System and method for tracking unique visitors to a website

• US 7,849,202 B2
• Filed: 11/07/2008
• Issued: 12/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/06/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Urchin Software Corporation (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Muret, Paul Nicolas, Vance, Jonathon Andrew, Moon, Hui Sok
• Primary Examiner(s): Maung; Zarni
• Application Number:
  US12/266,934
• Publication Number:
  US 20090204704A1
• Time in Patent Office: 760 Days
• Field of Search: 709217-219, 709/203, 709225-229
• US Class Current: 709/228
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0876 Network utilisation, e.g. volume of load or congestion level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/142 Managing session states for stateless protocols; Signalling session states; State transitions; Keeping-state mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A system and method for analyzing traffic to a website is provided that is based on log files and that uses both server-side and client-side information channeled through one source to create a more complete picture of activity to a website. In one preferred embodiment, a sensor code is embedded in a requested web page, and sends information back to the web server where the website resides. This additional information is logged along with normal requests.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of analyzing traffic to a website hosted by a server, comprising:

sending, from the server, a web page with an embedded sensor to a client in response to a first request from the client; and

receiving, at the server, an additional request from the client, the additional request generated by the embedded sensor embedded in the web page received by the client and comprising information about the first request;

wherein the additional request includes information from at least one of a plurality of related cookies for the website stored at the client device, the plurality of related cookies for determining a visitor session to the website and including;

a first cookie having a first expiration time and storing data defining two or more client sessions times with the website; and

a second cookie having a second expiration time that occurs before the first expiration time and that defines a client session with the website.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the additional request is adapted to not be intercepted by a cache/proxy system.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the additional request comprises a unique query.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the unique query comprises:

a unique number;

data collected from a client browser; and

data collected from at least one of the plurality of related cookies.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein:

the plurality of related cookies comprise a third cookie having an expiration time less than the expiration time of the second cookie and that defines a client session with the website.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the expiration time of the third cookie is zero.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the two or more client sessions time stored in the first cookie include:

a first time value indicating a time of a first session of the client with the website;

a second time value indicating a time of a last session of the client with the website; and

a third time value indicating a time of a current session of the client with the website.

8. A computer-implemented method of obtaining information about a visitor to a website hosted by a server, comprising:

delivering data from the server to a client of the visitor in response to a first request from the client; and

receiving, at the server and from the client information about the first request after the data is delivered to the client of the visitor, wherein the information about the first request is sufficiently unique so as to not be intercepted by a cache/proxy system;

wherein the additional request includes information from at least one of a plurality of related cookies for the website stored at the client device, the plurality of related cookies for determining a visitor session to the website and including;

a first cookie having a first expiration time and storing data defining two or more client sessions times with the website; and

a second cookie having a second expiration time that occurs before the first expiration time and that defines a client session with the website.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the additional request comprises a unique query.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the additional request comprises:

a unique number;

data collected from a client browser; and

data collected from at least one of the plurality of related cookies.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the plurality of related cookies comprise a third cookie having an expiration time less than the expiration time of the second cookie and that defines a client session with the website.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the expiration time of the third cookie is zero.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the two or more client sessions time stored in the first cookie include:

a first time value indicating a time of a first session of the client with the website;

a second time value indicating a time of a last session of the client with the website; and

a third time value indicating a time of a current session of the client with the website.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein the expiration time of the second cookie defines a session expiration time period for which a client session with the website expires when the client has been inactive during the session expiration time period.

15. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

receiving at a client a web page with an embedded sensor in response to a first request from the client to a server hosting a website;

generating, at the client, an additional request by the embedded sensor embedded in the web page received by the client, the additional request comprising information about the first request and including information from at least one of a plurality of related cookies for the website stored at the client device, the plurality of related cookies for determining a visitor session to the website and including;

a first cookie having a first expiration time and storing data defining two or more client sessions times with the website; and

a second cookie having a second expiration time that occurs before the first expiration time and that defines a client session with the website; and

sending the additional request from the client to the server.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the additional request is adapted to not be intercepted by a cache/proxy system.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the plurality of related cookies comprise a third cookie having an expiration time less than the expiration time of the second cookie and that defines a client session with the website.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the additional request comprises:

a unique number;

data collected from a client browser; and

data collected from at least one of the plurality of related cookies.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the expiration time of the third cookie is zero.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the two or more client sessions time stored in the first cookie include:

a first time value indicating a time of a first session of the client with the website;

a second time value indicating a time of a last session of the client with the website; and

a third time value indicating a time of a current session of the client with the website.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein generating the additional request comprises:

determining, by the embedded sensor, if the first cookie is set at the client;

in response to determining that the first cookie is not set at the client, setting the first cookie and setting the first time value, the second time value and the current time value to a current time; and

in response to determining that the first cookie is set at the client, updating the second time value to the third time value, and then updating the third time value to the current time;

wherein the additional request includes the first time value, the second time value, and the third time value.

22. The method of claim 17, wherein:

the expiration time of the second cookie defines a session expiration time period for which a client session with the website expires when the client has been inactive during the session expiration time period.

23. A system, comprising:

a server computer; and

a memory storage in data communication with the server computer and storing instructions that when executed by the server computer cause the server computer to perform operations comprising;

sending a web page with an embedded sensor to a client in response to a first request from the client; and

receiving an additional request from the client, the additional request generated by the embedded sensor embedded in the web page received by the client and comprising information about the first request;

wherein the additional request includes information from at least one of a plurality of related cookies for the website stored at the client device, the plurality of related cookies for determining a visitor session to the website and including;

a first cookie having a first expiration time and storing data defining two or more client sessions times with the website; and

a second cookie having a second expiration time that occurs before the first expiration time and that defines a client session with the website.