Online information delivery system including replicated sites from which information can be delivered
First Claim
1. A system for delivering information from a first site over a communications network and to remote users in response to requests from the remote users, the first site including database means in which said information to be delivered to the remote users is stored,wherein the first site is comprised by a plurality of sub-sites each accessible by a common network address, wherein each sub-site includes a respective database means, a respective server means, a respective means for logging-in users, and a respective means for storing details of logged-in users, wherein the plurality of sub-sites are interconnected and each sub-site means for storing details of logged-in users stores details of all users logged in to the plurality of sub-sites at any particular point in time, wherein the database means of the plurality of sub-sites are content mirrored whereby they each store the same information for delivery to the remote users upon request, and wherein the system includes means to select a first said sub-site for a user to login to, to connect said user to the first said sub-site, to comply with a user request for information by supplying information from the respective database means and, upon failure of a component or process of the first said sub-site, to transfer said user logged-in at the first said sub-site to a second said sub-site where the respective user request is complied with, by supplying information from the respective database means, without requiring said user to log-in at the second said sub-site, details of said user being available from the means for storing details of all logged-in users included at the second said sub-site.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
Information stored at a site remote from a user (1) is accessible by the user via a communications network (4), such as the Internet or an Intranet. In order to provide a degree of fault tolerance, the site is constituted by a number of similar sub-sites (5a, 6a, 7a, 8a, 9a; 5b, 6b, 7b, 8b, 9b etc), which each have the same network address as far as the user is concerned. A user, who requests the supply of particular information as part of a URL (Uniform Resource Locator), is initially connected to one sub-site having a respective server (8a; 8b; 8c) and a login procedure executed by a daemon process (7a; 7b: 7c). In the event of certain faults in the one sub-site the user is connected to a second sub-site without any requirement to repeat the login procedure, as a result of all sub-sites being provided with all user login details, which are stored by session daemons 9a, 9b, 9c, and the original request is complied with at the second sub-site.
57 Citations
10 Claims
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1. A system for delivering information from a first site over a communications network and to remote users in response to requests from the remote users, the first site including database means in which said information to be delivered to the remote users is stored,
wherein the first site is comprised by a plurality of sub-sites each accessible by a common network address, wherein each sub-site includes a respective database means, a respective server means, a respective means for logging-in users, and a respective means for storing details of logged-in users, wherein the plurality of sub-sites are interconnected and each sub-site means for storing details of logged-in users stores details of all users logged in to the plurality of sub-sites at any particular point in time, wherein the database means of the plurality of sub-sites are content mirrored whereby they each store the same information for delivery to the remote users upon request, and wherein the system includes means to select a first said sub-site for a user to login to, to connect said user to the first said sub-site, to comply with a user request for information by supplying information from the respective database means and, upon failure of a component or process of the first said sub-site, to transfer said user logged-in at the first said sub-site to a second said sub-site where the respective user request is complied with, by supplying information from the respective database means, without requiring said user to log-in at the second said sub-site, details of said user being available from the means for storing details of all logged-in users included at the second said sub-site.
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7. A method for use in delivering information from a first site over a communications network and to remote users in response to requests from the remote users, the first site including database means in which said information to be delivered to the remote users is stored, wherein the first site is comprised by a plurality of sub-sites each accessible by a common network address,
wherein each sub-site includes a respective database means and a respective means for storing details of logged-in users, and wherein the database means of the plurality of sub-sites are content mirrored whereby they each store the same information for delivery to the remote users upon request, the method including the steps of (a) upon a user request for information, selecting a first said sub-site for the user to log in at, connecting the user to the first said sub-site, logging in the user at the first said sub-site, passing details of the logged in user to all said sub-sites for storage in the respective means for storing details of logged-in users and complying with the user request for information by supplying information from the respective database means, and (b) upon component or process failure at a said sub-site to which a user is logged in, connecting the logged in user to another said sub-site and complying with the user request thereat, by supplying information from the respective database means, without requiring the user to log in at the other said sub-site, details of the user being obtained from the details of all logged-in users stored at the other said sub-site.
Specification