Apparatus and method for transparent selection of an internet server based on geographic location of a user

• US 20040083307A1
• Filed: 10/27/2002
• Published: 04/29/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bushnell Hawthorne, LLC
• Original Assignee: Sezen Uysal
• Inventors: Uysal, Sezen
• Granted Patent: US 7,310,686 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/246
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/45 Network directories; Name-to-address mapping
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching

Abstract

This invention is an apparatus and a method that selects the optimum location of a service on the Internet according to the user'"'"'s geo-location and the configuration of the invention by transparently altering the DNS messages. In the preferred embodiment, the invention operates at OSI model'"'"'s data link layer and it is located in front of the DNS server so that it does not require any modification in the existing DNS or IP network setup or on the application servers. It provides a fast and transparent method of locating an Internet service without the overhead of server scripts, HTTP redirects, or extra steps by the user to find the desired location or content.

Claims

1. An apparatus for selecting the optimum location of a network service based on a user'"'"'s geographical location and the configuration of the apparatus by transparently altering DNS messages, the apparatus comprising:

a network node with at least two network interfaces,

capturing data packets through the network interfaces,

analyzing captured packets,

determining the user'"'"'s geo-location,

modifying DNS packets according to the user'"'"'s geo-location to direct the user to the optimum server.

2. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the optimum location is the geographically the closest one.

3. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the optimum location is that of geographically the closest server which has been determined healthy and actively serving users requests.

4. The apparatus as described in claim 3, wherein the healthy server is the one generating timely and correct responses to user requests.

5. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the optimum location is the preferred location based on specific criteria chosen by the service administrator.

6. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the location of a network service is one of the locations of many mirrored servers that are connected via a network.

7. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein a network service is an Internet network service.

8. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein a network service is an enterprise network service.

9. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the configuration of the apparatus is a set of rules to control the optimum server selection process.

10. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein transparently altering DNS messages is to capture and to modify the content of the DNS messages by operating at OSI model'"'"'s second layer which is transparent to Internet Protocol (IP) users.

11. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the network node is a device attached to networks via at least two network interfaces.

12. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the network node captures every packet detected on any of it interfaces.

13. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the network node analyzes the captured packets to determine network addresses, protocol port numbers, protocol message types, and specific protocol fields.

14. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the network node determines the source IP address of the captured DNS message and consults its previously built database to determine the geographical location of the user that has sent the DNS message.

15. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the network node modifies the captured DNS messages according to the geo-location of the DNS user to inform the user with the IP address of the optimum server.

16. The apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the network node forwards every packet, which is not a DNS message, to the other interface.

17. A method for selecting the optimum location of a network service based on a user'"'"'s geographical location and the configuration of the method by transparently altering DNS messages, the method comprising:

capturing data packets, analyzing captured packets, determining the user'"'"'s geo-location, modifying DNS packets according to the user'"'"'s geo-location to direct the user to the optimum server.

18. The method as described in claim 17, wherein the optimum location is the geographically the closest one.

19. The method as described in claim 17, wherein the optimum location is that of geographically the closest server which has been determined healthy and actively serving users requests.

20. The method as described in claim 19, wherein the healthy server is the one generating timely and correct responses to user requests.

21. The method as described in claim 17, wherein the optimum location is the preferred location for some users based on some criteria chosen by the service administrator.

22. The method as described in claim 17, wherein the location of a network service is one of the locations of many mirrored servers that are connected via a network.

23. The method as described in claim 17, wherein a network service is an Internet network service.

24. The method as described in claim 17, wherein a network service is an enterprise network service.

25. The method as described in claim 17, wherein the configuration of the method is a set of rules to control the optimum server selection process.

26. The method as described in claim 17, wherein transparently altering DNS messages is to capture and to modify the content of the DNS messages by operating at OSI model'"'"'s second layer which is transparent to Internet Protocol (IP) users.

27. The method as described in claim 17, wherein the method analyzes the captured packets to determine network addresses, protocol port numbers, protocol message types, and specific protocol fields.

28. The method as described in claim 17, wherein the method determines the source IP address of the captured DNS message and consults its previously built database to determine the geographical location of the user that has sent the DNS message.

29. The method as described in claim 17, wherein the method modifies the captured DNS messages according to the geo-location of the DNS user to inform the user with the IP address of the optimum server.

30. The method as described in claim 17, wherein the method forwards every packet, which is not a DNS message.