Xen-CIM and libvirt) can then be built on top. These bindings are open-source, and included in the Xen distribution for all to use.
The API document and the language bindings were released into the xen-unstable tree immediately after the Xen 3.0.3 release, are being stabilised there for release as a preview with Xen 3.0.4, and then will be released officially with Xen 3.0.5.
The latest version of the API definition, version 0.9.0, is linked below. This is an Candidate Release, proposed for release with Xen 3.0.5, and we welcome any discussion about it and the issues surrounding it.
Please join the xen-api mailing list if you are interested in this project.
This API is not yet fixed! The definition is still in flux, so please do not expect it to be stable.
Xen Management API, version 1.0.0, Release Candidate, PostScript
- For the document source, please look in xen-3.1/docs/xen-api/
xen.org,
