Replicating message queues between clustered email gateway systems
First Claim
1. A method for processing an email by a plurality of email gateway servers coupled in a cluster, the method comprising:
- receiving the email by a first email gateway server, the first email gateway server being configured to relay the email toward a destination;
copying the email to a second email gateway server, the second email gateway server being configured to relay the email toward the destination should the first email gateway server fail; and
relaying the email toward the destination by the first email gateway server or the second email gateway server.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method of “stateful failover” is provided that allows email gateway systems in a cluster to deliver email messages that have been accepted for delivery by a member of the cluster, but has failed with out delivering the messages. The method involves creating a backup copy of the messages that have been accepted for delivery by one email gateway system in the stateful failover cluster on one or more other email gateway systems in the stateful failover cluster. Upon detecting the failure of the email gateway system that accepted the message, another member of the stateful failover cluster that has access to the backup copy of the message queue takes responsibility for the delivery of the messages on the mirrored queue.
58 Citations
27 Claims
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1. A method for processing an email by a plurality of email gateway servers coupled in a cluster, the method comprising:
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receiving the email by a first email gateway server, the first email gateway server being configured to relay the email toward a destination;
copying the email to a second email gateway server, the second email gateway server being configured to relay the email toward the destination should the first email gateway server fail; and
relaying the email toward the destination by the first email gateway server or the second email gateway server. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A method for replicating email messages in a stateful failover cluster, the method comprising:
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receiving by a source email gateway system an email message to be transmitted to a destination;
transmitting the email message from the source email gateway system to one or more sink email gateway systems in the stateful failover cluster;
acknowledging receipt of the email message by the source email gateway system;
forwarding the email message by the source email gateway system toward the destination;
if the source email gateway system successfully forwards the email message, notifying the one or more sink email gateway systems to recover storage resources associated with the email message; and
if the source server fails to successfully forward the email message, forwarding the message by the one or more sink email gateway systems. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. An email gateway cluster comprising:
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a plurality of source email gateway servers, each of the source email gateway servers configured for receiving email messages and relaying the email messages toward a destination, each source email gateway server comprising a source message queue for storing the email messages from outside an email gateway cluster; and
one or more sink email gateway servers communicatively coupled to each of the source email gateway servers, each sink email gateway server comprising a backup message queue for storing email messages from at least one source email gateway server, the sink email gateway servers being configured for relaying email messages to the destination should the respective source email gateway server fail.
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24. A source email gateway server comprising:
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a first logical communications interface for receiving messages from a message source;
a source queue for storing email messages received via the first logical communications interface;
a second logical communications interface for transmitting messages to one or more destinations; and
a third logical communications interface for transmitting messages to at least one sink email gateway server, wherein the source email gateway server is configured to transmit via the third logical communications interface messages received via the first logical communications interface for backup. - View Dependent Claims (25)
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26. A sink email gateway server comprising:
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a first logical communications interface for receiving messages from a source email gateway server;
a backup queue for storing email messages received via the first logical communications interface from the source email gateway server; and
a second logical communications interface for transmitting messages to one or more destinations, wherein the sink email gateway server is configured to transmit messages stored in the backup queue via the second communications interface messages if the source email gateway server fails. - View Dependent Claims (27)
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Specification