Optimizing communication using scaleable peer groups

• US 20060117025A1
• Filed: 01/04/2006
• Published: 06/01/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Kaler, Christopher G., Hasha, Richard L., Kakivaya, Gopala Krishna R., Wilson, Hervey Oliver
• Granted Patent: US 7,640,299 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1046 Joining mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1059 Inter-group management mechanisms, e.g. splitting, merging or interconnection of groups
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1063 Discovery through centralising entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1065 Discovery involving distributed pre-established resource-based relationships among peers, e.g. based on distributed hash tables [DHT] pre-configuration of logical or physical connections H04L67/1053
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/54 Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/60 Scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests, e.g. requests for application data transmissions using the analysis and optimisation of the required network resources admission control or resource allocation H04L47/70

Abstract

Implementations of the present invention relate in part to optimizations to peer-to-peer communication systems. For example, one implementation relates to use of a smart transceiver that creates, caches, and manages communication channels dynamically between peers. Another implementation relates to use of a central tracking object that can be used to efficiently register and distribute peer messages among the various peers. In one implementation, the central tracking object is shared amongst peers in the group. Still another implementation relates to associating peer groups with namespaces, and for including peer groups of one namespace within still other peer groups of different namespaces. These and other aspects of the invention can also be used to ensure delivery intent of a given peer message is preserved, and to ensure that optimal numbers of messages are communicated to any given peer at any given time.

Claims

1. At a peer computer system in a peer-to-peer communication system in which the peer communicates messages with a peer group of one or more other peers, a method of optimizing communication of peer messages among the one or more peers in the peer group based on one or more delivery constraints, comprising the acts of:

receiving a peer message over a peer-to-peer communication network from an originating peer, the peer message indicating one or more delivery constraints;

referencing a central tracking object, the central tracking object indicating at least that one or more peers have received the peer message and that the originating peer sent the peer message;

evaluating the one or more delivery constraints for the peer message; and

sending a peer response message based on the indication referenced from the central tracking object, and based on the evaluation of the one or more delivery constraints, such that a delivery intent of the originating peer is preserved.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more delivery constraints comprise the delivery intent that the peer message is to be delivered to any one of the one or more peers in a peer group.

3. The method as recited in claim 2, further comprising the act of, upon identifying from the central tracking object that the peer message has been delivered to a different one of the one or more peers in the peer group, discarding the peer message, such that sending a peer response message comprises sending an indication that the peer message has been discarded.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more delivery constraints comprise the delivery intent that only one response to the peer message is to be sent.

5. The method as recited in claim 4, further comprising the acts of:

upon identifying from the central tracking object that no response has been sent from any of the one or more peers in the peer group, sending a peer response message; and

registering an entry in the central tracking object that the peer computer has sent a response to the peer message.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the central tracking object is shared among all of the one or more peers in the peer group.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising an act of registering an entry with a central tracking object that indicates that a new peer message is intended to be sent to any one of the one or more peers in the peer group.

8. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising an act of receiving a different peer message from one of the one or more peers in the peer group, the different peer message indicating that it is to be sent to any of the one or more peers.

9. The method as recited in claim 8, further comprising the acts of:

identifying from a central tracking object that there is no registration entry indicating that the different peer message has been received by any of the one or more peers; and

processing the different peer message.

10. The method as recited in claim 8, further comprising the acts of:

identifying a registration entry at a central tracking object, the registration entry indicating that the different peer message has been received by at least one of the one or more peers; and

discarding the different peer message.

11. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising an act of receiving a different peer message from one of the one or more peers in the peer group, the different peer message indicating that it requires only one response from the one or more peers in the peer group.

12. The method as recited in claim 11, further comprising the acts of:

identifying from the central tracking object that there is no registration entry indicating that an answer has been sent in response to the different peer message by any of the one or more peers;

sending a response for the different peer message; and

registering an entry in the central tracking object indicating that the response has been sent for the different peer message.

13. The method as recited in claim 11, further comprising the acts of:

identifying from any of the central tracking object or a different central tracking object owned by another of the one or more peers that there is a registration entry indicating that an answer has been sent in response to the different peer message by any of the one or more peers; and

discarding the different peer message.

14. In a peer-to-peer communication system in which a peer communicates messages with a peer group of one or more other peers, a computer program product having computer-executable instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause one or more processors at a computer system to perform a method comprising the following:

receiving a peer message over a peer-to-peer communication network from an originating peer, the peer message indicating one or more delivery constraints;

referencing a central tracking object, the central tracking object indicating at least that one or more peers have received the peer message and that the originating peer sent the peer message;

evaluating the one or more delivery constraints for the peer message; and

sending a peer response message based on the indication referenced from the central tracking object, and based on the evaluation of the one or more delivery constraints, such that a delivery intent of the originating peer is preserved.