205, and access to the network by machines may be made via a common connection point or different connection points, e.g., a wireless connection point and a wired connection. Any combination of common or different connections points may be present, and any combination of wired and wireless connection points may be present as well. The network 205, end users 210, data centers 220, and public systems 230 may include network hardware such as routers, switches, load balancers and/or other network devices.

Other implementations of the system 200 are also possible. For example, devices other than the client devices 212 and servers 222 shown may be included in the system 200. In an implementation, one or more additional servers may operate as a cloud infrastructure control, from which servers and/or clients of the cloud infrastructure are monitored, controlled and/or configured. For example, some or all of the techniques described herein may operate on these cloud infrastructure control servers. Alternatively, or in addition, some or all of the techniques described herein may operate on the servers 222.

FIG. 3 shows an example machine learning module 300 according to some examples of the present disclosure. The machine learning module 300 may be implemented in whole or in part by one or more computing devices. In some examples, the training module 310 may be implemented by a different device than the prediction module 320. In these examples, the model 120 may be created on a first machine and then sent to a second machine. Architecture blueprints and patterns may be used as input to define a predictive model for the machine learning module 300, in various examples.

Machine learning module 300 utilizes a training module 310 and a prediction module 320. Training module 310 inputs training feature data 330 into feature determination module 350. The training feature data 330 may include data determined to be predictive of technology infrastructure capacity requirements. Categories of training feature data may include product roadmaps, product roadmap items, lists of existing technological system components, lists of new technological system components, other third-party data, or the like. Specific training feature data and prediction feature data 390 may include, for example one or more of: current hardware and software capacity, past hardware and software capacity, and the like.

Feature determination module 350 selects training vector 360 from the training feature data 330. The selected data may fill training vector 360 and comprises a set of the training feature data that is determined to be predictive of technology infrastructure capacity requirements. In some examples, the tasks performed by the feature determination module 350 may be performed by the machine learning algorithm 370 as part of the learning process. Feature determination module 350 may remove one or more features that are not predictive of technology infrastructure capacity requirements to train the model 120. This may produce a more accurate model that may converge faster. Information chosen for inclusion in the training vector 360 may be all the training feature data 330 or in some examples, may be a subset of all the training feature data 330.

In other examples, the feature determination module 350 may perform one or more data standardization, cleanup, or other tasks such as encoding non numerical features. For example, for categorical feature data, the feature determination module 350 may convert these features to numbers. In some examples, encodings such as “One Hot Encoding” may be used to convert the categorical feature data to numbers. This enables a representation of the categorical variables as binary vectors and provided a “probability-like” number for each label value to give the model more expressive power. One hot encoding represents a category as a vector whereby each possible category value is represented by one element in the vector. When the data is equal to that category value, the value of the vector is a ‘1’ and all other elements are zero (or vice versa).

The training vector 360 may be utilized (along with any applicable labels) by the machine learning algorithm 370 to produce a model 120. In some examples, other data structures other than vectors may be used. The machine learning algorithm 370 may learn one or more layers of a model. Example layers may include convolutional layers, dropout layers, pooling/up sampling layers, SoftMax layers, and the like. Example models may be a neural network, where each layer is comprised of a plurality of neurons that take a plurality of inputs, weight the inputs, input the weighted inputs into an activation function to produce an output which may then be sent to another layer. Example activation functions may include a Rectified Linear Unit (ReLu), and the like. Layers of the model may be fully or partially connected. In other examples, machine learning algorithm may be a gradient boosted tree and the model may be one or more data structures that describe the resultant nodes, leaves, edges, and the like of the tree.

In the prediction module 320, prediction feature data 390 may be input to the feature determination module 395. The prediction feature data 390 may include the data described above for the training feature data, but for a specific items such as software or hardware items for technological infrastructure. In some examples, the prediction module 320 may be run sequentially for one or more items. Feature determination module 395 may operate the same, or differently than feature determination module 350. In some examples, feature determination modules 350 and 395 are the same modules or different instances of the same module. Feature determination module 395 produces vector 397, which is input into the model 120 to produce predictions 399. For example, the weightings and/or network structure learned by the training module 310 may be executed on the vector 397 by applying vector 397 to a first layer of the model 120 to produce inputs to a second layer of the model 120, and so on until the prediction 399 is output. As previously noted, other data structures may be used other than a vector (e.g., a matrix).

The training module 310 may operate in an offline manner to train the model 120. The prediction module 320, however, may be designed to operate in an online manner. It should be noted that the model 120 may be periodically updated via additional training and/or user feedback. For example, additional training feature data 330 may be collected. The feedback, along with the prediction feature data 390 corresponding to that feedback, may be used to refine the model by the training module 310.

In some example embodiments, results obtained by the model 120 during operation (e.g., outputs produced by the model in response to inputs) are used to improve the training data, which is then used to generate a newer version of the model. Thus, a feedback loop is formed to use the results obtained by the model to improve the model.

The machine learning algorithm 370 may be selected from among many different potential supervised or unsupervised machine learning algorithms. Examples of learning algorithms include artificial neural networks, convolutional neural networks, Bayesian networks, instance-based learning, support vector machines, decision trees (e.g., Iterative Dichotomiser 3, C4.5, Classification and Regression Tree (CART), Chi-squared Automatic Interaction Detector (CHAID), and the like), random forests, gradient boosted tree, linear classifiers, quadratic classifiers, k-nearest neighbor, linear regression, logistic regression, a region based CNN, a full CNN (for semantic segmentation), a mask R-CNN algorithm for instance segmentation, and hidden Markov models. Examples of unsupervised learning algorithms include expectation-maximization algorithms, vector quantization, and information bottleneck method. In various embodiments, smart contracts or blockchain may be used to calculate and/or implement predictive analysis of technology infrastructure capacity requirements.

