Establishment of network connections

• US 20040122916A1
• Filed: 07/30/2003
• Published: 06/24/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Taylor, Richard, Christodoulou, Athena, Tofts, Christopher
• Application Number:
  US10/629,598
• Publication Number:
  US 20040122916A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/218
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9566 URL specific, e.g. using aliases, detecting broken or misspelled links
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/00 Network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/30 Managing network names, e.g. use of aliases or nicknames name-to-address mapping H04L61/45
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/301 Name conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1023 based on a hash applied to IP addresses or costs

Abstract

Connection of a client browser to a server hosting a sub-page in a website via a link from a principal page at a higher level in the hierarchy of pages is established by actuation of a link sent to the client with the principal page. The link includes a signifier unique to a given server on which the sub-page is hosted, so that resolution of the URL in the link need not be performed dynamically at the server side.

Claims

1. A method of providing a sub-page of a website to a requesting client comprising the steps of:

(a) sending to the client, with a copy of a first web page, a plurality of links each of which points to an address within the Internet of a server on which a copy of the sub-page is hosted;

(b) actuating one of the links;

(c) determining, on the basis of a predetermined criterion, whether actuation of said one of the links has been successful in obtaining the sub-page;

(d) if not, actuating another of the links; and

repeating steps (c) and (d) until the first to occur of;

all of the links have been actuated; and

actuation of a link has been successful in accordance with the predetermined criterion.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the links are actuated in a predetermined order established prior to dispatch to the client.

3. A method according to claim 1 further comprising the step of displaying an alias for each actuated link at the client.

4. A method according to claim 3, wherein the alias is an address of a server adapted to translate the alias to an address of a server hosting a copy of the sub-page.

5. A method according to claim 3 wherein the alias is displayed on a graphical user interface of a program running on the client which is adapted to enable user navigation of the internet.

6. A method according to claim 3 wherein the alias displayed is the same for each of the links actuated.

8. A method according to claim 1 wherein the predetermined criterion is whether, within a predetermined period of time, a predetermined step in a process of establishing connection with a secondary server has been reached.

9. A method according to claim 8 wherein the predetermined step is completion of a connection with a secondary server.

10. A method of operating a web server to provide a sub-page of a website to a requesting client, comprising the steps of:

receiving from a client a request for a first web page;

sending to the client, with the first page, a plurality of links each of which points to an address within the Internet of a server hosting a copy of the sub-page, and code which is executable to;

(a) actuate one of the links;

(b) determine, on the basis of a predetermined criterion, whether actuation of said one of the links has been successful in obtaining the sub-page;

(c) if not, actuating another of the links; and

repeating steps (b) and (c) until the first to occur of;

all of the links have been actuated; and

actuation of a link has been successful in accordance with the predetermined criterion.

11. A method according to claim 10 wherein the links are actuated in a predetermined order determined established prior to dispatch from the web server.

12. A method according to claim 11 wherein code is additionally sent to the client with the first web page which is operable upon actuation of a link, to cause a browser programme to display an alias of the address of a secondary server to which an actuated link points.

13. A method according to claim 11, wherein the alias is an address of a server adapted to translate the alias to an address of one of the secondary servers.

15. A method according to claim 11 wherein the predetermined criterion is whether, within a predetermined period of time, a predetermined step in a process of establishing connection with a secondary server has been reached.

16. A method according to claim 15 wherein the predetermined step is completion of a connection with a secondary server.

17. A method according to claim 11 wherein where the same links are sent to different clients, the predetermined order in which the links are actuated is varied.

18. A method according to claim 11 wherein the plurality of links sent to a first client machine and the plurality of links sent to a second client machine a different at least in respect of one address of a server hosting the sub-page.

19. A method according to claim 18 wherein each link in the plurality of links sent to a first client points to an address of a server which is not replicated in any of the plurality of links sent to a second client.

14. A method according to claim 14 wherein the alias displayed is the same for each of the links actuated.

20. A web server adapted to respond to a request from a client by sending to the client a copy of a first web page and to include with the first web page a plurality of links each of which points to an address within the Internet, each predetermined address being an address of a secondary server, the web server being adapted to send with the first web page, in response to said request code executable to:

(a) actuate one of the links;

(b) determine, on the basis of a predetermined criterion, whether actuation of said one of the links has been successful in obtaining the sub-page;

(c) if not, actuating another of the links; and

repeating steps (b) and (c) until the first to occur of;

all of the links have been actuated; and

actuation of a link has been successful in accordance with the predetermined criterion.

21. A method according to claim 20 wherein the links are actuated in a predetermined order established prior to dispatch from the client.

22. A web page including a plurailty of links each of which points to an address within the Internet of a server on which a copy of a sub-page is hosted, the page including code associated therewith which is actuable to:

(a) actuate one of the links;

(b) determine, on the basis of a predetermined criterion, whether actuation of said one of the links has been successful in obtaining the sub-page;

(c) if not, actuating another of the links; and

repeating steps (b) and (c) until the first to occur of;

all of the links have been actuated; and

actuation of a link has been successful in accordance with the predetermined criterion.