Systems and methods for providing availability to resources

• US 9,501,307 B2
• Filed: 09/26/2014
• Issued: 11/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Comcast Cable Communications LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Comcast Cable Communications LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Inventors: Borra, Sudhir, Makofka, Douglas
• Primary Examiner(s): Dao, Thuy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Wang, Ben C
• Application Number:
  US14/498,057
• Publication Number:
  US 20160092254A1
• Time in Patent Office: 788 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2009/45595 Network integration; Enabling network access in virtual machine instances
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44505 Configuring for program initiating, e.g. using registry, configuration files
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45558 Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/505 considering the load
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5061 Partitioning or combining of resources
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/54 Interprogram communication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/546 Message passing systems or structures, e.g. queues
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/085 involving remote charge determination or related payment systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/0855 involving a third party
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/14 specially adapted for billing systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1014 based on the content of a request
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1025 Dynamic adaptation of the criteria on which the server selection is based
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561

Abstract

Methods and systems for providing a communication path are disclosed. Information can be received via a first communication session based on a first messaging protocol. The first communication session can be terminated at a virtual machine of a group of virtual machines. A dynamically bound communication path to a resource can be selected based on a dynamically reconfigurable routing table for the group of virtual machines. A second communication session can be initiated, at the virtual machine, via the selected dynamically bound communication path. The information can be transmitted to the resource via the second communication session based on a second messaging protocol.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving information, by a virtual machine cluster of a plurality of virtual machine clusters and from a load balancer based at least in part on a port at which the load balancer received the information, via a first communication session that is associated with a first communication protocol,

converting, by a terminator proxy instance associated with the virtual machine cluster, the information from a first format associated with the first communication protocol to a second format associated with a second communication protocol;

selecting, by the terminator proxy instance and based on a dynamically reconfigurable routing table for the plurality of virtual machine clusters, a dynamically bound communication path to a resource;

augmenting, by the terminator proxy instance, the information; and

sending, by the terminator proxy instance via a second communication session that utilizes the dynamically bound communication path, the augmented information to the resource, wherein the second communication session is associated with the second communication protocol.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving the information comprises receiving the information from a billing system, and wherein the resource is configured to provide an interface for a user to acquire access to content.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting comprises selecting the dynamically bound communication path based on one or more message fields comprising at least one of:

a franchise tax area, a market ID, a region ID, or an account type.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the resource comprises a video controller, and wherein the first communication protocol is one of:

a Wirelink protocol or business and operating support system (BOSS).

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the augmenting comprises adding additional data that comprises at least one of:

channel lineups, video conversion mapping data, or customer account information.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving comprises receiving the information based on a virtual address associated with the virtual machine cluster of the plurality of virtual machine clusters.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the virtual machine cluster Comprises a plurality of virtual machines.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the port at which the information is Received is associated with an identifier that is associated with the resource.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the load balancer comprises an Outgoing port configured to send the information based on an identifier Associated with the resource.

10. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a virtual machine cluster, information via a first communication session that is associated with a first communication protocol;

receiving, by the virtual machine cluster, a reconfigured routing configuration based on a network condition, wherein the reconfigured routing configuration comprises a binding associated with a resource to establish a dynamically bound communication path;

converting by a terminator proxy instance of the virtual machine cluster, the information from a first format associated with the first communication protocol to a second format associated with a second communication protocol;

augmenting, by the terminator proxy instance, the information; and

sending, by the terminator proxy instance via a second communication session that utilizes the dynamically bound communication path, the augmented information to the resource, wherein the second communication session is associated with the second communication protocol.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the first communication protocol is one of:

a Wirelink protocol or business and operating support system (BOSS).

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the network condition comprises at least one of:

a MAC address, a franchise tax area, a market ID, a region ID, or an account type.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the resource comprises a video controller.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the terminator proxy instance is configured to augment the information by appending additional data to the information.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the receiving the information comprises receiving the information from a dedicated port of a router.

16. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a load balancer via a first port associated with an addressable identifier of a resource, first information and second information, via a first communication session, that is associated with a first communication protocol, wherein the second information comprises an indication of the addressable identifier;

determining, by the load balancer, a network condition;

selecting, by the load balancer, a virtual machine cluster based on the network condition;

dynamically binding, by the load balancer, a second port of the load balancer to the virtual machine cluster, resulting in a dynamically bound communication path; and

sending, by the load balancer via the second port, the first information and the second information via the dynamically bound communication path to the virtual machine cluster via the first communication session, wherein a terminator proxy instance associated with the virtual machine cluster is configured to;

convert the first information and the second information from a first format associated with the first communication protocol to a second format associated with a second communication protocol,

augment the first information with the second information, and

send the augmented first information to the resource via a second communication session associated with the second communication protocol.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the resource comprises a video controller.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the network Conditions comprises a current load of a network.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the virtual machine is one of a dynamically managed cluster of virtual machines.