Software, systems and methods for managing a distributed network

• US 7,260,635 B2
• Filed: 02/18/2003
• Issued: 08/21/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Centrisoft Corp.
• Original Assignee: Centrisoft Corp.
• Inventors: Joshi, Varad V., Pandya, Suketu J.
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, THONG H
• Application Number:
  US10/369,259
• Publication Number:
  US 20040153545A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,645 Days
• Field of Search: 709/224, 709/228, 709/238, 709/245, 709/227, 718/100, 718/104, 370/322, 370/254, 713/152, 707/104
• US Class Current: 709/226
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3495 for systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/046 comprising network management agents or mobile agents therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0894 Policy-based network configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0895 Configuration of virtualised networks or elements, e.g. virtualised network function or OpenFlow elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0896 Bandwidth or capacity management, i.e. automatically increasing or decreasing capacities flow or congestion control using dynamic resource allocation, e.g. in-call renegotiation, H04L47/76
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5003 Managing SLA; Interaction between SLA and QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5009 Determining service level performance parameters or violations of service level contracts, e.g. violations of agreed response time or mean time between failures [MTBF]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5096 wherein the managed service relates to distributed or central networked applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/06 Generation of reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 by checking functioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0829 Packet loss
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0852 Delays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/087 Jitter
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0882 Utilisation of link capacity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0888 Throughput
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0894 Packet rate
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/106 using time related information in packets, e.g. by adding timestamps
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 : Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 : Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/11 : Identifying congestion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/20 : Traffic policing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/50 : Queue scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/70 : Admission control; Resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/803 : Application aware
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/828 : Allocation of resources per group of connections, e.g. per group of users
• 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 67/101 : based on network conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1014 : based on the content of a request
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1023 : based on a hash applied to IP addresses or costs
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1029 : using data related to the state of servers by a load balancer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 : User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/61 : taking into account QoS or priority requirements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/162 : involving adaptations of sockets based mechanisms secure socket layer H04L63/168
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 : Network security protocols

Abstract

A system and method for managing network bandwidth consumption. The system may include an agent module loadable on a networked computer and configured to aid in managing bandwidth consumption within a network. The agent module is configured to obtain an allocation of network bandwidth usable by the networked Computer, and is further configured to sub-allocate such allocation among multiple bandwidth-consuming components associated with the networked computer. The system may further include multiple such agent modules loadable on plural networked computers, and a control module configured to interact with each of the agent modules to dynamically manage bandwidth usage by the networked computers.

Claims

1. A system for dynamically allocating bandwidth on a network link interconnecting a plurality of computers, including a control computer and multiple agent computers, where each agent computer is capable of running one or more applications employing one or more sockets, the system comprising:

a control module adapted to run on the control computer; and

plural agent modules, each being adapted to run on one of the agent computers,

where each agent module is adapted to dynamically monitor socket status on its associated agent computer and repeatedly communicate with the control module based on such socket status,

where the control module is adapted to dynamically determine, for each agent computer, an agent allocation of the bandwidth on the network link to subsequently allocate to each agent module based on communications received from the agent modules, such that the agent allocation for one agent computer depends on the socket status of such agent computer relative to the socket status of the other agent computers,

where the control module is adapted to dynamically allocate the determined agent allocation of bandwidth to each associated agent module, and

where each agent module includes multiple tiers of bandwidth management components adapted to sub-allocate the agent allocation for the associated agent computer.

2. The system of claim 1, where the control module is adapted to dynamically and repeatedly update the agent allocations based on socket statuses of the agent computers relative to each other.

3. The system of claim 2, where the control module is adapted to update agent allocations such that agent allocations are decreased for agent computers consuming lower percentages of past agent allocations.

4. The system of claim 1, where each agent module is adapted, in the event that its corresponding agent computer is running multiple applications, to sub-allocate its agent allocation into an application allocation for each of those applications.

5. The system of claim 4, where the agent module is adapted to dynamically and repeatedly update the application allocations based on socket statuses of the applications relative to each other.

6. The system of claim 4, where each application allocation depends on how many sockets are open for the corresponding application, relative to other applications which are to receive a portion of the agent allocation.

7. The system of claim 4, where each application allocation depends on assigned priorities for sockets of the corresponding application, relative to other applications which are to receive a portion of the agent allocation.

8. The system of claim 4, where each application allocation depends on consumption of prior allocations for the corresponding application, relative to other applications which are to receive a portion of the agent allocation.

9. The system of claim 4, where each application allocation depends on how many sockets are open for the corresponding application, assigned priorities for those sockets, and on consumption of prior allocations by those sockets, relative to other applications which are to receive a portion of the agent allocation.

10. The system of claim 4, where each agent module is adapted, in the event of an application with multiple sockets, to sub-allocate the application allocation for such application into a socket allocation for each of the sockets.

11. The system of claim 10, where the agent module is adapted to dynamically and repeatedly update the socket allocations, depending on consumption activity of the sockets relative to each other.

12. The system of claim 10, where each socket allocation depends on an assigned priority for the corresponding socket, relative to other sockets which are to receive a portion of the application allocation.

13. The system of claim 10, where each socket allocation depends on consumption of prior allocations by the corresponding socket, relative to other sockets which are to receive a portion of the application allocation.

14. The system of claim 10, where each socket allocation depends on an assigned priority for the corresponding socket, and on consumption of prior allocations by such socket, relative to other sockets which are to receive a portion of the application allocation.

15. The system of claim 1, where each agent module includes an agent bandwidth manager and is adapted to launch an application bandwidth manager for each of multiple applications running on the agent computer, and launch a socket bandwidth manager for each of multiple sockets associated with those applications.

16. The system of claim 15,

where the agent bandwidth manager is adapted to receive the agent allocation for its associated agent computer and sub-allocate the agent allocation, such that each application bandwidth manager underlying the agent bandwidth manager receives an application allocation for its associated application;

and

where each application bandwidth manager is adapted to sub-allocate the application allocation of its associated application, such that each socket bandwidth manager underlying the application bandwidth manager receives a socket allocation for its corresponding socket.

17. The system of claim 16, where each socket bandwidth manager is configured to report consumption data upstream to the application bandwidth manager overlying the socket bandwidth manager.

18. The system of claim 17, where each application bandwidth manager is configured to sub-allocate its application allocation based on effective socket priorities of the sockets underlying the application bandwidth manager, where the effective socket priority for a particular socket is based on an assigned priority of the socket and on usage of past socket allocations by the socket.

19. The system of claim 16, where each application bandwidth manager is configured to report consumption data upstream to the agent bandwidth manager overlying the application bandwidth manager.

20. The system of claim 19, where each agent bandwidth manager is configured to sub-allocate its agent allocation based on effective socket priorities of the sockets underlying the agent bandwidth manager, where the effective socket priority for a particular socket is based on an assigned priority of the socket and on usage of past socket allocations by the socket.

21. The system of claim 16, where each agent module is configured to dynamically and periodically update application allocations and socket allocations based on interactions between the agent bandwidth manager and the application bandwidth managers underlying the agent bandwidth manager, and between the application bandwidth managers and the socket bandwidth managers underlying the application bandwidth managers.

22. The system of claim 21, where the socket allocations are updated more frequently than the application allocations.

23. The system of claim 1, where each agent module is adapted to:

assign a socket priority to a socket opened on the agent computer associated with such agent module;

provide a socket allocation of bandwidth to the socket based on the socket priority; and

detect whether the socket is being used to perform a predefined network transaction and, after such detection, modify the socket priority for such socket and update the socket allocation to account for such modification.