Supplying Data Files to Requesting Stations

• US 20100070625A1
• Filed: 09/04/2009
• Published: 03/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pulse Secure, LLC (Ivanti Software, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Zeus Technology Ltd. (Riverbed Technology Incorporated)
• Inventors: Garrett, Owen John, Mansell, Ben Ross, Midgley, Julian Trowan John, Flowerday, Crispin Edward Harold
• Granted Patent: US 10,193,770 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/024 by adaptive sampling
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1008 based on parameters of servers, e.g. available memory or workload monitoring of computer activity G06F11/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1012 based on compliance of requirements or conditions with available server resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1014 based on the content of a request
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1029 using data related to the state of servers by a load balancer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561

Abstract

Data files are supplied to a plurality of requesting stations (102 to 106) by accessing serving devices (109 to 116). A plurality of requests are received for one or more data files at a traffic management system (101) from requesting stations via an external network (107). A specific server is selected at the traffic management system and a request is issued to the selected server over a local network for the requested file. The requested file is accepted at the traffic management system from the selected server over the local network and the requested file is sent from the traffic management system to the requesting station over external network. The response of selected servers is monitored (302) when responding to issued requests thereby generating monitored responses. The monitored responses are compared (303) against an operational criterion to identify sub-standard operations. Thereafter, where appropriate, measures are taken (305) to reduce the processing demand placed upon the selected server so as to improve the monitored operation of the selected server.

Claims

1. Traffic managing apparatus for supplying data files to a plurality of requesting stations, by accessing serving devices, comprising:

a first interface to an external network for receiving requests from a plurality of requesting stations and for sending a requested file back to a requesting station;

a second interface to an internal network for issuing requests to a plurality of servers to effect load balancing and for receiving a requested file from a requested server; and

a processing device configured to monitor the response of the servers, said processing device;

monitoring the response of selected servers when responding to issued requests, thereby generating monitored responses;

comparing said monitored responses against an operational criterion to identify sub-standard operation; and

taking measures to reduce a processing demand placed upon a selected server so as to improve the monitored operation of said selected server.

2. A method of supplying data files to a plurality of requesting stations by accessing serving devices, comprising the steps of:

receiving a plurality of requests for at least one data file at a traffic management system from a plurality of requesting stations via an external network;

selecting a specific server as a selected server at said traffic management system;

issuing a request to said selected server over a local network for the requested file;

accepting a requested file at the traffic management system from said selected server over said local network; and

sending the requested file from the traffic management system to the requesting station over the said external network, by the steps of;

monitoring a response of selected servers when responding to issued requests, thereby generating monitored responses;

comparing said monitored responses against an operational criterion to identify sub-standard operation; and

taking measures in response to said comparison to reduce a processing demand placed upon the selected server so as to improve the monitored operation of said selected server.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein said data files are one of:

HTML web pages and

video files.

4. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein copies of the same data file may be obtained from each of a plurality of servers and the traffic management system selects one of said servers in order to perform a traffic balancing operation.

5. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein said measures to reduce processing demand are taken when load balancing has been substantially optimised.

6. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the monitored response is the time taken between the traffic management system starting to process a request from a client and starting to send a response to the client.

7. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the monitored response is one of:

the processing demand being placed upon the selected server and

the processing demand being placed upon the traffic management system.

8. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the response is compared against a first criterion to invoke said taking of measures, whereafter the response is measured against a second criterion for the return to normal operation.

9. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the number of issued requests that are affected by the measures taken is proportionate to the degree of sub-standard operation as determined by said comparing step.

10. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein said criterion is defined in terms of a proportion of the requests issued to the selected server resulting in the file being sent within a specified time.

11. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein said measures involve replacing details of the originally received request with alternative details for the request sent to the selected server.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the data file is identified by a universal resource locator (URL) and a received URL is replaced with an alternative sent URL.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the sent URL identifies a substantially similar file to the received URL with similar information but containing less data so as to improve the response of the selected server.

14. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the file identified by the sent URL has lower resolution images linked thereto compared to the file identified by the received URL.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14, where the file identified by the sent URL requires less computational processing to be performed at the server compared to the file identified by the received URL.

16. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein a response to a URL is sent from the traffic management system using a cached copy as an alternative to contacting a server to request data.

17. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein said measures involve sending the requested file directly from the traffic management system, without sending the request to the server, having stored a copy of the requested file on the traffic management system when handling a previous request.