ASSESSMENT OF CONTENT DELIVERY SERVICES USING PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENTS FROM WITHIN AN END USER CLIENT APPLICATION

• US 20130166634A1
• Filed: 12/19/2012
• Published: 06/27/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Akamai Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Akamai Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Holland, Mark C.
• Granted Patent: US 9,742,858 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3006 where the computing system is distributed, e.g. networked systems, clusters, multiprocessor systems multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46; allocation of resources G06F9/50
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3419 by assessing time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3476 Data logging G06F11/14, G06F11/2205 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3495 for systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/875 Monitoring of systems including the internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/14 Network analysis or design
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/561 Adding application-functional data or data for application control, e.g. adding metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching

Abstract

A system for measuring and monitoring performance of online content is provided. In one embodiment, the system includes an intermediary device, such as a web proxy, that receives client requests for content, such as requests for web pages. The device obtains the requested content, modifies it by applying one or more performance optimizations, and serves it to the client. The device also inserts code into the content for execution by the client to gather and report data reflecting, e.g., how quickly the client is able to get and process the content. The code includes information identifying the modifications the device made, and this is reported with the timing data, so that the effect on performance can be analyzed. In other embodiments, the device selects one of multiple versions of content, and the inserted code contains information identifying the selected version. The foregoing are merely examples; other embodiments are described herein.

Claims

1. Computer apparatus for measuring the performance effect of modifications applied to given content as part of the delivery of the content to the client, the computer apparatus comprising:

a network interface for receiving a request for content from a client over a network;

circuitry forming one or more processors and memory holding instructions to be executed by the one or more processors to cause the computer apparatus to respond to the request by;

obtaining the content from a source computer or from a local cache that stores a copy of the content previously obtained from the source computer;

modifying the content;

in addition to said modification, inserting code in the content for execution by the client when processing the content, wherein execution of the code will cause the client to gather timing information about the client'"'"'s processing of the modified content and transmit the timing information over the network to the computer apparatus or another computer;

sending the content with the inserted code to the client in response to the request;

wherein said code includes information identifying said modification that the computer apparatus made to the content, so that said identifying information will be transmitted with the timing information.

2. The computer apparatus of claim 1, wherein the client comprises a web browser.

3. The computer apparatus of claim 1, wherein the content comprises a markup language file.

4. The computer apparatus of claim 3, wherein the code is JavaScript code that is inlined into the markup language file or referenced by the URL inserted into the markup language file.

5. The computer apparatus of claim 1, wherein said modification comprises adapting the content for the client based on one or more characteristics of the client.

6. The computer apparatus of claim 1, wherein said modification of the content comprises modifying the content to any of:

reduce a size of the content;

reduce a number of references to embedded objects in the content;

accelerate client rendering of the content.

7. The computer apparatus of claim 1, wherein the timing information includes any information specified in the Navigation Timing or Resource Timing specification.

8. The computer apparatus of claim 1, wherein the timing information includes one or more timestamps for any of the following phases:

Prompt for unload, Redirect, App cache, DNS, TCP, Request, Response, Processing, and onLoad.

9. Computer apparatus for measuring the performance effect of content version selections made by the computer apparatus as part of the delivery of the content to the client, the computer apparatus comprising:

a network interface for receiving a request for content from a client over a network;

circuitry forming one or more processors and memory holding instructions to be executed by the one or more processors to cause the computer apparatus to respond to the request by;

selecting one of multiple versions of the content;

obtaining the selected one of the multiple versions of content from a source computer or from a local cache that stores a copy of the selected one of the multiple versions of content previously obtained from the source computer;

in addition to said modification, inserting code in the selected one of the multiple versions of content for execution by the client when processing the content, wherein execution of the code will cause the client to gather timing information about the client'"'"'s processing of the modified content and transmit the timing information over the network to the computer apparatus or another computer;

sending the selected of the multiple versions of content with the inserted code to the client in response to the request;

wherein said code includes information identifying the version of content, so that said identifying information will be transmitted with the timing information.

10. The computer apparatus of claim 9, wherein the client comprises a web browser.

11. The computer apparatus of claim 9, wherein the content comprises a markup language file.

12. The computer apparatus of claim 11, wherein the code is JavaScript code that is inlined into the markup language file or referenced by the URL inserted into the markup language file.

13. The computer apparatus of claim 9, wherein said selection of content comprises selecting a version of content for the client based on one or more characteristics of the client.

14. The computer apparatus of claim 9, wherein the timing information includes any information specified in the Navigation Timing or Resource Timing specification.

15. The computer apparatus of claim 9, wherein the timing information includes one or more timestamps for any of the following phases:

Prompt for unload, Redirect, App cache, DNS, TCP, Request, Response, Processing, and onLoad.

16. Computer apparatus for measuring the performance of a content delivery network of which the computer apparatus is part, the computer apparatus comprising:

a network interface for receiving a request for content from a client over a network;

circuitry forming one or more processors and memory holding instructions to be executed by the one or more processors to cause the computer apparatus to respond to the request by;

obtaining the content from a source computer or from a local cache that stores a copy of the content previously obtained from the source computer;

inserting code into the content for execution by the client when processing the content, wherein execution of the code will cause the client to gather timing information about the client'"'"'s processing of the modified content and transmit the timing information over the network to the computer apparatus or another computer;

sending the content with the inserted code to the client in response to the request;

wherein said code includes information identifying said modification that the computer apparatus made to the content, such that said identifying information will be transmitted with the timing information.

wherein said code includes information identifying any of;

the computer apparatus, a set of computers of which the computer apparatus is a member, a set of one or more computers via which the computer apparatus obtained the content from the source computer, a location of the client;

such that said identifying information will be transmitted with the timing information.

17. The computer apparatus of claim 16, wherein the client comprises a web browser.

18. The computer apparatus of claim 16, wherein the content comprises a markup language file.

19. The computer apparatus of claim 18, wherein the code is JavaScript code that is inlined into the markup language file or referenced by the URL inserted into the markup language file.

20. The computer apparatus of claim 16, wherein the timing information includes any information specified in the Navigation Timing or Resource Timing specification.

21. The computer apparatus of claim 16, wherein the timing information includes one or more timestamps for any of the following phases:

Prompt for unload, Redirect, App cache, DNS, TCP, Request, Response, Processing, and onLoad.

22-25. -25. (canceled)