METHODS AND APPARATUS TO TRANSMIT A REQUEST TO SERVER VIA DOMAIN SYSTEM FORWARDING

• US 20120023153A1
• Filed: 07/21/2010
• Published: 01/26/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/21/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Atlassian US, Inc. (Atlassian Corporation)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Karasaridis, Anestis
• Granted Patent: US 8,499,034 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/69 using geographic information, e.g. room number
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4511 using domain name system [DNS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4552 Lookup mechanisms between a plurality of directories; Synchronisation of directories, e.g. metadirectories
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/561 Adding application-functional data or data for application control, e.g. adding metadata

Abstract

Methods and apparatus to transmit a request to a server via domain name system forwarding are disclosed. A disclosed example method includes receiving in a gateway a request to connect to a domain name from a client coupled to the gateway, selecting a first domain name system server corresponding to the domain name based on a rule linking the first domain name system server to the domain name, adding location information to the request in the gateway, the location information to be used by the first domain name system server to select a second domain name system server associated with the domain name, and transmitting the request including the location information to the selected first domain name system server.

Claims

1. A method to transmit a request to a server via domain name system forwarding, the method comprising:

receiving in a gateway a request to connect to a domain name from a client coupled to the gateway;

selecting a first domain name system server corresponding to the domain name based on a rule linking the first domain name system server to the domain name;

adding location information to the request in the gateway, the location information to be used by the first domain name system server to select a second domain name system server associated with the domain name; and

transmitting the request including the location information to the selected first domain name system server.

2. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising:

receiving the request in the first domain name system server;

resolving the domain name to a corresponding target Internet Protocol address;

performing at least one query to determine the second domain name system server associated with the target Internet Protocol address; and

transmitting the request including the location information to the second domain name system server.

3. A method as defined in claim 2, further comprising:

receiving the request from the first domain name system server in the second domain name system server;

selecting a content server based on the location information; and

transmitting a content Internet Protocol address corresponding to the selected content server from the second domain name system server to the client via the gateway.

4. A method as defined in claim 3, further comprising:

receiving the content Internet Protocol address at the client from the second domain name system server;

communicatively coupling the client to the content server using the content Internet Protocol address; and

accessing content via the client included with the content server.

5. A method as defined in claim 3, wherein the content server is selected by the second domain name system server by identifying a content server that is communicatively or physically closer to the client than other domain name system servers using the location information.

6. A method as defined in claim 3, wherein the content server is selected by the second domain name system server by identifying a content server that has available capacity to communicatively couple to the client using the location information.

7. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein the location information includes at least one of an Internet Protocol address associated with the client, a domain of the client, a geographic location of the client, a network location of the client, or a domain of the gateway.

8. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein selecting the first domain name system server includes identifying the first domain name system server corresponding to the requested domain that is closer to the gateway than another domain name system server.

9. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein selecting the first domain name system server includes identifying the first domain name system server corresponding to the requested domain with available capacity to route the request to the second domain name system server.

10. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting from the gateway a lease renewal request for an Internet Protocol address to a dynamic host configuration host protocol server; and

in response to the lease renewal request, receiving from the dynamic host configuration host protocol server a rule specifying that the first domain name system server corresponds to the domain name.

11. An apparatus to transmit a request to a server via domain name system forwarding, the apparatus comprising a request processor to:

select a first domain name system server corresponding to a requested domain name based on a rule linking the first domain name system server to the domain name; and

add location information to the request, wherein the location information is transmitted to a second domain name system server via the first domain name system server and is to be used by the second domain name system server to select a content server associated with the domain name.

12. An apparatus as defined in claim 11, further comprising a request transmitter to transmit the request including the location information to the selected first domain name system server.

13. An apparatus as defined in claim 12, wherein the first domain name system server is to:

receive the request from the request transmitter;

resolve the domain name to a corresponding target Internet Protocol address;

perform at least one query to determine the second domain name system server associated with the target Internet Protocol address; and

transmit the request including the location information to the second domain name system server.

14. An apparatus as defined in claim 13, wherein the second domain name system server is to:

receiving the request;

select the content server based on the location information; and

transmit a content Internet Protocol address corresponding to the selected content server to a client that requested the domain name.

15. An apparatus as defined in claim 14, further comprising a gateway to:

receive the content Internet Protocol address from the second domain name system server;

communicatively couple the client to the content server using the content Internet Protocol address; and

enable the client to access content included with the content server.

16. An apparatus as defined in claim 14, wherein the second domain name system server selects the content server by identifying a content server that is physically closest to the client using the location information.

17. An apparatus as defined in claim 14, further comprising a request receiver to receive a request to connect to the domain name from the client.

18. An apparatus as defined in claim 11, wherein the request processor is to select the first domain name system server by identifying the first domain name system server corresponding to the requested domain that is closer to the request processor than other domain name system servers.

19. An apparatus as defined in claim 11, further comprising a rules processor to:

transmit a lease renewal request for an Internet Protocol address to a dynamic host configuration host protocol server; and

receive from the dynamic host configuration host protocol server a rule specifying that the first domain name system server corresponds to the domain name.

20. A tangible article of manufacture storing machine-readable instructions that, when executed, cause a machine to:

receive a request to connect to a domain name from a client;

select a first domain name system server corresponding to the domain name based on a rule linking the first domain name system server to the domain name;

add location information to the request, the location information to be used by the first domain name system server to select a second domain name system server associated with the domain name; and

transmit the request including the location information to the selected first domain name system server.

21-25. -25. (canceled)