Method and apparatus for delivery of data over a network based on determination of network parameters
First Claim
1. A method of processing a request for transfer of a designated set of data from a server over a network, the method comprising the steps of:
- measuring transfer times of at least first and second transport units sent by a client through at least a portion of the network prior to the client sending the data transfer request to the sever, the second transport unit having a size different than that of the first transport unit;
processing the measured transfer times to obtain a current value of at least one network parameter, by solving a set of equations involving the measured transfer times, the size of at least one of the first and second transport units, and the at least one network parameter; and
utilizing the current value of the network parameter to determine a buffer size for use in receiving the designated set of data transferred over the network in response to the request.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A request for transfer of data over a network is processed to obtain current values of network parameters such as aggregate network processing overhead and effective network bandwidth. In response to receipt of a data transfer request, the maximum size transport unit which can be sent over the network without packet loss is determined. The full maximum size transport unit is then sent over the network from, for example, a client to a server, in order to provide a measure of full size transport time. Similarly, a half size transport unit is sent over the network to provide a measure of half size transfer time. The fall and half size transfer times are then used to compute current values for the network processing overhead and effective network bandwidth parameters. The current values are processed to determine an internal buffer size to be allocated for use in receiving data transferred over the network in response to the request. The data transfer request is therefore processed in a manner which is substantially independent of the particular transmission protocol and medium used by the network, such that the techniques can be applied to any type of network.
83 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of processing a request for transfer of a designated set of data from a server over a network, the method comprising the steps of:
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measuring transfer times of at least first and second transport units sent by a client through at least a portion of the network prior to the client sending the data transfer request to the sever, the second transport unit having a size different than that of the first transport unit; processing the measured transfer times to obtain a current value of at least one network parameter, by solving a set of equations involving the measured transfer times, the size of at least one of the first and second transport units, and the at least one network parameter; and utilizing the current value of the network parameter to determine a buffer size for use in receiving the designated set of data transferred over the network in response to the request. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An apparatus for processing a request for transfer of a designated set of data from a server over a network, the apparatus comprising:
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a processor operative to measure transfer times of at least first and second transport units sent by a client through at least a portion of the network prior to the client sending the data transfer request to the server, the second transport unit having a size different than that of the first transport unit, and to process the measured transfer times to obtain a current value of at least one network parameter by solving a set of equations involving the measured transfer times, the size of at least one of the first and second transport units, and the at least one network parameter; and a memory associated with the processor, the memory including at least one internal buffer allocated for use in receiving the designated set of data transferred over the network in response to the request, wherein the size of the allocated internal buffer is determined based on the current value of the network parameter. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification