Cloud-based network protocol translation data center

• US 8,861,525 B1
• Filed: 07/28/2011
• Issued: 10/14/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Juniper Networks Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Juniper Networks Incorporated
• Inventors: Durand, Alain, Ward, David
• Primary Examiner(s): Hsu, Alpus H
• Assistant Examiner(s): Thai, Camquyen
• Application Number:
  US13/193,138
• Time in Patent Office: 1,174 Days
• Field of Search: 370/205, 370/392, 370/401, 370/395.52, 370/466, 709/203, 709/230, 709/249
• US Class Current: 370/392
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/251 between different IP versions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/2557 Translation policies or rules
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4511 using domain name system [DNS]

Abstract

A translation data center (TDC) is described that provides cloud-based network protocol translation services. In an example system, the TDC is coupled to a first public network that includes client devices and operates according to a first network-layer protocol (NLP) and a second public network that includes content providers and operates according to a second NLP. Domain name servers within the first public network are updated to include records that resolve respective domain names for each of a plurality of content providers of the second public network to different, globally-routable network destination addresses assigned to the TDC. The TDC receives packets from the first network, transforms the packets from the first NLP to the second NLP and replaces network-layer destination addresses of the TDC with the network-layer destination addresses for the content providers.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

storing, within a translation data center, data defining a mapping that associates each of a plurality of globally routable network-layer addresses for a translation data center to a respective globally routable network-layer address for a corresponding one of a plurality of content providers;

receiving, with the translation data center and from a client device via a first public network, a packet specifying a request for content from a content provider of the plurality of content providers, wherein the packet conforms to a first network-layer protocol and specifies a globally routable network-layer destination address associated with the translation data center that provides translation services for network-layer protocols, and wherein the client device operates in accordance with the first network-layer protocol;

performing, with the translation data center and using the mapping, network address translation to select a globally routable network-layer destination address for the content provider associated with the globally routable network-layer destination address associated with the translation data center specified in the packet, wherein the network-layer destination address for the content provider conforms to an address format specified by a second network-layer protocol;

transforming, with the translation data center, the packet from conforming to the first network-layer protocol to conforming to the second network-layer protocol and replacing the network-layer destination address associated with the translation data center with the network-layer destination address for the content provider in the packet; and

forwarding, via a second public network, the transformed packet from the translation data center to the content provider using the second network-layer protocol.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing, within the translation data center, the plurality of globally routable network address for the translation data center, wherein each of the plurality of globally routable network-layer addresses for the translation data center conforms to an address format specified by the first network-layer protocol; and

storing, within the translation data center, a plurality of hostnames for a plurality of content providers,

wherein performing, with the translation data center, network address translation comprises;

with the translation data center, accessing a first database of the translation data center to identify one of the plurality of the hostnames for the content provider that is mapped to the network-layer destination address associated with the translation data center specified within the packet; and

with the translation data center, accessing a second database to identify the globally routable network-layer address that is associated with the identified hostname, wherein the globally routable network-layer address conforms to the address format specified by the second network-layer protocol.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein accessing the second database comprises:

issuing a domain name system (DNS) lookup query to a DNS server using the second network-layer protocol to identify the globally routable network-layer address that is associated with the identified hostname.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the second database comprises a cache within the translation data center, the method further comprising:

storing, within the cache, data defining a mapping that associates each of the plurality of hostnames for the content providers to a plurality of globally routable network addresses for the content providers; and

accessing the cache to identify one of the plurality of network-layer addresses for the content providers that is mapped to the hostnames for the content providers.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

presenting an interface with a management system executing within the translation data center to receive input defining the mapping between the network-layer destination addresses of the first network layer protocol for the translation data center and the network-layer destination address of the second network layer protocol for the content providers; and

updating the mapping based on the received input.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising updating at least one domain name server to install a plurality of records to resolve a respective domain name for each of a plurality of content providers to a different globally routable network destination address associated with the translation data center, wherein the at least one domain name server is located within a first public network that operates in accordance with the first network-layer protocol, and wherein the content providers are located within a second public network that operates in accordance with the second network layer protocol.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first public network operates in accordance with Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4), wherein the second public network operates in accordance with Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6).

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

replacing, with the translation data center, a globally routable network-layer source address associated with the client device with a different globally routable network-layer source address associated with the translation data center, wherein the different globally routable network-layer source address associated with the translation data center conforms to the address form specified by the second network-layer protocol.

9. A data center comprising:

a first network interface to communicate packets conforming to a first network-layer protocol via a first public network to a client device that operates in accordance with the first network-layer protocol;

a second network interface to communicate packets conforming to a second network-layer protocol via a second public network;

a switch fabric;

a database that stores data defining a mapping that associates each of a plurality of globally routable network-layer addresses for the translation data center to a respective globally routable network-layer address for a corresponding one of a plurality of content providers, wherein each of the plurality of globally routable network addresses for the translation data center conforms to an address format specified by the first network-layer protocol and each of the plurality of globally routable network addresses for the plurality of content providers conforms to an address format specified by the second network-layer protocol; and

a plurality of translation devices that provide translation services to translate the packets between the first network-layer protocol and the second network layer protocol, the plurality of translation devices interconnected to the first network interface and the second network interface of the data center by the switch fabric, and each of the plurality of translation devices comprising;

a first interface that receives via the switch fabric packets from the first network interface that conform to the first network-layer protocol and specify globally routable network-layer destination addresses associated with the translation data center;

a translation module that performs, using the mapping, address translation to select globally routable network-layer destination addresses for content providers associated with the globally routable network-layer destination addresses specified within the packets for the data center, wherein the globally routable network-layer destination address for the content providers conforms to an address format specified by the second network-layer protocol;

a protocol conversion module that transforms the packets from the first network-layer protocol to the second network-layer protocol and replaces the globally routable network-layer destination addresses of the translation data center with the globally routable network-layer destination addresses for the content providers; and

a second interface that outputs the transformed packet from the translation device to the second network interface of the data center for forwarding to the content providers using the second network-layer protocol.

