Controlling access of clients to service in cluster environment

• US 20130212264A1
• Filed: 02/14/2013
• Published: 08/15/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Troppens, Ulf, Diederich, Michael, Rueger, Erik
• Granted Patent: US 9,246,744 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2005 using redundant communication controllers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0882 Utilisation of link capacity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4511 using domain name system [DNS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/50 Address allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5061 Pools of addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5076 Update or notification mechanisms, e.g. DynDNS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/58 Caching of addresses or names
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/40 for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity, e.g. service redundancy protocols, protocol state redundancy or protocol service redirection management of faults, events, alarms or notifications in data switching networks H04L41/06

Abstract

First, second, and third sets of addresses are created. The first set includes addresses registered in a name server; both the second and third sets include addresses not registered in the name server and that are disjoint. A first address of a first server that has failed and to which access is to be prohibited is moved from the first to the third set., is removed from the first server, assigned to a second server, and removed from the name server. Usage parameter values of the first address are monitored to determine whether at least one is below a value. If so, the first address is removed from the second server and moved from the third to the second set. Upon access to the first server no longer being prohibited, a second address of the second set is assigned to the first server and added to the name server.

Claims

1. A method for controlling access of a plurality of clients to a service, the service provided by each of a plurality of servers, the method performable by an addresses pool controller operably coupled to a name server for controlling client access to the servers, the method comprising:

creating a first set of addresses, a second set of addresses, and a third set of addresses, where the first set of addresses comprises addresses that are registered in the name server, the second set of addresses comprises addresses that are not registered in the name server, the third set of addresses comprises addresses not registered in the name server, and the second and the third sets of addresses are disjoint;

determining a first server of the servers as a server that has failed and to which the access is to be prohibited, the first server being associated with a first address of the first set of addresses;

moving the first address from the first set of addresses to the third set of addresses;

removing the first address from the first server and assigning the first address to a second server of the servers;

removing the first address from the name server;

monitoring one or more usage parameter values of the first address;

evaluating the one or more monitored usage parameter values to yield a determination as to whether at least one of the monitored one or more usage parameter values is below a minimum usage threshold value;

removing the first address from the second server and moving the first address from the third set of addresses to the second set of addresses if the determination indicates that the at least one of the usage parameter values is below the minimum usage threshold value;

determining that access to the first server is no longer to be prohibited;

assigning a second address of the second set of addresses to the first server; and

adding the second address to the name server, to permit fail-back of the first server.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein each address comprises one or more of an Internet protocol (IP) address, a fiber channel address, and a universal resource locator (URL) address.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the name server comprises a domain name system (DNS) server, and each address of the first set of addresses is registered in the DNS server.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein each server is associated with at least one address registered in the name server.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising removing the second address from the second set of addresses and adding the second address to the first set of addresses as a further first address.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the second server holds processes assigned to the first address, the processes assigned to the first address being one or more of processes that were already initiated on the first server before occurrence of an incident, and processes being requested by a client after the occurrence of the incident, the client having cached the first address before the occurrence of the incident.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that access to the first server is no longer to be prohibited is triggered upon repairing the first server.

8. A computer-readable medium having computer-readable instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method for controlling access of a plurality of clients to a service, the service provided by each of a plurality of servers, the method comprising:

creating a first set of addresses, a second set of addresses, and a third set of addresses, where the first set of addresses comprises addresses that are registered in a name server, the second set of addresses comprises addresses that are not registered in the name server, the third set of addresses comprises addresses not registered in the name server, and the second and the third sets of addresses are disjoint;

determining a first server of the servers as a server that has failed and to which the access is to be prohibited, the first server being associated with a first address of the first set of addresses;

moving the first address from the first set of addresses to the third set of addresses;

removing the first address from the first server and assigning the first address to a second server of the servers; and

removing the first address from the name server.

9. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the method further comprises:

monitoring one or more usage parameter values of the first address;

evaluating the one or more monitored usage parameter values to yield a determination as to whether at least one of the monitored one or more usage parameter values is below a minimum usage threshold value;

removing the first address from the second server and moving the first address from the third set of addresses to the second set of addresses if the determination indicates that the at least one of the usage parameter values is below the minimum usage threshold value;

determining that access to the first server is no longer to be prohibited;

assigning a second address of the second set of addresses to the first server; and

adding the second address to the name server, to permit fail-back of the first server.

10. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises removing the second address from the second set of addresses and adding the second address to the first set of addresses as a further first address.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the second server holds processes assigned to the first address, the processes assigned to the first address being one or more of processes that were already initiated on the first server before occurrence of an incident, and processes being requested by a client after the occurrence of the incident, the client having cached the first address before the occurrence of the incident.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein determining that access to the first server is no longer to be prohibited is triggered upon repairing the first server.

13. An apparatus comprising:

networking hardware to operably couple to a name server;

a processor; and

a computer-readable data storage medium storing processor-executable instructions performable by the processor to;

create a first set of addresses, a second set of addresses, and a third set of addresses, the first set comprising addresses registered in the name server, each of the second set and the third set comprising addresses not registered in the name server, and the second and the third sets of addresses being disjoint;

move a first address of a first server that has failed and to which access is to be prohibited from the first set to the third set, remove the first address from the first server and assign the first address to a second server, and remove the first address from the name server;

in response to a condition being satisfied, remove the first address from the second server, and move the first address from the third set to the second set;

upon which the access to the server no longer being prohibited, assign a second address of the second set to the first set, and add the second address to the name server.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein each address comprises one or more of an Internet protocol (IP) address, a fiber channel address, and a universal resource locator (URL) address.

15. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein each server is associated with at least one address registered in the name server.

16. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the second server holds processes assigned to the first address, the processes assigned to the first address being one or more of processes that were already initiated on the first server before occurrence of an incident, and processes being requested by a client after the occurrence of the incident, the client having cached the first address before the occurrence of the incident.