RETURN-LINK OPTIMIZATION FOR FILE-SHARING TRAFFIC

• US 20100179984A1
• Filed: 01/04/2010
• Published: 07/15/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/13/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: ViaSat Incorporated
• Original Assignee: ViaSat Incorporated
• Inventors: Sebastian, William B.
• Application Number:
  US12/651,928
• Publication Number:
  US 20100179984A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/185 Space-based or airborne stations; Stations for satellite systemsH04B7/204 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1859 adapted to provide push services, e.g. data channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1863 comprising mechanisms for improved reliability, e.g. status reports arrangements for detecting or preventing errors by carrying supervisory signal the return channel H04L1/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1881 with schedule organisation, e.g. priority, sequence management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1886 with traffic restrictions for efficiency improvement, e.g. involving subnets or subdomains
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/7453 using hashing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/70 Admission control; Resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/04 Protocols for data compression, e.g. ROHC
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/22 Parsing or analysis of headers

Abstract

Methods, apparatuses, and systems for return-link optimization are provided. Embodiments identify upload-after-download content (e.g., file sharing content) upon download, and generate one or more identifiers characterizing the content (e.g., a digest). The identifiers are stored in a client-side server dictionary model reflecting a presumption that the content is stored in a server-side dictionary. When content is later uploaded, the server dictionary model is used to identify when the upload content matches previously downloaded content. When a match is detected, the stored identifiers are used to generate a highly compressed version of the upload content, which is then uploaded to the server instead of uploading the full content data. In some embodiments, similar techniques are used to optimize return link bandwidth usage for upload-after-upload transactions.

Claims

1. A method for managing return-link resource usage in a communications system, the method comprising:

receiving a first content data block at a client-side device from a server-side device, the server-side device being communicatively coupled with a server dictionary and the client-side device being communicatively coupled with a server dictionary model, the server dictionary model configured to store identifiers associated with data blocks stored on the server dictionary, each identifier having a substantially smaller file size than its associated data block;

calculating a first identifier from the first content data block;

storing the first identifier in the server dictionary model at the client-side device;

removing the first content data block from the client-side device;

subsequent to storing the first identifier, receiving a second content data block at the client-side device for upload to the server-side device;

calculating a second identifier from the second content data block;

determining whether the second identifier matches the first identifier stored in the server dictionary model; and

when the second identifier matches the first identifier, using the first identifier or the second identifier to compress the second content data block into compressed content.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

communicating the compressed content to the server-side device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the compressed content is the second identifier.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first content data block is removed from the client-side device substantially upon calculating the first identifier.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether the first content data block comprises file sharing content,

wherein the first content data block is removed from the client-side device only when the content data block comprises file sharing content.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein determining whether the first content data block comprises file sharing content comprises:

determining whether the first content data block is configured according to a file sharing protocol.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein determining whether the first content data block comprises file sharing content comprises:

determining a probability that a substantially identical content data block will be received by the client-side device for upload to the server-side device at a subsequent time.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing the first content data block in a client data store configured such that the client-side device has substantially no access to the content data block when stored in the client data store.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first identifier and the second identifier are calculated such that a probability of the first identifier and the second identifier matching when the first content data block and the second content data block are not identical is effectively zero.

10. A method for managing return-link resource usage in a communications system, the method comprising:

receiving a first content data block at a client-side device from a server-side device, the server-side device being communicatively coupled with a server dictionary and the client-side device being communicatively coupled with a server dictionary model;

calculating a first identifier from the first content data block, such that the first identifier has a substantially smaller file size than the first content data block;

storing the first identifier in the server dictionary model at the client-side device;

determining whether the first content data block comprises file sharing content;

removing the first content data block from the client-side device when the first content data block comprises file sharing content;

subsequent to storing the first identifier, receiving a second content data block at the client-side device for upload to the server-side device;

calculating a second identifier from the second content data block;

determining whether the second identifier matches the first identifier stored in the server dictionary model; and

when the second identifier matches the first identifier, using the first identifier or the second identifier to compress the second content data block into compressed content.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

communicating the compressed content to the server-side device.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the first content data block is removed from the client-side device prior to receiving the second content data block at the client-side device.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein determining whether the first content data block comprises file sharing content comprises determining whether the first content data block is configured according to a file sharing protocol.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein determining whether the first content data block comprises file sharing content comprises determining a probability that a substantially identical content data block will be received by the client-side device for upload to the server-side device at a subsequent time.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the first identifier and the second identifier are calculated such that a probability of the first identifier and the second identifier matching when the first content data block and the second content data block are not identical is effectively zero.

16. A system for managing return-link resource usage in a communications system, the system comprising:

a local dictionary model configured to store identifiers associated with data blocks stored on a remote dictionary, the remote dictionary located at a remote node of the communications system;

a download processor module, configured to;

receive a first content data block from a remote device associated with the remote dictionary;

store the first content data block in a local store;

calculate a first identifier from the first content data block;

store the first identifier in the local dictionary model; and

remove the first content data block from the local store; and

an upload processor module, configured to;

receive a second content data block for upload to the remote device;

calculate a second identifier from the second content data block;

determine whether the second identifier matches the first identifier stored in the local dictionary model; and

when the second identifier matches the first identifier, use the first identifier or the second identifier to compress the second content data block into compressed content.

17. The system of claim 16, further comprising:

a communications module configured to communicate the compressed content to the remote device.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the download processor module is configured to remove the first content data block from the local store substantially upon calculating the first identifier.

19. The system of claim 16, further comprising:

a file sharing detector, communicatively coupled with the download processor module, and configured to;

determine whether the first content data block comprises file sharing content,

wherein the download processor module is configured to remove the first content data block from the local store only when the content data block comprises file sharing content.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the file sharing detector is configured to determine whether the first content data block comprises file sharing content by determining whether the first content data block is configured according to a file sharing protocol.

21. The system of claim 19, wherein the file sharing detector is configured to determine whether the first content data block comprises file sharing content by determining a probability that a substantially identical content data block will be received for upload to the remote device at a subsequent time.

22. The system of claim 16, further comprising:

a client storage module, configured to store the first content data block such that the download processor module has substantially no access to the first content data block when stored in the client storage module.

23. The system of claim 16, wherein the local store is a buffer.

24. The system of claim 16, wherein:

the remote device is a server and the remote dictionary is a server dictionary.