FIG. 4 illustrates a flowchart of a method 400 of training a model for predictive analysis of technology infrastructure capacity requirements, according to various embodiments. At operation 410 the training module (e.g., training module 310 as implemented by a model system) may request training feature data, from one or more systems. At operation 415 the training module may receive the training feature data. The training feature data may be processed using more data standardization, cleanup, or other tasks such as encoding non numerical features (e.g., one hot encoding). At operation 420, the training model may use the training feature data to train the model. For example, by creating a gradient boosted tree, neural network, or the like. At operation 425 the model may be stored in a storage device. In some examples in which the training operations and predictions are done on separate computing devices, the model may be transmitted to a computing device doing predictions.

FIG. 5 illustrates a block diagram of an example machine 500 upon which any one or more of the techniques (e.g., methodologies) discussed herein may perform. In alternative embodiments, the machine 500 may operate as a standalone device or may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networked deployment, the machine 500 may operate in the capacity of a server machine, a client machine, or both in server-client network environments. In an example, the machine 500 may act as a peer machine in peer-to-peer (P2P) (or other distributed) network environment. The machine 500 may implement one or more of the training and prediction modules 310, 320 (e.g., as software or dedicated hardware) and may be configured to perform the methods of FIGS. 1A, 1B and 4. The machine 500 may be in the form of a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a personal digital assistant (PDA), a mobile telephone, a smart phone, a web appliance, a network router, switch or bridge, or any machine capable of executing instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. Further, while only a single machine is illustrated, the term “machine” shall also be taken to include any collection of machines that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein, such as cloud computing, software as a service (SaaS), other computer cluster configurations.

Examples, as described herein, may include, or may operate on, logic or a number of components, modules, or mechanisms. Modules are tangible entities (e.g., hardware) capable of performing specified operations and may be configured or arranged in a certain manner. In an example, circuits may be arranged (e.g., internally or with respect to external entities such as other circuits) in a specified manner as a module. In an example, the whole or part of one or more computer systems (e.g., a standalone, client or server computer system) or one or more hardware processors may be configured by firmware or software (e.g., instructions, an application portion, or an application) as a module that operates to perform specified operations. In an example, the software may reside on a machine readable medium. In an example, the software, when executed by the underlying hardware of the module, causes the hardware to perform the specified operations.

Accordingly, the term “module” is understood to encompass a tangible entity, be that an entity that is physically constructed, specifically configured (e.g., hardwired), or temporarily (e.g., transitorily) configured (e.g., programmed) to operate in a specified manner or to perform part or all of any operation described herein. Considering examples in which modules are temporarily configured, each of the modules need not be instantiated at any one moment in time. For example, where the modules comprise a general-purpose hardware processor configured using software, the general-purpose hardware processor may be configured as respective different modules at different times. Software may accordingly configure a hardware processor, for example, to constitute a particular module at one instance of time and to constitute a different module at a different instance of time.

Machine (e.g., computer system) 500 may include a hardware processor 502 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), a hardware processor core, or any combination thereof), a main memory 504 and a static memory 506, some or all of which may communicate with each other via an interlink (e.g., bus) 508. The machine 500 may further include a display unit 510, an alphanumeric input device 512 (e.g., a keyboard), and a user interface (UI) navigation device 514 (e.g., a mouse). In an example, the display unit 510, input device 512 and UI navigation device 514 may be a touch screen display. The machine 500 may additionally include a storage device (e.g., drive unit) 516, a signal generation device 518 (e.g., a speaker), a network interface device 520, and one or more sensors 521, such as a global positioning system (GPS) sensor, compass, accelerometer, or other sensor. The machine 500 may include an output controller 528, such as a serial (e.g., universal serial bus (USB), parallel, or other wired or wireless (e.g., infrared (IR), near field communication (NFC), etc.) connection to communicate or control one or more peripheral devices (e.g., a printer, card reader, etc.).

The storage device 516 may include a machine readable medium 522 on which is stored one or more sets of data structures or instructions 524 (e.g., software) embodying or utilized by any one or more of the techniques or functions described herein. The instructions 524 may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the main memory 504, within static memory 506, or within the hardware processor 502 during execution thereof by the machine 500. In an example, one or any combination of the hardware processor 502, the main memory 504, the static memory 506, or the storage device 516 may constitute machine readable media.

While the machine readable medium 522 is illustrated as a single medium, the term “machine readable medium” may include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) configured to store the one or more instructions 524.

The term “machine readable medium” may include any medium that is capable of storing, encoding, or carrying instructions for execution by the machine 500 and that cause the machine 500 to perform any one or more of the techniques of the present disclosure, or that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying data structures used by or associated with such instructions. Non-limiting machine-readable medium examples may include solid-state memories, and optical and magnetic media. Specific examples of machine-readable media may include: non-volatile memory, such as semiconductor memory devices (e.g., Electrically Programmable Read-Only Memory (EPROM), Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM)) and flash memory devices; magnetic disks, such as internal hard disks and removable disks; magneto-optical disks; Random Access Memory (RAM); Solid State Drives (SSD); and CD-ROM and DVD-ROM disks. In some examples, machine readable media may include non-transitory machine-readable media. In some examples, machine readable media may include machine readable media that is not a transitory propagating signal.