MULTI-LEVEL PEERING IN A CONTENT DELIVERY FRAMEWORK

• US 20150180971A1
• Filed: 12/22/2014
• Published: 06/25/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Level 3 Communications LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Level 3 Communications LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Varney, Lewis Robert, Lipstone, Laurence R., Crowder, William, Swart, Andrew, Newton, Christopher
• Granted Patent: US 9,667,506 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/0808 with cache invalidating means G06F12/0815 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/173 using an interconnection network, e.g. matrix, shuffle, pyramid, star, snowflake
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/177 Initialisation or configuration control processor initialisation G06F9/4405
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5055 considering software capabilities, i.e. software resources associated or available to the machine
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5083 Techniques for rebalancing the load in a distributed system
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0813 characterised by the conditions triggering a change of settings
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0816 the condition being an adaptation, e.g. in response to network events
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0823 characterised by the purposes of a change of settings, e.g. optimising configuration for enhancing reliability for optimising operational conditions of wireless networks H04W24/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0869 Validating the configuration within one network element
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/50 Network service management, e.g. ensuring proper service fulfilment according to agreements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5041 characterised by the time relationship between creation and deployment of a service
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/509 wherein the managed service relates to media content delivery, e.g. audio, video or TV
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/04 Processing captured monitoring data, e.g. for logfile generation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/08 Monitoring or testing based on specific metrics, e.g. QoS, energy consumption or environmental parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/10 Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/70 Admission control; Resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/83 based on usage prediction
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/10 of different types
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/2503 : Translation of Internet protocol [IP] addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4511 : using domain name system [DNS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4535 : using an address exchange platform which sets up a session between two nodes, e.g. rendezvous servers, session initiation protocols [SIP] registrars or H.323 gatekeepers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/58 : Caching of addresses or names
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 : Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 : Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 : Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 : specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 : in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1078 : Resource delivery mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/2885 : Hierarchically arranged intermediate devices, e.g. for hierarchical caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/289 : Intermediate processing functionally located close to the data consumer application, e.g. in same machine, in same home or in same sub-network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 : Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 : Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 : Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5682 : Policies or rules for updating, deleting or replacing the stored data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/60 : Scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests, e.g. requests for application data transmissions using the analysis and optimisation of the required network resources admission control or resource allocation H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/03 : Protocol definition or specification protocol conformance testing H04L1/244

Abstract

A computer-implemented method is operable in a content delivery framework having a network comprising multiple service endpoints running on a plurality of devices. A plurality of the service endpoints comprise a peer group. Each node in the peer group has at least one kind of responsibility. The method includes receiving a request at a first node in the peer group, wherein the nodes in the peer group are ranked hierarchically, and wherein the first node has a first rank in the peer group; and, based on a kind of responsibility the first node has for the request, attempting to process the request using a second node in the peer group, wherein the second node has a second rank in the peer group distinct from the first rank of the first node.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, operable in a content delivery framework having a network comprising multiple service endpoints running on a plurality of devices, a plurality of said multiple service endpoints comprising a peer group, wherein each node in said peer group has at least one kind of responsibility, the method comprising:

(A) receiving a request at a first node in said peer group, wherein the nodes in the peer group are ranked hierarchically, and wherein said first node has a first rank in said peer group; and

(B) based on a kind of responsibility said first node has for said request, attempting to process the request using a second node in the peer group, wherein the second node has a second rank in said peer group distinct from said first rank of said first node.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said first rank and said second rank define a parent-child relationship between said first node and said second node.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the second node is in a subcluster and wherein the said attempting to process the request in (B) targets said subcluster.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the peer group comprises multiple subclusters and wherein first node is in a first subcluster of said multiple subclusters and said second node is an a second subcluster of said multiple subclusters, said second subcluster being distinct from said first subcluster.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the peer group comprises multiple superclusters and wherein first node is in a first superclusters of said multiple superclusters and said second node is an a second superclusters of said multiple superclusters, said second superclusters being distinct from said first superclusters.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the said attempting to process the request in (B) targets said second supercluster.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein said attempting to process the request in (B) comprises one of:

