REGISTER CLUSTERING IN A SIP-BASED NETWORK

• US 20090031032A1
• Filed: 07/25/2007
• Published: 01/29/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/25/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Shanmugham, Saravanan
• Granted Patent: US 7,970,916 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/229
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4511 using domain name system [DNS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1073 Registration or de-registration
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1104 Session initiation protocol [SIP]
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/288 Distributed intermediate devices, i.e. intermediate devices for interaction with other intermediate devices on the same level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/563 Data redirection of data network streams

Abstract

In one embodiment, a method can include: receiving a request for service in a first edge proxy; applying a hash function to a source address of an endpoint; and forwarding the request to a second edge proxy in response to a first result of the hash function, or servicing the request in the first edge proxy in response to a second result of the hash function.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving a request for service in a first edge proxy;

applying a hash function to a source address of an endpoint; and

forwarding the request to a second edge proxy in response to a first result of the hash function, or servicing the request in the first edge proxy in response to a second result of the hash function.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises a session initiation protocol (SIP) REGISTER message.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises a SIP INVITE message.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the hash function comprises a consistent hash function.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising updating a hash table in each of the first and second edge proxies in response to a failure of a third edge proxy.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises a message from a service controller.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the forwarding the request comprises determining that an endpoint sending the request is provisioned for the second edge proxy.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the servicing the request in the first edge proxy comprises determining that an endpoint sending the request is provisioned for the first edge proxy.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second edge proxies comprise SIP edge proxies.

10. A method, comprising:

sending a lookup request to a domain name system (DNS) server;

receiving a response from the DNS server, the response including a prioritized list of edge proxies for servicing a registration request;

sending the registration request to a first edge proxy in the prioritized list; and

receiving an acknowledgment from the first edge proxy or a second edge proxy in response to a hash function result in the first edge proxy, the hash function result being determined by hashing a source address of an endpoint sending the registration request.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the registration request comprises a session initiation protocol (SIP) REGISTER message.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the hash function result comprises a consistent hash function, the consistent hash function being configured to map buckets to nodes.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the receiving the acknowledgment from the second edge proxy comprises determining that an endpoint sending the registration request is provisioned for the second edge proxy.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the receiving the acknowledgment from the first edge proxy comprises determining that an endpoint sending the registration request is provisioned for the first edge proxy.

15. An apparatus having a first edge proxy, the apparatus comprising:

a receiver configured to receive a request for service from a source;

a hash table configured to map the source of the request to the first edge proxy or a second edge proxy; and

a forwarding engine configured to forward the request to the second edge proxy when a lookup of the hash table indicates the second edge proxy is mapped to the source.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the request comprises a session initiation protocol (SIP) REGISTER message or a SIP INVITE message.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the hash table is configured to use a consistent hash function.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the hash table is configured to be updated in each of the first and second edge proxies in response to a failure of a third edge proxy.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the source comprises a service controller coupled to each of the first, second, and third edge proxies.

20. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the first edge proxy is indicated by a domain name system (DNS) server coupled to each of the first, second, and third edge proxies.