Reassigning source peers

• US 10,356,144 B1
• Filed: 06/23/2016
• Issued: 07/16/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Conviva Inc.
• Original Assignee: Conviva Inc.
• Inventors: Zhang, Hui, Stoica, Ion, Mccanne, Steven R., Zhan, Jibin, Ganjam, Aditya Ravikumar
• Primary Examiner(s): Christensen, Scott B
• Application Number:
  US15/191,383
• Time in Patent Office: 1,118 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/11 Identifying congestion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/101 based on network conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1042 using topology management mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1063 Discovery through centralising entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1085 involving dynamic management of active down- or uploading connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/632 using a connection between clients on a wide area network, e.g. setting up a peer-to-peer communication via Internet for retrieving video segments from the hard-disk of other client devices broadcast-related systems characterised by transmission among terminal devices H04H60/80; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104

Abstract

Delivering information over a distribution network is disclosed. A first assignment of one or more sources peers in the distribution network is sent to a source peer in the distribution network. At least one of a change in a network condition and a policy change is detected. It is determined that at least one modification should be made to the first assignment. A second assignment of one or more source peers in the distribution network is sent to the source peer.

Claims

1. A system, including:

one or more processors; and

a memory coupled to the one or more processors and configured to provide the one or more processors with instructions to;

send, over a network, a first assignment of a first set of destination peers in a distribution network to a source peer in the distribution network;

detect at least one of a change in a network condition and a policy change;

determine that at least one modification should be made to the first assignment; and

cause the source peer to cease providing content to at least one destination peer included in the first set of destination peers of the first assignment, wherein at the time the cessation is caused, the source peer is engaged in a data transmission session with the at least one destination peer;

wherein the causing comprises sending, over the network, a second assignment of a second set of destination peers in the distribution network to the source peer caused to cease providing content to the at least one destination peer in the first assignment, wherein the source peer caused to cease providing content to the at least one destination peer in the first assignment is designated to function as a content source for at least one destination peer included in the second assignment, and wherein the first set of destination peers of the first assignment is different from the second set of destination peers of the second assignment.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the determination is based at least in part on at least one new peer joining the distribution network.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the new peer has a higher priority than the destination peer.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein the higher priority of the new peer is based at least in part on a type of a user associated with the new peer.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein the user associated with the new peer comprises a premium user.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the determination is based at least in part on at least one existing peer leaving the distribution network.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the determination is based at least in part on a detected network failure.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the determination is based at least in part on a detection of network congestion.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the determination is based at least in part on the computation of an objective function.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein the determination is based at least in part on a detected violation of a content delivery policy.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein the content delivery policy is a network policy.

12. The system of claim 10 wherein the content delivery policy is a provider policy.

13. The system of claim 10 wherein the content delivery policy is a client policy.

14. A method, including:

sending, over a network, a first assignment of a first set of destination peers in a distribution network to a source peer in the distribution network;

detecting at least one of a change in a network condition and a policy change;

determining, using one or more processors, that at least one modification should be made to the first assignment; and

causing the source peer to cease providing content to at least one destination peer included in the first set of destination peers of the first assignment, wherein at the time the cessation is caused, the source peer is engaged in a data transmission session with the at least one destination peer;

wherein the causing comprises sending, over the network, a second assignment of a second set of destination peers in the distribution network to the source peer caused to cease providing content to the at least one destination peer in the first assignment, wherein the source peer caused to cease providing content to the at least one destination peer in the first assignment is designated to function as a content source for at least one destination peer included in the second assignment, and wherein the first set of destination peers of the first assignment is different from the second set of destination peers of the second assignment.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the determination is based at least in part on at least one new peer joining the distribution network.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the new peer has a higher priority than the destination peer.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the higher priority of the new peer is based at least in part on a type of a user associated with the new peer.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the user associated with the new peer comprises a premium user.

19. The method of claim 14 wherein the determination is based at least in part on at least one existing peer leaving the distribution network.

20. The method of claim 14 wherein the determination is based at least in part on a detected network failure.

21. The method of claim 14 wherein the determination is based at least in part on a detection of network congestion.

22. The method of claim 14 wherein the determination is based at least in part on the computation of an objective function.

23. The method of claim 14 wherein the determination is based at least in part on a detected violation of a content delivery policy.

24. The method of claim 23 wherein the content delivery policy is a network policy.

25. The method of claim 23 wherein the content delivery policy is a provider policy.

26. The method of claim 23 wherein the content delivery policy is a client policy.

27. A computer program product embodied in a non-transitory computer readable storage medium and comprising computer instructions for:

sending, over a network, a first assignment of a first set of destination peers in a distribution network to a source peer in the distribution network;

detecting at least one of a change in a network condition and a policy change;

determining, using one or more processors, that at least one modification should be made to the first assignment; and

causing the source peer to cease providing content to at least one destination peer included in the first set of destination peers of the first assignment, wherein at the time the cessation is caused, the source peer is engaged in a data transmission session with the at least one destination peer;

wherein the causing comprises sending, over the network, a second assignment of a second set of destination peers in the distribution network to the source peer caused to cease providing content to the at least one destination peer in the first assignment, wherein the source peer caused to cease providing content to the at least one destination peer in the first assignment is designated to function as a content source for at least one destination peer included in the second assignment, and wherein the first set of destination peers of the first assignment is different from the second set of destination peers of the second assignment.