Agent-based approaches to managing fault-tolerant networks of distributed multi-agent systems 1

Abstract

Large-scale agent-based software solutions need to be able to assure constant delivery of services to end-users, regardless of the underlying software or hardware failures. Fault-tolerance of multi-agent systems is, therefore, an important issue. We present two algorithms for an easy and flexible introduction of fault-tolerance to existing agent frameworks. The first algorithm is based on a new type of mobile agent, named Connection Agent, for efficient construction and maintenance of fault-tolerant multi-agent system networks. The algorithm has been experimentally verified, and then significantly optimized by relying on the mobility feature of Connection Agents. Secondly, a robust agent tracking technique based on a special type of agent, named RemnantAgent, is proposed.