10. The data center of claim 9, further comprising a management system that presents an interface to receive input defining the mapping between the network-layer destination addresses of the first network layer protocol for the center and the network-layer destination address of the second network layer protocol for the content providers.

11. The data center of claim 9, further comprising:

a database storing data that maps a plurality of globally routable network address for the data center to a plurality of hostnames for the plurality of content providers, wherein each of the plurality of globally routable network addresses for the data center conforms to an address format specified by the first network-layer protocol,

wherein the translation modules of the plurality of translation devices perform network address translation by at least identifying the hostname for the content providers that are mapped to the network-layer destination addresses of the data center specified within the packets received from the first network interface of the data center, and identifying the network-layer destination address for the content providers that are associated with the hostnames of the content providers wherein the network-layer address for the content providers conform to an address format specified by the second network-layer protocol.

12. The data center of claim 11,

wherein the translation modules of the plurality of translation devices perform network address translation by at least issuing a domain name system (DNS) lookup query to a DNS server using the second network-layer protocol to identify the globally routable network-layer address that is associated with the identified hostname.

13. The data center of claim 11, further comprising:

a cache storing data defining a mapping that associates each of the plurality of hostnames for the content providers to the plurality of globally routable network addresses for the content providers,

wherein the translation modules of the plurality of translation devices perform network address translation by at least accessing the cache to identify the network-layer destination address mapped to the hostname for the content providers.

14. The data center of claim 9,

wherein each of the translation modules automatically maintain a network session table to store information for communication sessions with client devices from which packets are received on the first interface and communication sessions with content providers to which packets are sent on the second interface, and

wherein the session table associates each of the communication sessions with the client devices to a respective communication session with the content providers.

15. The data center of claim 9, wherein the first network-layer protocol comprises the Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) and the second network-layer protocol comprises Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6).

16. The data center of claim 9, wherein the data center is located within a service provider network.

17. The data center of claim 9, wherein the protocol conversion module replaces globally routable network-layer source addresses specified in the packets with globally routable network-layer source address associated with the translation data center, wherein the globally routable network-layer source addresses specified in the packets conform to an address format specified by the first network-layer protocol, and wherein the globally routable network-layer source addresses associated with the translation data center conform to the address format specified by the second network-layer protocol.

18. A system comprising:

a translation data center coupled to a first public network and a second public network, wherein the first network includes a plurality of client devices and operates in accordance with a first network-layer protocol, and wherein the second network includes a plurality of content providers and operates in accordance with a second network-layer protocol, and

a domain name system (DNS) server located within the first public network, the DNS server comprising a database that stores a plurality of records that resolve a respective domain name for each of a plurality of content providers to a different globally routable network destination address associated with the translation data center in response to receiving DNS queries from the plurality of client devices,

wherein the translation data center receives packets received from the first public network and performs address translation to select network-layer destination addresses for content providers based on network-layer destination addresses of the translation data center specified within the packets, wherein the network-layer destination addresses of the translation data center conform to an address format specified by the first network layer protocol and the network-layer destination addresses for the content providers conform to an address format specified by the second network-layer protocol, and

wherein the translation data center transforms the packets from the first network-layer protocol to the second network-layer protocol and replaces the network-layer destination addresses of the translation data center with the network-layer destination addresses for the content providers.

19. The system of claim 18, further comprising:

a second DNS server located within the second public network,

wherein the translation data center issues a second set of DNS queries to the second DNS server to determine the destination addresses of the content providers in accordance with hostnames of the content providers.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions for causing a programmable processor to:

store data defining a mapping that associates each of a plurality of globally routable network-layer addresses for a translation data center to a respective globally routable network-layer address for a corresponding one of a plurality of content providers;

receive, from a client device via a first public network, a packet specifying a request for content from a content provider of the plurality of content providers, wherein packet conforms to a first network-layer protocol and specifies a globally routable network-layer destination address associated with the translation data center that provides translation services for network-layer protocols, and wherein the client device operates in accordance with the first network-layer protocol;

perform, using the mapping, network address translation to select a globally routable network-layer destination address for the content provider associated with the globally routable network-layer destination address associated with the translation data center specified in the packet, wherein the globally routable network-layer destination address for the content provider conforms to an address format specified by a second network-layer protocol;

transform, with the network-based translator, the packet from conforming to the first network-layer protocol to conforming to the second network-layer protocol and replacing the globally routable network-layer destination address associated with the party translation data center in the packet with the globally routable network-layer destination address for the content provider; and

forward, via the second public network, the transformed packet from the translation data center to the content provider using the second network-layer protocol.