Web service multi-key rate limiting method and system

• US 7,844,707 B2
• Filed: 12/20/2007
• Issued: 11/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: R2 Solutions LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Seethana, Sidharta, Kumar, Amit, Kothari, Pankaj
• Primary Examiner(s): BOUTAH, ALINA A
• Application Number:
  US11/961,629
• Publication Number:
  US 20090164632A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,076 Days
• Field of Search: 709217-219, 709223-225, 709/244, 726/3
• US Class Current: 709/225
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/564 Enhancement of application control based on intercepted application data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5651 Reducing the amount or size of exchanged application data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/567 Integrating service provisioning from a plurality of service providers

Abstract

The present invention provides a method and computer system for limiting a number of web service programming calls including intercepting a web request for web service programming from a client and extracting call specific data from the web request. The method and computing system further includes transmitting call specific data to a plurality of rate limiter servers and on the rate limiter servers, calculating a total number of web requests, where the web requests are identified by the call specific data. The method and computing system further includes receiving web request totals from the rate limiter servers and thereby determining accessibility of the client to the web request based on a comparison of the number of web requests for the web service programming relative to a predetermined access limit.

Claims

1. A method for limiting a number of web service programming calls, the method comprising:

intercepting a web request for web service programming from a client;

extracting call specific data from the web request, wherein the web request includes at least one of;

a client identifier, an application identifier and a client IP address;

generating a plurality of hashes from the call specific data;

accessing a transport module to determine which of the plurality of rate limiter servers to send the hashes;

transmitting the hashes to a plurality of rate limiter servers;

on the rate limiter servers, calculating a total number of web requests, identified by the hashes;

receiving web request totals from the rate limiter servers; and

determining accessibility of the client to the web request based on a comparison of the number of web requests for the web service programming relative to a predetermined access limit.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the determination of accessibility includes denying access if the number of web requests exceeds the predefined limit.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining a priority designation of the web request, wherein the accessibility of the client to the web request is also based on the priority designation.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the accessibility determination is predicated on receipt the web request totals from the rate limiter servers.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising:

re-assigning rate limiter server assignments if a connection is disrupted between the plurality of rate limiter server.

6. Computer non-transitory readable media comprising program code that when executed by a programmable processor causes the processor to execute a method for limiting a number of web service programming calls, the computer readable media comprising:

program code for intercepting a web request for web service programming from a client;

program code for extracting call specific data from the web request, wherein the web request includes at least one of;

a client identifier, an application identifier and a client IP address;

program code for generating a plurality the call specific data;

accessing a transport module to determine which of the plurality of rate limiter servers to send the hashes;

program code for transmitting the hashes to a plurality of rate limiter servers;

on the rate limiter servers, program code for calculating a total number of web requests, identified by the hashes;

program code for receiving web request totals from the rate limiter servers; and

program code for determining accessibility of the client to the web request based on a comparison of the number of web requests for the web service programming relative to a predetermined access limit.

7. The non-transitory computer readable media of claim 6 wherein the determination of accessibility includes denying access if the number of web requests exceeds the predefined limit.

8. The non-transitory computer readable media of claim 6 further comprising:

program code for determining a priority designation of the web request, wherein the accessibility of the client to the web request is also based on the priority designation.

9. The non-transitory computer readable media of claim 6 wherein the accessibility determination is predicated on receipt the web request totals from the rate limiter servers.

10. The non-transitory computer readable media of claim 9 further comprising:

program code for re-assigning rate limiter server assignments if a connection is disrupted between the plurality of rate limiter server.

11. An apparatus for limiting a number of web service programming calls, the apparatus comprising:

a memory device having executable instructions stored therein; and

a processing device, in response to the executable instructions, operative to;

intercept a web request for web service programming from a client;

extract call specific data from the web request, wherein the web request includes at least one of;

a client identifier, an application identifier and a client IP address;

generate a plurality of hashes from the call specific data;

access a transport module to determine which of the plurality of rate limiter servers to send the hashes;

transmit the hashes to a plurality of rate limiter servers;

on the rate limiter servers, calculate a total number of web requests, identified by the hashes;

receive web request totals from the rate limiter servers; and

determine accessibility of the client to the web request based on a comparison of the number of web requests for the web service programming relative to a predetermined access limit.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the determination of accessibility includes denying access if the number of web requests exceeds the predefined limit.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, the processing device, in response to the executable instructions, further operative to:

determine a priority designation of the web request, wherein the accessibility of the client to the web request is also based on the priority designation.

14. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the accessibility determination is predicated on receipt the web request totals from the rate limiter servers.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, the processing device, in response to the executable instructions, further operative to:

re-assign rate limiter server assignments if a connection is disrupted between the plurality of rate limiter server.