FEEDBACK ORIENTED PRIVATE OVERLAY NETWORK FOR CONTENT DISTRIBUTION

• US 20130031211A1
• Filed: 01/30/2012
• Published: 01/31/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Dustin Johnson, Ian Donahue
• Original Assignee: Dustin Johnson, Ian Donahue
• Inventors: Johnson, Dustin, Donahue, Ian
• Application Number:
  US13/361,927
• Publication Number:
  US 20130031211A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/218
• 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 67/101 based on network conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1057 involving pre-assessment of levels of reputation of peers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1085 involving dynamic management of active down- or uploading connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23103 using load balancing strategies, e.g. by placing or distributing content on different disks, different memories or different servers storage management G06F3/0604; allocation of resources considering the load in multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/505; techniques for rebalancing the load in a distributed system G06F9/5083; access to distributed or replicated servers, e.g. load balancing, in data networks H04L67/1001
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/632 using a connection between clients on a wide area network, e.g. setting up a peer-to-peer communication via Internet for retrieving video segments from the hard-disk of other client devices broadcast-related systems characterised by transmission among terminal devices H04H60/80; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104

Abstract

A network of computers each serving as a “node” within a private, closed peer-to-peer network having a network administrator. Each node has a CPU and a hard drive, input/output device and connectivity to other nodes through the Internet. Each node is provided a hard drive (cache) to handle a multitude of data files. The cache supports multiple streams of fragments to multiple calling nodes without delay or deterioration of transfer rates. A plurality of metrics programs monitor the data demands on each node, the usage of each node'"'"'s hard drive, and the transfer rates possible from the assigned node and provide that information to the network in a database available to all nodes. The network administrator, utilizing a contrarian selection method, pushes disaggregated data to the nodes in the network to evenly load data throughout the network and to fully load the node'"'"'s hard drives.

Claims

1. A method of distributing content a in a peer-to-peer network of user nodes, comprising:

providing a peer-to-peer network configured for distributing content using the Internet and having a plurality of nodes configured to receive and send content, each node being configured to act altruistically for the best interest of the network as a whole.

2. The method of distributing content of claim 1, wherein providing the peer-to-peer network includes configuring each node to act by favoring the stability of the network over its own performance interests.

3. The method of distributing content of claim 1, further comprising providing video content for distribution using the peer-to-peer network and configuring at least one node to act by favoring the stability of the network over the performance interests of the at least one node.

4. The method of distributing content of claim 1, further comprising configuring at least one node to act by favoring the stability of the network rather than the direct self interest of the at least one node.

5. The method of distributing content of claim 1, further comprising configuring each node with a potential of being similarly altruistic in the decision making by each node.

6. The method of distributing content of claim 1, further comprising a pull mechanism, a data management mechanism, a data preparation mechanism and a push mechanism.

7. The method of distributing content of claim 6, wherein the pull mechanism is configured to provide each node the capability to process a request for data playback by an end user such that disaggregated data is aggregated just in time for playback.

8. The method of distributing content of claim 6, wherein the data management mechanism is configured for prioritizing information for deletion and, conversely, maintaining adequate redundancy by preventing deletion or triggering the Push Mechanism when applicable.

9. The method of distributing content of claim 6, wherein the data preparation mechanism is the step in the feedback loop that takes data from previous configurations and creates new optimized configurations for new data.

10. The method of distributing content of claim 6, wherein the push mechanism is configured is responsible for disaggregating content across a private network.

11. A system for distributing content a in a peer-to-peer network of user nodes, comprising:

a peer-to-peer network configured for distributing content using the Internet and having a plurality of nodes configured to receive and send content, each node being configured to act altruistically for the best interest of the network as a whole.

12. The system for distributing content of claim 11, wherein providing the peer-to-peer network includes configuring each node to act by favoring the stability of the network over its own performance interests.

13. The system for distributing content t of claim 11, further comprising providing video content for distribution using the peer-to-peer network and configuring at least one node to act by favoring the stability of the network over the performance interests of the at least one node.

14. The system for distributing content of claim 11, further comprising configuring at least one node to act by favoring the stability of the network rather than the direct self interest of the at least one node

15. A method of using download and upload data transfers in a distributed computing environment, comprising:

generating metrics that are used to shape future download and upload transactions/decisions in a manner that optimizes over the top (OTT) real time adaptive bit rate encoded multicast streaming video.

16. A method of claim 15, further comprising providing for “

peer selection”

in a dedicated peer-to-peer network where, among other factors, the selection is made favoring the least popular nodes, which are the least utilized by other peers on the network) to retrieve data from when one or more options are available.

17. A method of claim 15, further comprising providing a contrarian peer selection process is based primarily on a need or priority basis, whereby each node decides whether or not to prioritize the speed/power/quality of a connection to a node or to prioritize the popularit”

of a node it is connecting to, wherein a node that has great need for speed/power/quality will proportionately ignore the popularity of its connecting node while a node that is in little need will proportionately avoid nodes with high popularit”

or a high likeliness to be needed by others.

18. A method of claim 15, further comprising optimizing data redundancy and distribution on a network of dedicated hardware devices for the purposes of each device contributing to over the top real time variable bit rate multicast streaming video.

19. A method of claim 15, further comprising distributing new data across a network of dedicated computing devices using a process based on system metrics as described herein.

20. A method of claim 15, further comprising adding new data to a distributed cache in a peer-to-peer network when the shared cache of each node/peer is always maintained at full capacity and all new data must overwrite existing data, such that each node runs its own algorithm to mark items for deletion priority, but never preemptively deletes data until it receives new data to overwrite it with, wherein the node shares the information about the deletion priority of the data contained in its cache to the other nodes/peers on the network, such that when a node/peer adds new data to the distributed cache, the data is sent to the node/peer that has the data most ready to be deleted or overwritten.