Systems and methods for monitoring network exchanges between a client and a server

• US 6,748,431 B1
• Filed: 05/26/2000
• Issued: 06/08/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Fleig, Roger A., Ruckebusch, Denis L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Harrell, Robert B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): LE, HIEU C
• Application Number:
  US09/579,946
• Time in Patent Office: 1,474 Days
• Field of Search: 709/223, 709/224, 709/231-233, 709/227-228, 707/370
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/18 Protocol analysers

Abstract

Systems and methods for monitoring exchanges between a client and a server across a network. Implementation of the present invention takes place in association with a client and server that use standard Internet protocol to exchange requests and responses over a network. An extendable network monitor is employed to obtain a network monitor trace. Entire requests and responses are rebuilt. Chunked information is coalesced. Interleaved packets are collected. Bodies of data written in extensible markup language are reformatted by including white space and highlighting important data. Bodies of data written in hyper-text markup language are optionally removed from the requests and responses. As such, and in accordance with the present invention, the requests and responses exchanged by a client and a server across a network are made easily readable to a user, thereby allowing the user to read, interpret, and analyze the exchanges to ensure that the exchanges occurred correctly and as expected.

Claims

1. In a networked computer system that employs standard Internet protocol to exchange information across a network, a method for allowing a user to analyze the exchange to verify that the exchange occurred correctly and as expected, the method comprising the steps for:

reading a network monitor trace, wherein the network monitor trace details an exchange of information that occurred across a network; and

rebuilding the exchange detailed in the trace to allow the exchange to be readable by the user, comprising the steps for;

collecting one or more packets corresponding to the exchange that are interleaved with packet information representing a separate exchange by;

storing data from the one or more packets in a buffer; and

determining whether all of the packets corresponding to the exchange have been collected by comparing a number of bytes in the buffer with a number of bytes provided in a header; and

reformatting data in the packets.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the step for reformatting data includes highlighting portions of the data.

3. A method as recited in claim 2, wherein the step for reformatting data further includes adding white space.

4. A method as recited in claim 3, wherein the data is reformatted upon determining that the data is written in XML.

5. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the step for collecting packets further includes identifying a source port and a destination port corresponding to the collected packets.

6. A method as recited in claim 5, wherein a code is used to represent the source port and the destination port that correspond to the collected packets.

7. A method as recited in claim 5, wherein the step for rebuilding the exchange further comprises a step for coalescing data from the collected packets that is chunked.

8. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising a step for flushing the stored data, wherein the stored data is flushed upon determining that all of the packets have been collected.

9. A method as recited in claim 8, further comprising a step for resetting the buffer, wherein the buffer is reset upon flushing the stored data.

10. In a networked computer system that includes a client and a server, wherein a request and a response are exchanged between the client and the server using standard Internet protocol, a method for allowing a user to analyze the request and response to verify that the request and response occurred correctly and as expected, the method comprising the acts of:

collecting a copy of one or more packets that correspond to an exchange between a client and a server across a network, wherein the packets are collected from a network monitor trace;

identifying a source port and a destination port corresponding to each collected packet;

storing data from each copy in a buffer within one or more buckets that each correspond to a unique combination of source port and destination port such that one bucket is identified to store a copy of each packet from the exchange between the client and the server separately from one or more other buckets identified to store one or more other packets from one or more other source port and destination port combinations;

determining whether the one bucket identified to store a copy of each packet from the exchange between the client and the server includes all packets from the exchange; and

if the one bucket identified to store a copy of each packet from the exchange between the client and the server includes all packets from the exchange;

flushing the data in the one bucket; and

resetting the one bucket so that it is ready to store any future exchanges between the client and the server.

11. A method as recited in claim 10, further comprising the acts of:

highlighting portions of the data stored in the buffer; and

adding white space to the data stored in the buffer.

12. A method as recited in claim 10, wherein the one or more packets are interleaved with one or more other packets representing a separate request and response.

13. A method as recited in claim 10, further comprising the act of coalescing data that is chunked.

14. A computer program product for use in a networked computer system, wherein the computer program product is used for implementing a method for allowing a user to analyze an exchange of information across a network, the computer program product comprising:

a computer readable medium for providing computer program code means utilized to implement the method, wherein the computer program code means comprises executable code for implementing the steps for;

reading a network monitor trace, wherein the network monitor trace details an exchange of information that occurred between a client and a server across a network; and

rebuilding the exchange detailed in the trace to allow the exchange to be readable by a user, the step for rebuilding comprising the steps for;

collecting a copy of all packets corresponding to the exchange;

storing the copy in a buffer within one or more buckets that each correspond to a unique combination of source port and destination port such that one bucket is identified to store the copy of all packets corresponding to the exchange separately from one or more other buckets identified to store copies of one or more other packets from one or more other exchanges between one or more other source port and destination port combinations;

reformatting data in the copy; and

flushing data in the one bucket for all packets corresponding to the exchange.

15. A computer program product as recited in claim 14, wherein multiple packets correspond to the exchange and the multiple packets are interleaved with one or more other packets representing one or more separate exchanges.

16. A computer program product as recited in claim 14, wherein the data is reformatted upon determining that the data is written in XML.

17. A computer program product as recited in claim 16, wherein the step for reformatting data includes adding white space.

18. A computer program product as recited in claim 16, wherein the step for reformatting data includes highlighting portions of the data.

19. A computer program product as recited in claim 14, further comprising a step for generating a code to represent the source port and destination port combination corresponding to the one bucket.

20. A computer program product as recited in claim 14, wherein the step for rebuilding the exchange further comprises a step for coalescing data that is chunked.

21. A computer program product as recited in claim 14, further comprising a step for resetting the buffer upon flushing the stored data.

22. A networked computer monitoring system that allows a user to analyze the requests and responses to verify that the requests and responses occurred correctly and as expected, the monitoring system comprising:

a client;

a server, wherein the server receives a request from the client and in turn sends a response to the client; and

a processor, wherein the processor performs the acts of;

preserving a copy of all packets corresponding to the request and response in one or more buffers within one or more buckets that each correspond to a unique combination of source port and destination port for the client and the server such that one bucket is identified to preserve the copy of all packets for a given source port and destination port combination separately from one or more other packets from one or more other exchanges for one or more other source port and destination port combinations;

coalescing data within the copy that is chunked; and

flushing each buffer with a copy of all packets corresponding to the request and response.

23. A monitoring system as recited in claim 22, wherein the processor further performs the acts of:

adding white space to the copy; and

highlighting important data within the copy.

24. In a networked computer system that includes a client and a server, wherein a request and a response are exchanged between the client and the server using standard Internet protocol, a method for allowing a user to analyze the request and response to verify that the request and response occurred correctly and as expected, the method comprising the acts of:

collecting a copy of one or more packets that correspond to a first request and response exchanged between a client and a server across a network, wherein the packets are collected from a network monitor trace;

collecting a copy of one or more packets that correspond to a second request and response exchanged between the client and the server across the network;

identifying a source port and a destination port corresponding to each collected packet;

storing data from each copy in one of a plurality of buffers, wherein each buffer represents a unique combination of source port and destination port, and wherein a buffer stores all packets representing an exchange that corresponds to the unique combination and a code is used to represent the unique combination;

determining whether a first buffer includes all of the packets corresponding to the first request and response exchanged by comparing a number of bytes in the first buffer with a number of bytes provided in a packet header;

flushing the data in the first buffer, wherein the data is flushed after all of the packets corresponding to the first request and response exchanged have been stored in the first buffer; and

resetting the first buffer.