In-Network Online Storage With Increased Session Bandwidth

• US 20100180034A1
• Filed: 05/15/2009
• Published: 07/15/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cox Communications Incorporated (Cox Enterprises Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Cox Communications Incorporated (Cox Enterprises Incorporated)
• Inventors: WEINER, FRED SCOTT, SCARBOROUGH, CHARLES, STUART, CASSELL, P'SIMER, LEAH
• Granted Patent: US 9,189,807 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/226
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5072 Grid computing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5006 Creating or negotiating SLA contracts, guarantees or penalties
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1097 for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS]

Abstract

A system includes a private communications network to provide content to a user using a first, base amount of bandwidth, a policy server, coupled to the network, for managing services provided to a user of the communications network and a data center, coupled to the network, for providing online storage to the user by the communications network, wherein the first, base bandwidth of the communication network is increased to a second, increased bandwidth for a data upload made by the user. The use of a private network addresses the security and efficiency issues of transmitting data over a public network and increased bandwidth enables data transmission between a user and a data center to be completed in a timely manner.

Claims

1. A method for providing online storage, comprising:

providing, by a user, a request for initiating a data upload over a private communications network to online storage at a data center;

processing the request for initiating a data upload to identify an additional amount of bandwidth beyond a base level of bandwidth to provide the user; and

providing, to the user, the additional amount of bandwidth beyond the base level of bandwidth for the data upload to the data center.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

registering a user for a level of online storage enabling the user for a contracted amount of storage;

entering information provided by user during the registering in a customer management system of a communications network provider; and

provisioning an amount of storage at a data center commensurate with the contracted level of online storage.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the additional amount of bandwidth is provided according to a service level for bandwidth for online storage uploads identified during registering of the user.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the additional amount of bandwidth allocated to the user is restored to the base level of bandwidth after the upload to the data center is complete.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the additional amount of bandwidth is provided for the duration of the upload.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the additional amount of bandwidth allocated to the user is restored to the base level of bandwidth after the upload to the data center is complete.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the data uploaded to the data center is accessible over a public network without the security, efficiency and increased bandwidth provided by the private communications network.

18. The method of claim 2, wherein the additional amount of bandwidth is provided according to a contracted service level for bandwidth for online storage uploads.

19. The method of claim 3, wherein the additional amount of bandwidth allocated to the user is provided for the duration of the upload and restored to the base level of bandwidth after the upload to the data center is complete.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the data uploaded to the data center is accessible over a public network without the security, efficiency and increased bandwidth provided by the private communications network.

8. A system for providing online storage, comprising:

a private communications network to provide content to a user using a first, base amount of bandwidth;

a policy server, coupled to the network, for managing services provided to a user of the communications network; and

a data center, coupled to the network, for providing online storage to the user by the communications network, wherein the first, base bandwidth of the communication network is increased to a second, increased bandwidth for a data upload made by the user.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the policy server processing a request from a user for initiating a data upload, identifies an additional amount of bandwidth beyond a base level of bandwidth to provide the user for the data upload.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the policy server stores information regarding an online storage service level for a user based on an agreement with the user.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the policy server provides the data center information associated with the online storage service level of a user to provision an amount of storage at the data center commensurate with the online storage service level.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the second, increased amount of bandwidth is provided according to a bandwidth service level associated with online storage uploads identified during registration of the user for online storage service.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the second, increased amount of bandwidth allocated to the user is restored to the first, base level of bandwidth after the upload to the data center is complete.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein the second, increased amount of bandwidth is provided for the duration of the upload.

15. The system of claim 8, wherein data uploaded to the data center is accessible over a public network without the security, efficiency and increased bandwidth provided by the private communications network.

16. A computer readable medium including executable instructions which, when executed by a processor, provides online storage, by:

forwarding a request by a user for initiating a data upload over a private communications network to online storage at a data center;

processing the request for initiating a data upload to identify an additional amount of bandwidth beyond a base level of bandwidth to provide the user; and

modifying the bandwidth of the private network to provide to the user the additional amount of bandwidth beyond the base level of bandwidth for the data upload to the data center.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising, prior to modifying the bandwidth, provisioning an amount of storage at a data center commensurate with a contracted level of online storage.