(B)(1) proxying the request to said second node; and

(B)(2) redirecting the request to said second node.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the request relates to a particular resource, and wherein said attempting to process in (B) is based on at least one kind responsibility said first node has for requests relating to said particular resource.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the kind of responsibility the first node has for the particular resource is defined in a policy associated with the particular resource.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the policy is defined for a group of resources.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein the group of resources comprises a property.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein the policy is based on one or more of:

thresholds for popularity, cacheability, and size of the particular resource.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein each node in said peer group has at least one kind of responsibility relating to delivery of resources.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the at least one kind of responsibility that a node has relating to delivery of resources is taken from a discrete set of responsibilities comprising of:

non-responsible, cache-responsible, and fill-responsible.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein there is a responsibility set corresponding to each kind of responsibility in said discrete set of responsibilities, and wherein nodes in the peer group are assigned to at least one said responsibility set.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising:

determining the kind of responsibility said first node has for said request.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein said determining the kind of responsibility comprises:

determining said first node'"'"'s membership in said responsibility sets.

19. The method of claim 1 wherein the request relates to a particular resource, and wherein said attempting to process the request in (B) comprises one of:

(B)(1) proxying the request to said second node; and

(B)(2) attempting to obtain the particular resource from said second node; and

(B)(3) redirecting the request to said second node.

20. The method of claim 1 wherein the request relates to a particular resource, and wherein said attempting to process in (B) is also based on a resource type of said particular resource.

21. The method of claim 20 wherein said resource type of said particular resource is from a discrete set of resource policy types comprising the types:

rejectable, redirectable, and servable.

22. The method of claim 1 wherein, when said first node has no responsibility for said request, said attempting to process said request in (B) comprises:

(B)(1) redirecting the request to said second node.

23. The method of claim 1 wherein, when said first node has no responsibility for said request, said attempting to process said request in (B) comprises:

(B)(2) proxying the request to said second node.

24. The method of claim 1 wherein the request relates to a particular resource, and wherein, when said first node is fill-responsible for said request, and said particular resource is not in a cache of said first node, said attempting to process said request in (B) comprises:

(B)(3) attempting to obtain the particular resource from said second node.

25. The method of claim 1 wherein at least some of said service endpoints in said peer group constructed and adapted to deliver resources.

26. The method of claim 25 wherein all of said service endpoints in said peer group are delivery service endpoints.

5. The method of claim 5 wherein the said attempting to process the request in (B) targets said second subcluster.

27. A device, operable in a content delivery framework having network comprising multiple service endpoints running on a plurality of devices, a plurality of said multiple service endpoints comprising a peer group, wherein the nodes in the peer group are ranked hierarchically, and wherein each node in said peer group has at least one kind of responsibility, the device comprising:

(a) hardware including memory and at least one processor, and

(b) a first service running on said hardware, said first service being at a first node in said peer group, and wherein said first service is configured to;

(A) receive a request; and

(B) based on a kind of responsibility said first node has for said request, attempt to process the request using a second node in the peer group, and wherein said first node has a first rank in said peer group, wherein the second node has a second rank in said peer group distinct from said first rank of said first node.

28. A system comprising a device according to claim 27.

29. A computer program product having computer readable instructions stored on non-transitory computer readable media, the computer readable instructions including instructions for implementing a computer-implemented method, said method operable on a device comprising hardware including memory and at least one processor and running a service on said hardware, said method operable in a content delivery framework having network comprising multiple service endpoints running on a plurality of devices, a plurality of said multiple service endpoints comprising a peer group, wherein each node in said peer group has at least one kind of responsibility, the method comprising:

(A) receiving a request at a first node in said peer group, wherein the nodes in the peer group are ranked hierarchically, and wherein said first node has a first rank in said peer group; and

(B) based on a kind of responsibility said first node has for said request, attempting to process the request using a second node in the peer group, wherein the second node has a second rank in said peer group distinct from said first rank of said first node.