Integrated adaptive anycast for content distribution

• US 9,191,292 B2
• Filed: 10/15/2013
• Issued: 11/17/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Santoro, Mario A., Brotman, Herani, Glasser, Alan L., Miros, James, Spatscheck, Oliver, Van der Merwe, Jacobus E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chan, Wing F
• Assistant Examiner(s): Thieu, Benjamin M
• Application Number:
  US14/053,884
• Publication Number:
  US 20140047109A1
• Time in Patent Office: 763 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/217, 709/219, 709225-227, 709/238, 370/389, 370/392
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/08 Monitoring or testing based on specific metrics, e.g. QoS, energy consumption or environmental parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/126 minimising geographical or physical path length
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4511 using domain name system [DNS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5007 Internet protocol [IP] addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• 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

Abstract

A system includes first and second cache servers a domain name server, and a route controller. The cache servers are each configured to respond to an anycast address. Additionally, the first cache server is configured to respond to a first unicast address, and the second cache server is configured to respond to a second unicast address. The router controller configured to determine wither the status of the first cache server is non-overloaded, overloaded, or offline. The route controller is further configured to instruct the domain name server to provide the second unicast address when the status is overloaded or offline, and modify routing of the anycast address to direct a content request sent to the anycast address to the second cache server when the status is offline. The domain name server is configured to receive a request from a requestor for a cache server address. Additionally, the domain name server is configured to provide an anycast address to the requestor when the status of the first cache server is non-overloaded, and provide the second unicast address to the requestor when the status of the first cache server is offline or overloaded.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a memory that stores instructions;

a processor that executes the instructions to perform operations, the operations comprising;

determining a status of a first cache server, wherein the status is selected from;

a non-overloaded status, an overloaded status, or an offline status;

instructing a domain name server to provide a unicast address for a second cache server when the status of the first cache server is determined to be the offline status; and

modifying, when the status of the first cache server is the offline status, routing of an anycast address to direct a content request that is sent to the anycast address to the second cache server.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise determining that the first cache server has the offline status when a notification is not received from the first cache server.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise determining that the status of the first cache server has the overloaded status when a load of the first cache server exceeds a threshold load.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise determining if a serving region associated with the first cache server includes an unstable network.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the serving region associated with the first cache server is determined to include the unstable network if the serving region includes an autonomous system subject to internal routing changes.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise determining that the status of the first cache server has the non-overloaded status when a load of the first cache server is less than a threshold load.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise determining if the status of the first cache server has a pre-overloaded status, wherein the first cache server has the pre-overloaded status if the first cache server has a load that exceeds a pre-overload threshold load, but does not exceed an overload threshold load.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise identifying the second cache server when the status of the first cache server is determined to be the offline status.

9. A method comprising:

determining a status of a cache server, wherein the status is selected from;

a non-overloaded status, an overloaded status, or an offline status;

instructing, by utilizing instructions from memory that are executed by a processor, a domain name server to provide a unicast address for an alternate cache server when the status when the status of the cache server is the offline status; and

modifying, when the status of the cache server is the offline status, routing of an anycast address to direct a content request that is sent to the anycast address to the alternate cache server.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising determining that the cache server has the offline status when a notification is not received from the cache server.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising determining that the status of the cache server has the overloaded status when a load of the cache server exceeds a threshold load.

12. The method of claim 9, further comprising determining if a serving region associated with the cache server includes an unstable network.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the serving region associated with the cache server is determined to include the unstable network if the serving region includes an autonomous system subject to internal routing changes.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising determining that the status of the cache server has the non-overloaded status when a load of the cache server is less than a threshold load.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising determining if the status of the cache server has a pre-overloaded status, wherein the cache server has the pre-overloaded status if the cache server has a load that exceeds a pre-overload threshold load, but does not exceed an overload threshold load.

16. The method of claim 9, further comprising identifying the alternate cache server when the status of the cache server is determined to be the offline status.

17. A method comprising:

receiving an address request from a requestor for a cache address, wherein the requestor is in a serving region;

receiving an instruction to provide a unicast address of an alternate cache server to the requestor when a status of a first cache server is determined to be an offline status, wherein the first cache server serves content requests sent to an anycast address from the serving region; and

providing, based on the instruction, the unicast address of the alternate cache server to the requestor in response to the address request when the status of the first cache server is the offline status.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising determining the status of the first cache server.

19. The method of claim 17, further comprising identifying the first cache server that services the content requests sent to the anycast address from the serving region.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the alternate cache server is selected based on having a cache load that is less than a load of the first cache server.