Connecting communicating devices in a multi-server communication system

• US 9,503,485 B1
• Filed: 03/01/2013
• Issued: 11/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: WhatsApp LLC (Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.))
• Original Assignee: WhatsApp LLC (Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.))
• Inventors: Koum, Jan, O'Connor, Bryan D., Acton, Brian
• Primary Examiner(s): Osman, Ramy M
• Application Number:
  US13/782,690
• Time in Patent Office: 1,362 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1046 Call controllers; Call servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1063 Application servers providing network services systems providing special services to telephonic subscribers H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/141 Setup of application sessions admission control or resource allocation in data switching networks H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/566 Grouping or aggregating service requests, e.g. for unified processing

Abstract

A system and methods are provided for aggregating communication connections. Multiple users connect to a system (e.g., a web-based system) that hosts an application or service for exchanging communications. Users who exchange communications among themselves may be considered “associates.” When one user who is on-line with the application sends a communication through the system for an associate, the system determines whether the associate is on-line or off-line. If the associate is off-line, the system crafts and sends toward the associate a notification regarding the communication, including an address of the communication server to which the one user is connected. When the associate'"'"'s device receives the notification, the application may attempt to connect to the specified address. In this way associated users'"'"' connections will aggregate or gravitate toward the same communication server, thereby eliminating the latency and cost of exchanging users'"'"' communications between multiple communication servers.

Claims

1. A processor-implemented method comprising:

receiving, at a computer system hosting an application and comprising a plurality of communication servers, a first connection at a first communication server from a first device, each communication server of the plurality of communication servers operative to host a server version of the application and having one or more associated addresses;

updating a first session table at the first communication server, the first session table identifying one or more connections between a device and the computer system and which of the plurality of the communication servers is a termination point for a given connection;

receiving via the first connection a communication directed to a second device;

determining, by the first communication server from the first session table, whether the second device is connected to any communication server in the system;

when the second device is not connected to any communication server in the system;

selecting one or more addresses of the first communication server from the addresses of all of the plurality of communication servers;

dispatching toward the second device a notification of the communication, wherein the notification comprises the selected addresses of the first communication server of the first connection within the system when the second device is not connected to any communication server in the system; and

receiving, at the first communication server, a second connection from the second device; and

when the second device is connected to any communication server in the system;

identifying, by the first communication server from the first session table, a second communication server to which the second device is connected; and

sending the communication from the first communication server to the second device via the second communication server.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving a first connection comprises:

receiving the first connection at a randomly selected one of the communication servers;

wherein the one communication server was randomly selected following a DNS (Domain Name System) lookup of a name of the system.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising, after said receiving a second connection:

exchanging one or more additional communications between the first device and the second device, wherein the one or more additional communications are transferred between the first connection and the second connection without traversing any communication server other than the one communication server.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said dispatching comprises:

retrieving, from a state server, data required in order to communicate with the second device, including a token associated with the device by a service provider of the second device; and

sending the notification and the token to the service provider;

wherein the service provider forwards the notification to the second device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the communication is directed to multiple devices, including the second device; and

repeating said determining and dispatching for each of the multiple devices other than the second device.

6. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:

receive, at a first communication server of a plurality of communication servers in a computer system hosting an application, a first connection from a first device;

update a first session table at the first communication server, the first session table identifying one or more connections between a device and the plurality of communication servers and which of the plurality of the communication servers is a termination point for a given connection;

receive via the first connection a communication directed to a second device;

determine, by the first communication server from the first session table, whether the second device is connected to any communication server in the system;

when the second device is not connected to any communication server in the system;

select one or more addresses of the first communication server from addresses of all of the plurality of communication servers;

dispatch toward the second device a notification of the communication, wherein the notification comprises the selected addresses of the first communication server of the first connection within the system when the second device is not connected to any communication server in the system; and

receive, at the first communication server, a second connection from the second device; and

when the second device is connected to any communication server in the system;

identify, by the first communication server from the first session table, a second communication server to which the second device is connected; and

send the communication from the first communication server to the second device via the second communication server.

7. A method comprising:

receiving, at multiple servers, connections from multiple devices, each server of the multiple servers operative to host a server version of an application and having one or more associated addresses;

for each connection received at a server, updating a session table at each of the multiple servers, the session table identifying one or more connections between a device and the multiple servers and which server of the multiple servers is a termination point for a given connection; and

for each communication received from an on-line device connected to a first server for a destination device that is off-line from the application;

determining, by the first server from the session table of the first server, whether the destination device is connected to any server of the multiple servers;

when the destination device is not connected to any server of the multiple servers;

selecting, from the addresses of all of the multiple servers, one or more addresses of the first server to which the on-line device is connected;

transmitting toward the destination device a notification of the communication, wherein the notification comprises the selected one or more addresses; and

receiving at a selected address a connection request from the destination device; and

for each communication received from the on-line device for a destination device connected to a second server;

identifying, by the first server from the session table of the first server, the second server to which the second device is connected; and

sending the communication from the first server to the destination device via the second server.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the one or more selected addresses include:

a first address for making a secure connection with the server to which the on-line device is connected; and

a second address for making an unsecure connection with the server to which the on-line device is connected.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising, for each communication received from an on-line user:

determining whether a target device of the communication is off-line; and

if the target device is off-line, retrieving data necessary for transmitting a notification of the communication to a device operated by the target device.

10. A system for comprising:

multiple communication servers configured to host an application and maintain communication connections with the devices; and

a state server configured to store, for each of multiple devices;

user data enabling the system to contact the device; and

session data identifying, for each device connected to the system, the communication server with which the device is connected;

wherein each communication server of the multiple communication servers is operative to host a server version of the application, having one or more associated addresses, and comprises;

a processor;

application logic executable by the processor to facilitate an exchange of communications among the devices, to receive a communication from a first device connected to the communication server directed to a second device, update the session table at the state server identifying the communication server as a termination point for the connection, receive an updated session table from the state server identifying other communication servers as termination points for connections with other devices, determine from the session table whether the second device is connected to any communication server in the system, identify from the session table a second communication server to which the second device is connected, and to send the communication to the second device via the second communication server when the second device is connected to a second communication server; and

notification logic executable by the processor to send notifications regarding the communications toward the devices, when the second device is not connected to any of the communication servers, and to include in a notification to the second device, regarding a communication received for the second device from the first device, an address of the communication server with which the first device is connected, the address selected from the addresses of all of the multiple communication servers.

11. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

a message server configured to store communications received by the system for devices that are off-line with the system at a time the communications are received at the communication server.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein each communication server further comprises:

a public communication interface for receiving connections from the devices; and

a private communication interface for exchanging communications between a device connected with one communication server and a device connected with a second communication server.

13. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

client application logic installed on the devices operated by the devices.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein:

the state server comprises the session data.

15. The system of claim 10, wherein:

a session server comprises the session data.

16. The system of claim 10, wherein:

the communication servers comprise the session data.