Mobile director

• US 7,251,496 B2
• Filed: 10/03/2002
• Issued: 07/31/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/03/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Leung, Kent K., Thubert, Pascal, Forster, David C., Levy-Abegnoli, Eric
• Primary Examiner(s): Gesesse; Tilahun
• Application Number:
  US10/265,563
• Publication Number:
  US 20040092260A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,762 Days
• Field of Search: 455/516, 455/517, 455/432.1, 455/433, 455/435, 455/445, 455/435.1, 455/518, 455/519, 455/422.1, 370/392, 370/401, 370/354, 370/355, 370/331
• US Class Current: 455/517
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10015 Access to distributed or replicated servers, e.g. using brokers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1008 based on parameters of servers, e.g. available memory or workload monitoring of computer activity G06F11/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1021 based on client or server locations
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1036 Load balancing of requests to servers for services different from user content provisioning, e.g. load balancing across domain name servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/085 involving hierarchical organized mobility servers, e.g. hierarchical mobile IP [HMIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/12 between location registers or mobility servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/04 Network layer protocols, e.g. mobile IP [Internet Protocol]

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for processing registration requests by a Home Agent supporting Mobile IP are disclosed. A registration request is received from each of a plurality of Mobile Nodes, the registration request specifying a care-of address. A binding is established between each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes and the associated care-of address, each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes being associated with one another. For instance, the plurality of Mobile Nodes may be statically or dynamically assigned the same Home Address. A tunnel is then created between the Home Agent and the care-of address for each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes, thereby enabling a server request to be distributed by the Home Agent to one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes via the associated tunnel. For instance, a server request addressed to the Home Address may be forwarded to one of the Mobile Nodes assigned that Home Address.

Claims

1. In a Home Agent supporting Mobile IP, a method comprising:

receiving a registration request from each of a plurality of Mobile Nodes, the registration request specifying a care-of address;

establishing a binding between each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes and the associated care-of address, each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes being associated with one another as a group of servers among which server requests are to be distributed, wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes is a server and wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes has the same Home Address, thereby associating each of the group of servers with one another, wherein the plurality of Mobile Nodes have the same Home Agent; and

creating a tunnel between the Home Agent and the care-of address for each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes, thereby enabling a server request to be distributed by the Home Agent to one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes via the associated tunnel.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the servers supports identical server applications or server functions.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the servers provides access to the same web site or web page.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the servers remains connected to a different Foreign Agent.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the Home Agent receives a single registration request from each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes has registered with the Home Agent from a different Foreign Agent.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the Home Agent assigns the Home Address associated with a cluster of servers including the plurality of Mobile Nodes to each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes, thereby enabling a Correspondent Node to send a server request to the cluster of servers at the Home Address assigned to each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes in the cluster of servers.

8. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein the registration request includes a NAI, the method further comprising:

obtaining the Home Address associated with the NAI.

9. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the registration request received from each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes includes the same Home Address.

10. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein establishing a binding between each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes and the care-of address comprises:

storing a plurality of entries in a Mobility Binding Table, each of the plurality of entries identifying a cluster ID associated with the plurality of Mobile Nodes, the cluster ID indicating that the plurality of Mobile Nodes are servers in the group of servers.

11. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein the cluster ID is a single Home Address assigned to the plurality of Mobile Nodes.

12. The method as recited in claim 11, wherein each of the plurality of entries includes the care-of address associated with the corresponding Mobile Node.

13. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the care-of address is a collocated care-of address or a Foreign Agent care-of address.

14. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the Home Agent and the plurality of Mobile Nodes support Ipv4.

15. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the Home Agent and the plurality of Mobile Nodes support Ipv6.

16. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a server request from a Correspondent Node, the server request being addressed to the Home Address associated with the plurality of Mobile Nodes; and

forwarding the server request to one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes.

17. The method as recited in claim 16, further comprising:

selecting one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes to service the server request.

18. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein selecting one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes comprises:

selecting one of the Mobile Nodes according to one or more metrics including at least one of load information and proximity of the Mobile Nodes to the Correspondent Node.

19. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein selecting one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes to service the server request comprises:

ascertaining the plurality of Mobile Nodes associated with the Home Address prior to selecting one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes.

20. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein forwarding the server request to one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes comprises:

forwarding the server request to a care-of address associated with the selected Mobile Node.

21. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the plurality of Mobile Nodes share a single address.

22. The method as recited in claim 21, wherein the single address is a home address.

23. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the registration request received from each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes further includes a Home Address that has been assigned to the plurality of Mobile Nodes such that the same Home Address is assigned to each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes, wherein establishing a binding includes associating the Home Address with the care-of address of each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes.

24. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the registration request received from each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes further includes a NAI that enables a single Home Address to be dynamically assigned to the plurality of Mobile Nodes such that the same Home Address is assigned to each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes.

25. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein a single Home Address is statically or dynamically assigned to each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes such that the same Home Address is assigned to each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes.

26. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein establishing a binding between each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes and the associated care-of address comprises:

establishing a binding between a cluster identifier associated with the plurality of Mobile Nodes and the care-of address associated with each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes.

27. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the cluster identifier is a Home Address assigned to the plurality of Mobile Nodes such that the same Home Address is assigned to each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes.

30. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein the Home Agent does not receive subsequent registration requests from each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes.

28. In a Home Agent supporting Mobile IP, a method comprising:

receiving a registration request from each of a plurality of Mobile Nodes, the registration request specifying a care-of address;

establishing a binding between each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes and the associated care-of address, each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes being associated with one another; and

creating a tunnel between the Home Agent and the care-of address for each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes, thereby enabling a server request to be distributed by the Home Agent to one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes via the associated tunnel, wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes is a server and wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes has the same Home Address, thereby associating each of the group of servers with one another, wherein the plurality of Mobile Nodes have the same Home Agent;

wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes are servers;

wherein each of the servers does not roam to another location within the network after sending the registration request to the Home Agent.

29. The method as recited in claim 28, wherein each of the servers does not roam from a first Foreign Agent from which the server has registered to a second Foreign Agent.

31. The method as recited in claim 28, each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes being associated with one another such that a cluster identifier is associated with the plurality of Mobile Nodes.

32. The method as recited in claim 31, wherein the cluster identifier is a Home Address assigned to the plurality of Mobile Nodes such that the same Home Address is assigned to each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes, wherein establishing a binding between each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes and the associated care-of address comprises:

establishing a binding the Home Address associated with the plurality of Mobile Nodes and the care-of address associated with each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes.

33. A Home Agent supporting Mobile IP, comprising:

means for receiving a registration request from each of a plurality of Mobile Nodes, the registration request specifying a care-of address;

means for establishing a binding between each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes and the associated care-of address, each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes being associated with one another as a group of servers among which server requests are to be distributed, wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes is a server and wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes has the same Home Address, thereby associating each of the group of servers with one another; and

means for creating a tunnel between the Home Agent and the care-of address for each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes, thereby enabling a server request to be distributed by the Home Agent to one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes via the associated tunnel.

34. A computer-readable medium storing thereon computer-readable instructions, comprising:

instructions for receiving a registration request from each of a plurality of Mobile Nodes, the registration request specifying a care-of address;

instructions for establishing a binding between each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes and the associated care-of address, each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes being associated with one another as a group of servers among which server requests are to be distributed, wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes is a server and wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes has the same Home Address, thereby associating each of the group of servers with one another, wherein the plurality of Mobile Nodes have the same Home Agent; and

instructions for creating a tunnel between a Home Agent and the care-of address for each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes, thereby enabling a server request to be distributed by the Home Agent to one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes via the associated tunnel.

35. A Home Agent supporting Mobile IP, comprising:

a processor; and

a memory, at least one of the processor and the memory being adapted for;

receiving a registration request from each of a plurality of Mobile Nodes, the registration request specifying a care-of address;

establishing a binding between each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes and the associated care-of address, each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes being associated with one another as a group of servers among which server requests are to be distributed, wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes is a server and wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes has the same Home Address, thereby associating each of the group of servers with one another, wherein the plurality of Mobile Nodes have the same Home Agent; and

creating a tunnel between the Home Agent and the care-of address for each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes, thereby enabling a server request to be distributed by the Home Agent to one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes via the associated tunnel.

36. A server request dispatching system, comprising:

a network device supporting Mobile IP adapted for establishing a binding between a plurality of Mobile Nodes and associated care-of address, the plurality of Mobile Nodes being associated with one another as a group of servers having the same Home Address among which server requests are to be distributed, wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes is a server and wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes has the same Home Agent; and

a request dispatching mechanism adapted for receiving a server request from a Correspondent Node and forwarding the server request to one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes, the server request being addressed to the Home Address associated with the plurality of Mobile Nodes, wherein the network device is a Home Agent and wherein the Home Agent includes the request dispatching mechanism.

37. The server request dispatching system as recited in claim 36, wherein the network device being further adapted for creating a tunnel between the Home Agent and the care-of address for each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes, thereby enabling a server request to be distributed by the Home Agent to one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes via the associated tunnel.

38. The server request dispatching system as recited in claim 36, further comprising:

a dispatcher coupled to the network device, the dispatcher being adapted for selecting one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes to service the server request.

39. The server request dispatching system as recited in claim 38, wherein the network device is a Home Agent including the dispatcher.

40. The server request dispatching system as recited in claim 39, wherein the network device further includes the request dispatching mechanism.

41. A server request dispatching system, comprising:

a network device supporting Mobile IP adapted for establishing a binding between a plurality of Mobile Nodes and associated care-of address, the plurality of Mobile Nodes having the same Home Address, wherein the network device is a Home Agent;

a request dispatching mechanism adapted for receiving a server request from a Correspondent Node and forwarding the server request to one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes, the server request being addressed to the Home Address associated with the plurality of Mobile Nodes, wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes is a server and wherein each of the plurality of Mobile Nodes has the same Home Address, thereby associating each of the group of servers with one another, wherein the plurality of Mobile Nodes have the same Home Agent; and

a dispatcher coupled to the network device, the dispatcher being adapted for selecting one of the plurality of Mobile Nodes to service the server request;

wherein the dispatcher is separate from the network device.