Hybrid HTTP and UDP content delivery

• US 9,628,542 B2
• Filed: 08/23/2013
• Issued: 04/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Akamai Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Akamai Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Ponec, Miroslav, Alness, Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): Serrao, Ranodhi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fiorillo, James
• Application Number:
  US13/974,087
• Publication Number:
  US 20140059168A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,334 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/02 Protocol performance
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/08 Protocols for interworking; Protocol conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/164 Adaptation or special uses of UDP protocol
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/165 Combined use of TCP and UDP protocols; selection criteria therefor

Abstract

A hybrid HTTP/UDP delivery protocol provides significant improvements for delivery of video and other content over a network, such as an overlay. The approach is especially useful to address problems (e.g., slow startup times, rebuffering, and low bitrates) for HTTP-based streaming. In general, the protocol has two phases: an HTTP phase, and a UDP phase. In the HTTP phase, the client sends an HTTP GET request to a server. The GET request contains a transport header informing the server that the client would like to use UDP-based transfer over the protocol. The server may refuse this mode and continue in ordinary HTTP mode, or the server may respond by sending an empty response with header information informing the client how to make the connection to enter the UDP phase. In the UDP phase, the client initiates a connection and receives the originally-requested content over UDP.

Claims

1. A method of data delivery, comprising:

at a server executing on a hardware platform;

receiving, from a client and over a persistent connection, an HTTP request that identifies a content object, the HTTP request including an HTTP request header that includes an indication that the client desires to use a UDP connection for transfer of a body of the response to the HTTP request, together with any preference about UDP delivery desired by the client;

returning to the client a response to the HTTP request that includes a header and a response body, the header including a security token and identifying an IP address and UDP port number associated with the server, the response body being devoid of the content object requested;

receiving from the client a UDP request directed to the IP address and UDP port number, the UDP request including the security token; and

returning a response to the UDP request over the UDP connection that includes the content object that was identified in the HTTP request but not returned in the response body.

2. The method as described in claim 1 further including:

receiving from the client at least one additional HTTP request; and

returning a UDP-based response to the at least one additional HTTP request.

3. The method as described in claim 1 wherein, prior to returning the response to the UDP request, verifying that the UDP request also includes the security token.

4. The method as described in claim 1 wherein the header also includes information to prevent one or more proxies between the server and the client from caching the response to the HTTP request.

5. The method as described in claim 1 wherein the server delivers the content object over the UDP connection in accordance with the UDP delivery preference.

6. A method of data delivery, comprising:

at a client executing on a hardware platform;

transmitting, to a server and over a persistent connection, an HTTP request that identifies a content object, the HTTP request including an HTTP request header that includes an indication that the client desires to use a UDP connection for receipt of a body of the response to the HTTP request, together with any preference about UDP delivery desired by the client;

receiving from the server a response to the HTTP request that includes a header and a response body, the header including a security token and identifying an IP address and UDP port number associated with the server, the response body being devoid of the content object requested;

transmitting to the server a UDP request directed to the IP address and UDP port number, the UDP request including the security token; and

receiving a response to the UDP request over the UDP connection that includes the content object that was identified in the HTTP request but not returned in the response body.

7. The method as described in claim 6 further including:

transmitting to the server at least one additional HTTP request; and

receiving a UDP-based response to the at least one additional HTTP request.

8. The method as described in claim 6, wherein the security token is included in the UDP request to enable the server to verify that the client received the response to the HTTP request.

9. The method as described in claim 6 wherein the header also includes information to prevent one or more proxies between the server and the client from caching the response to the HTTP request.

10. The method as described in claim 6 wherein the client receives the content object over the UDP connection in accordance with the UDP delivery preference.

11. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor;

computer memory holding computer program instructions, the computer program instructions comprising;

program code to receive from a client over a persistent connection a request that identifies a content object, the request delivered via a first transport protocol, the request including a first transport protocol request header that includes an indication that the client desires to use a second transport protocol connection for transfer of a body of the response to the request, together with any preference about delivery over the second transport protocol connection desired by the client;

program code to return to the client a response to the request, the response delivered via the first transport protocol;

the response comprising an empty response body in lieu of the content object requested, and a transport header including at least first and second information, the first information identifying an address and port number at which the content object can be obtained via a second transport protocol that differs from the first transport protocol, and the second information for subsequent use in verifying that the request is received by a client that issued the request, the second information including a security token; and

program code responsive to receipt at the address of a request delivered via the second transport protocol and that includes the security token, the program code being operative in response to the request delivered via the second transport protocol to return over the second transport protocol connection the content object not returned in the response delivered via the first transport protocol;

wherein the first transport protocol is HTTP over TCP/IP.

12. The apparatus as described in claim 11 wherein the second transport protocol is UDP over one of:

unicast, and multicast.

13. The apparatus as described in claim 11 wherein the content object is returned according to a forward error correction (FEC) coding scheme.

14. The apparatus as described in claim 11 wherein the address is one of:

a multicast group address, and a set of multicast group addresses.

15. A system operative in a multi-tenant overlay network environment in which a service provider provides video delivery from edge servers using HTTP-based streaming, comprising:

a first machine comprising server-side program code executed in a hardware processor;

a second machine comprising client-side program code executed in a hardware processor;

the server-side program code operative;

to receive, from the client-side program code and over a persistent connection, an HTTP request that identifies a content object, the HTTP request including an HTTP request header that includes an indication that the client desires to use a UDP connection for transfer of a body of the response to the HTTP request, together with any preference about UDP delivery desired by the client;

to return to the client-side program code a response to the HTTP request that includes a header and a response body, the header including a security token and identifying a UDP IP address and port number associated with the server-side program code, the response body being devoid of the content object requested;

to receive from the client-side program code a UDP request directed to the UDP IP address and port number, the UDP request including the security token; and

to return to the client-side program code a response over the UDP connection to the UDP request that includes the content object that was identified in the HTTP request but not returned in the response body;

client-side program code operative;

to transmit, to the server-side program code and over the persistent connection, the HTTP request that identifies the content object;

to receive the response to the HTTP request that includes the header including the security token and identifying the UDP IP address and port number associated with the server-side program code, and the response body that is devoid of the content object requested;

to transmit the UDP request directed to the UDP IP address and port number, the UDP request including the security token that was provided in the HTTP response; and

to receive the response to the UDP request that includes the content object that was identified in the HTTP request but not returned in the response body.

16. The system as described in claim 15 wherein the server-side program code is operative to return the response to the UDP request when the server-side program code verifies that the UDP request also includes the security token.

17. The system as described in claim 15 wherein the server-side program code delivers, and the client-side program code receives, the content object over the UDP connection in accordance with the UDP delivery preference.