A Workflow Scheduling Method Based on the Combination of Tunicate Swarm Algorithm and Highest Response Ratio Next Scheduling

Workflow scheduling is critical for efficient cloud resource management. This paper proposes Tunicate Swarm-Highest Response Ratio Next, a novel scheduler that synergistically combines the Tunicate Swarm Algorithm with the Highest Response Ratio Next policy. The Tunicate Swarm Algorithm generates a cost-minimizing task-to-VM mapping scheme, while the Highest Response Ratio Next dynamically dispatches tasks in the ready queue with the highest-priority. Experimental results demonstrate that the Tunicate Swarm-Highest Response Ratio Next reduces costs by up to 94.8% compared to meta-heuristic baselines. It also achieves competitive cost efficiency vs. a learning-based method while offering superior operational simplicity and efficiency, establishing it as a highly practical solution for dynamic cloud environments.