Pre-fetch communication systems and methods

• US 20040258053A1
• Filed: 06/16/2004
• Published: 12/23/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CA, Inc. (d/b/a CA Technologies) (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Mentat Inc (Gen Digital Inc.)
• Inventors: Dye, Marc S., McCooey, Jeremy A., Toporek, Jerome D.
• Granted Patent: US 7,359,395 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/2126 using a reference station
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/563 Data redirection of data network streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5681 Pre-fetching or pre-delivering data based on network characteristics
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

The present invention relates to telecommunications devices, systems and methods for providing improved performance over long latency communications links. Some embodiments selectively pre-fetch and transmit information over the link using improved protocol and pre-fetch mechanisms. One system includes a first gateway (430) adapted to communicate with a client (410), the first gateway including a processor coupled to a storage medium. The storage medium includes code for receiving a request for retrieving a web object, code for forwarding the request to a second gateway (440) over the long latency link, and code for receiving a pre-fetch announcement and response data for the web object from the second gateway. The pre-fetch announcement is received prior to receiving the response data.

Claims

1. A method of communicating over a long latency communications link, the method comprising:

receiving at a first gateway a request for retrieving a web object;

forwarding the request to a second gateway over the long latency link; and

receiving a pre-fetch announcement and a response data from the second gateway, wherein the pre-fetch announcement is received prior to receiving the response data for the web object.

2. The method as in claim 1 wherein the pre-fetch announcement identifies at least one URI to be pre-fetched in anticipation of receiving a request for retrieving the at least one URI.

3. The method as in claim 2 wherein the pre-fetch announcement includes an address of the at least one URI.

4. The method as in claim 2 further comprising receiving the at least one pre-fetched URI at the first gateway from the second gateway over the long latency link.

5. The method as in claim 4 further comprising receiving the request for retrieving the at least one URI, and comparing the request to the pre-fetched URI.

6. The method as in claim 1 further comprising comparing the request to a pre-fetch match list to determine if the web object is being pre-fetched.

7. The method as in claim 6 wherein the pre-fetch match list is maintained on a memory coupled to the first gateway.

8. The method as in claim 1 wherein receiving the request occurs over a TCP connection, and forwarding the request occurs over an XTP connection.

9. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

forwarding the request from the second gateway to a target server of the request;

receiving at the second gateway the response data;

parsing the response data to identify at least one URIs to pre-fetch; and

forwarding a list of the at least one URIs to be pre-fetched to the first gateway in the pre-fetch announcement.

10. The method as in claim 9 further comprising forwarding at least two pre-fetched URIs to the first gateway from the second gateway over a same connection therebetween.

11. A method of communicating over a long latency communications link, the method comprising:

receiving over the long latency link a request for retrieving a web object and a pre-fetch limit indicator;

retrieving the web object;

parsing the web object to identify a plurality of resources to be pre-fetched;

sending a pre-fetch announcement and the web object over the long latency link, the pre-fetch announcement identifying at least some of the plurality of resources to be pre-fetched; and

sending the at least some plurality of pre-fetched resources over the long latency link, the sending of the pre-fetched resources being within the pre-fetch limit.

12. The method as in claim 11 wherein the pre-fetch limit indicator comprises a limit on a pre-fetch connection rate between a client and a server.

13. The method as in claim 11 wherein the pre-fetch limit indicator comprises a limit on a pre-fetch connection data amount.

14. The method as in claim 11 further comprising receiving an updated pre-fetch limit indicator.

15. A system for communicating over a long latency communications link, the system comprising:

a first gateway adapted to communicate with a client, the first gateway comprising a processor coupled to a storage medium, the storage medium comprising;

code for receiving a request for retrieving a web object;

code for forwarding the request to a second gateway over the long latency link; and

code for receiving a pre-fetch announcement and a response data from the second gateway, wherein the pre-fetch announcement is received prior to receiving the response data.

16. The system as in claim 15 wherein the storage medium comprises a resolver cache.

17. The system as in claim 15 further comprising a second gateway adapted to communicate with a server, the second gateway comprising a processor coupled to a storage medium, the storage medium comprising:

code for receiving the request for retrieving the web object;

code for retrieving the web object and parsing the web object for a URI to pre-fetch;

code for creating and forwarding the pre-fetch announcement to the first gateway; and

code for sending a request for retrieving the URI to a target server.

18. The system as in claim 17 wherein the pre-fetch announcement comprises an address for the URI.

19. The system as in claim 17 wherein the pre-fetch announcement comprises a matching program which represents the request for retrieving the URI.

20. The system as in claim 17 wherein the second gateway storage medium further comprises code for sending the URI to the first gateway over the long latency link.

21. The system as in claim 20 wherein the first gateway storage medium further comprises code for receiving a request for the URI from the client and comparing the request to the URI.

22. The system as in claim 21 wherein the comparing interprets a match program against the request for the URI.

23. A method of communicating over a long latency communications link, the method comprising:

receiving at a first gateway a client request for retrieving a web object;

forwarding the request to a second gateway over the long latency link;

receiving a match program and a response data for the web object from the second gateway, the match program representing a request for pre-fetching a URI;

receiving a request for the URI from a client; and

interpreting the match program against the request for the URI.