Method and system for increasing throughput rate by dynamically modifying connection parameters

• US 20090055550A1
• Filed: 08/23/2007
• Published: 02/26/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies General IP PTE Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Pullen, David, Way, Richard
• Granted Patent: US 7,912,911 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/233
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0864 Round trip delays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control

Abstract

Methods, systems and computer program products for dynamically modifying at least one connection parameter between a client and a server connected via a network and thereby increasing throughput rate between the server and the client are provided.

The method comprises determining a first parameter value based on one or more characteristics of the network and a connection between the client and the server. The method further comprises determining whether a second parameter value encoded in a connection parameter field of the first packet received from the client is optimum based on a comparison with the first parameter value and overwriting the second parameter value with the first parameter value, if the second parameter value is not optimum.

Claims

1. A method of dynamically modifying at least one connection parameter between a client and a server connected via a network, thereby increasing throughput rate between said client and said server, comprising:

determining a connection rate between said client and said server;

determining a round-trip delay in said network;

determining a first window size value based on said connection rate and said round-trip delay;

receiving a first packet from said client;

determining a second window size value encoded in a window size field of said first packet;

determining a first window scale value based on said first and second window size values,

comparing the first window scale value with a second scale value encoded in a window scale field of the first packet; and

overwriting the second window scale value in the window scale field of the first packet with the first window scale value if the first window scale value is greater than the second window scale value.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first packet is a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) synchronization (SYN) packet.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining whether the first packet has a window scale field.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising inserting a window scale field in said first packet if said first packet does not have a window scale field.

5. A method of dynamically modifying at least one connection parameter between a client and a server connected via a network, thereby increasing throughput rate between said client and said server, comprising:

determining a connection rate between said client and said server;

determining a round-trip delay in said network;

determining a first window size value based on said connection rate and said round-trip delay;

receiving a first packet from said client;

determining a second window size value encoded in said first packet; and

overwriting the second window size value in the window size field of the first packet with the first window size value if the first window size value is greater than the second window size value.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the first packet is a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) synchronization (SYN) packet.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising overwriting a window size value stored in window size field of acknowledgement (ACK) packets, sent from the client to the server subsequent to the SYN packet, with the first window size value if the window size value encoded in the subsequent ACK packets is greater than a predetermined threshold value.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the first window size is less than or equal to a maximum window size as prescribed by an operating system and/or networking protocol running on said client.

9. A computer program product comprising a computer useable medium including control logic stored therein to dynamically modify at least one connection parameter between a client and a server, connected in a network via a network device, thereby increasing throughput rate between said client and said server, comprising:

control logic means for causing a processor to determine a connection rate between said client and said server;

control logic means for causing a processor to determine a round-trip delay in said network;

control logic means for causing a processor to determine a first window size value based on the connection rate and the round-trip delay;

control logic means for causing a processor to determine if the first window size value is greater than a second window size value encoded in a window size field of a first packet received from said client; and

control logic means for causing a processor to determine whether the first window size value is greater than a maximum window size value;

control logic means for causing a processor to determine a first window scale value based on said first window size value and said maximum window size value if said first window size value is greater than said maximum window size value;

control logic means for causing a processor to overwrite a second window scale value encoded in a window scale field of said first packet with said first window scale value if said first window scale value is greater than said second window scale value; and

control logic means for causing a processor to overwrite the second window size value encoded in the window size field of said first packet with the maximum window size value if said maximum window size value is greater than said second window size value.

10. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the first packet is a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) synchronization (SYN) packet.

11. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the round-trip delay is determined by one or more of Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) ping, TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) timestamp, network topology or input via a configuration file or web page.

12. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the connection rate between said client and said server is determined by one or more of network physical parameters and Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) ping.

13. The computer program product of claim 9, further comprising control logic means for causing the processor to calculate a checksum value for the first packet and store the checksum value in a checksum field of the first packet.

14. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the maximum window size is based on a value prescribed by an Operation System and/or networking protocol running on said client.

15. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein determining said first window scale value further comprises determining a ratio of said first window size value and said maximum window scale value and rounding up the ratio to the nearest power of two.

16. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein said rate of said connection is determined by a value encoded in a configuration file received by said network device.

17. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein said connection rate is determined based on one or more of network physical parameters and Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) ping.

18. A method of dynamically modifying at least one connection parameter between a client and a server connected via a network, thereby increasing throughput rate between said server and said client, comprising:

determining a first parameter value based on one or more characteristics of said network and a connection between said client and said server;

determining whether a second parameter value encoded in a connection parameter field of said first packet received from said client is optimum based on a comparison with said first parameter value; and

overwriting said second parameter value with said first parameter value in said connection parameter field, if said second parameter value is not optimum, thereby increasing throughput rate between said server and said client.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein said characteristics include a connection rate between said client and said server and a round-trip delay in said network.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein said first and second parameters are window size values.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein said first parameter and second parameters are window scale values.

22. A computer program product comprising a computer useable medium including control logic stored therein to dynamically modify at least one connection parameter between a client and a server, connected in a network via a network device, thereby increasing throughput rate between said client and said server, comprising:

control logic means for causing a processor to determine a connection rate between said client and said server;

control logic means for causing a processor to determine a round-trip delay in said network;

control logic means for causing a processor to determine a first window size value based on the connection rate and the round-trip delay;

control logic means for causing a processor to determine whether the first window size value is greater than an encoded second encoded window size value scaled by an encoded window scale value if it is determined that the first window size value is greater than the un-scaled second window size value and lesser than a maximum window size value; and

control logic means for causing a processor to overwrite the second window size value with the first window size value if the second window size value scaled by the encoded window scale value is lesser than the first window size value.

23. The computer program product of claim 22, further comprising control logic means for causing a processor to determine if the first window size value is greater than the second window size value.

24. The computer program product of claim 22, further comprising control logic means for causing a processor to determine whether the first window size value is greater than a maximum window size value if it is determined that the first window size is greater than the second window size value.

25. The computer program product of claim 22, control logic means for causing a processor to overwrite the encoded window scale value with zero.

26. The computer program product of claim 22, wherein the first packet is a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) synchronization (SYN) packet.

27. The computer program product of claim 22, wherein the maximum window size is based on a value prescribed by an Operation System and/or networking protocol running on said client.

29. The method of claim 27, further comprising determining whether a window scale option is present in the first packet.

30. The method of claim 27, wherein the first packet is a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) synchronization (SYN) packet.

28. A method of dynamically modifying at least one connection parameter between a client and a server connected via a network, thereby increasing throughput rate between said client and said server, comprising:

determining a first window size value based on a connection rate between said client and said server and a round-trip delay in said network;

receiving a first packet from said client;

determining a second window size value encoded in said first packet;

determining a window scale value encoded in said first packet;

scaling the second window size value by the encoded scale value;

determining whether the first window size value is greater than the scaled second window size value;

de-scaling the first window size value by the encoded scale value if the first window size value is greater than the scaled second window size value; and

overwriting the second window size value in the window size field of the first packet with the de-scaled first window size value.