Method and system for managing resource consumption by transport control protocol connections

• US 20080307093A1
• Filed: 06/07/2007
• Published: 12/11/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Messer, Alan, Cheng, Doreen, Song, Yu
• Application Number:
  US11/811,178
• Publication Number:
  US 20080307093A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/226
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/12 Arrangements for remote connection or disconnection of substations or of equipment thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/142 Managing session states for stateless protocols; Signalling session states; State transitions; Keeping-state mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/50 in wire-line communication networks, e.g. low power modes or reduced link rate

Abstract

A method and system for managing resource consumption by TCP connections. After establishing a TCP connection between two devices, such as a client and a server, the TCP connection is placed into a dormant mode when the server has no data to send to the client. Only when there is data to be sent, is the TCP connection awakened and the required resources for communication allocated for the TCP connection. This approach reduces resource usage for a TCP connection, and enables a TCP server to push information to a large number of clients.

Claims

1. A method of managing resource consumption by Transport Control Protocol (TCP) connections, comprising the steps of:

establishing a TCP connection between two peer devices over a communication link;

managing communication resources by;

placing the TCP connection into a dormant mode when a peer device has no data to send to the other peer device; and

placing the TCP connection into a normal mode and allocating resources for communication over the TCP connection when a peer device has data to send to the other peer device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein placing the TCP connection into a dormant mode includes deallocating resources for communication over the TCP connection.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein placing the TCP connection into a dormant mode further includes the step of placing the TCP connection into the dormant mode only when a first peer device is certain that the other peer device will not send any data over the TCP connection unless the first peer device sends data over the TCP connection first.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the first peer device comprises a server and the second peer device comprises a client.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein sending data from the server to the client follows a request-response paradigm wherein the client only responds to the server only when the server sends data to the client first, such that the step of placing the TCP connection into a dormant mode further includes the server placing the TCP connection into a dormant mode as the client sends data to the server over the TCP connection only when the server sends data to the client over the TCP connection first.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein the first peer device comprises a Web server and the second peer device comprises a Web client.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of:

a first peer device informing a second peer device to allocate resources for communication over the TCP connection only when the second peer device has data to send to the first peer device over the TCP connection.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of:

a first peer device informing a second peer device to deallocate communication resources for the TCP connection.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein allocating resources for communication over the TCP connection includes allocating a memory buffer for data.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the step of managing communication resources further includes allocating the buffer when there is data to send over the TCP connection, and deallocating the buffer when there is no data to send over the TCP connection.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

a first peer device informing a second peer device to allocate communication resources;

the first peer device receiving an acknowledgement from the second peer device; and

upon receiving an acknowledgement from the second peer device, the first peer device sending data to the second peer device over the TCP connection.

12. A method of managing resource consumption by Transport Control Protocol (TCP) connections, comprising the steps of:

establishing plural TCP connections between a first peer device and plural second peer devices over one or more communication links, wherein each TCP connection has the first peer device at one end and one of the second peer devices at the other end; and

managing communication resources for each TCP connection by;

placing the TCP connection into a dormant mode when a peer device of that TCP connection has no data to send to the other peer device of that TCP connection; and

placing the TCP connection into a normal mode and allocating resources for communication over the TCP connection, when a peer device of that TCP connection has data to send to the other peer device of that TCP connection.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the first peer device pushes data to the second peer devices over the TCP connections.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein placing a TCP connection into a dormant mode further includes deallocating resources for communication over the TCP connection.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein placing a TCP connection into a dormant mode further includes the step of the first peer device of the TCP connection placing the TCP connection into the dormant mode when that first peer device has no data to send to the second peer device of the TCP connection.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein the first peer device comprises a server and each second peer device comprises a client such that the server pushes data to each client over a corresponding TCP connection.

17. An apparatus for managing resource consumption by Transport Control Protocol (TCP) connections, comprising:

a TCP stack configured for establishing a TCP connection between two peer devices over a communication link;

an application module configured for instructing the TCP stack to place the TCP connection into a dormant mode when a peer device has no data to send to the other peer device, and to place the TCP connection into a normal mode and allocate resources for communication over the TCP connection when a peer device has data to send to the other peer device.

18. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the application module is configured for instructing the TCP stack to place the TCP connection into a dormant mode further by deallocating resources for communication over the TCP connection.

19. The apparatus of claim 18 wherein the application module is further configured for instructing the TCP stack to place the TCP connection into a dormant mode only when a first peer device is certain that the other peer device will not send any data over the TCP connection unless the first peer device sends data over the TCP connection first.

20. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the first peer device comprises a server and the second peer device comprises a client.

21. The apparatus of claim 20 wherein sending data from the server to a client follows a request-response paradigm wherein the client responds to the server only when the server sends data to the client first, such that placing the TCP connection into a dormant mode further includes the server placing the TCP connection into a dormant mode because the client sends data to the server over the TCP connection only when the server sends data to the client over the TCP connection first.

22. A system for managing resource consumption by Transport Control Protocol (TCP) connections between a pair of peer devices, comprising:

a first management module including a first TCP stack; and

a second management module including a second TCP stack;

wherein the TCP stacks are configured for establishing a TCP connection between two peer devices over a communication link; and

the first management module further including a first application module configured for instructing the first TCP stack to place the TCP connection into a dormant mode when a peer device has no data to send to the other peer device, and to place the TCP connection into a normal mode and allocate resources for communication over the TCP connection when a peer device has data to send to the other peer device.

23. The system of claim 22 wherein the second management module further including a second application module configured for instructing the second TCP stack to place the TCP connection into a dormant mode when a peer device has no data to send to the other peer device, and to place the TCP connection into a normal mode and allocate resources for communication over the TCP connection when a peer device has data to send to the other peer device.

24. The system of claim 23 wherein the first management module informs the second management module to allocate resources for communication over the TCP connection only when the second peer device has data to send to the first peer device over the TCP connection.

25. The system of claim 23 wherein the first management module informs the second management module to deallocate communication resources for the TCP connection.

26. The system of claim 23 wherein allocating resources for communication over the TCP connection includes allocating a memory buffer for data.

27. The system of claim 26 wherein the buffer is allocated when there is data to send over the TCP connection, and deallocated when there is no data to send over the TCP connection.

28. The system of claim 23 wherein:

the first management module informs the second management module to allocate TCP connection communication resources;

the first management module receives an acknowledgement from the second management module; and

upon receiving an acknowledgement from the second management module, the first peer device sends data to the second peer device over the TCP connection.