Methods for detection of content servers and caching popular content therein

• US 9,774,670 B2
• Filed: 01/14/2011
• Issued: 09/26/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qwilt, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qwilt, Inc.
• Inventors: Shemesh, Oren, Gressel, Yoav
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Hitesh
• Application Number:
  US13/006,875
• Publication Number:
  US 20120047224A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,447 Days
• Field of Search: 709223, 709224, 709217, 370230, 370352, 715716, 725 92, 725 95
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching

Abstract

A method for identification of popular content provided over a first portion of a network to a second portion of a network in the form of packets containing, the method comprises identifying a source of content in the first portion of a network. Deep-packet-inspection (DPI) is performed to determine if content in each packet related to the content is to be stored in a storage that is in a path between the content source and at least a user node in the second portion of the network. The content is stored. A request is received from the user node for a requested content. It is determined if the requested content or portions of the requested content is in the storage. if the requested content or portions of the requested content is missing in the storage, a request is sent to the content source for the requested content or missing portions of the requested content.

Claims

1. A caching method performed at a node that is at least logically located between a first network and a second network, the method being for providing popular content by an identified source over the first network to the second network, the popular content being provided as packets each containing at least a portion of the popular content, the method comprising:

identifying by a deep-packet-inspection (DPI) unit for each packet received at the node a source of content from a plurality of sources of content to provide the content specified in the packet, the identified source communicatively connected to the first network and configured to provide the content over at least the first network;

performing by the DPI unit a DPI of packets transferred between the first network and the second network to determine if an inspected packet received from the identified source of content contains at least a portion of a popular content, the packets being directed from the identified source to at least one user node communicatively connected to the second network;

storing the portion of content determined to be popular content in a storage unit communicatively accessible from the first network for storage and the second network for retrieval;

receiving a request for a content portion from the identified source;

determining if the requested content portion is in the storage unit; and

sending a request to the identified source for the requested content portion when the requested content portion is not available in the storage unit;

wherein content is determined to be popular content for the node and storable therein when it is a type of content that has been indicated to be of interest for the node and is from a particular content source for which multiple requests for content of interest for the node have been received at the node within a specified period; and

wherein the DPI is performed on selected packets from a packet traffic on the first network, the selection being based on a configuration of the DPI unit of a symmetrical hash function to accept as an input at least a source address and at least a destination address of packets of the packet traffic, such that not all packets passing over the first network are inspected.

2. The caching method of claim 1, wherein the popular content portion is stored in the storage unit based on at least popularity of the popular content.

3. The caching method of claim 1, further comprising determining that the identified source is a source from which content may be saved in the storage unit.

4. The caching method of claim 2, wherein the determination of the identified source is based on the popularity of access to the popular content in the identified source.

5. The caching method of claim 1, wherein the selection is further based on a configuration of the DPI unit to establish a ratio between a number of selected packets and a number of packets passing over the first networks.

6. The caching method of claim 1, wherein the symmetrical hash function of the DPI unit further accepts as an input at least a source port and at least a destination port of packets of the packet traffic.

7. The caching method of claim 5, wherein upon the identification of the identified source of content inspecting all packets from the identified source of content provided on the first network.

8. The caching method of claim 1, wherein the popular content is a video content.

9. A caching method for delivering popular content in response to a request received at at least one user node that is communicatively coupled to a second network from a storage unit located on a network path between the at least one user node and an at least one source of popular content communicatively coupled to a first network, the storage unit being accessible from both the first network and the second network, the method comprising:

identifying the at least one source of popular content by a deep-packet inspection (DPI) unit, the DPI unit configured for identification of the at least one source of popular content;

performing a DPI by the DPI unit of packets containing content carried over the network path and storing in the storage unit content determined to be popular content and provided by the identified at least one source of popular content;

wherein content is determined to be popular content for the node and storable therein when it is a type of content that has been indicated to be of interest for the node and multiple requests for content of interest for the node from the identified at least one source have been received at the node within a specified period; and

wherein the DPI is performed on selected packets from a packet traffic on the first network, the selection of packets for DPI being based on a configuration of the DPI unit of a symmetrical hash function to accept as an input at least a source address and at least a destination address of packets of the packet traffic, such that not all packets passing over the first network are inspected.

10. The caching method of claim 9, wherein the popular content is video content.

11. The caching method of claim 9, further comprising:

performing a DPI by the DPI unit on all packets from the identified at least one source of popular content.

12. A caching method performed at a node that is at least logically located between a first network and a second network, comprising:

receiving at least one parameter regarding a data type of a content;

selecting packets at the node from a plurality of packets transferring over the first network for inspection by a deep-packet inspection (DPI) unit configured to use a symmetric hash function that accepts as an input at least a source address and at least a destination address of a packet being inspected such that not all packets passing over the first network are selected for inspection;

performing a DPI on the selected packets to determine based on the at least one parameter if the selected packets contain content of interest;

increasing a numerical value of an identification counter based on a determination that inspected selected packets contain content of interest;

associating the identification counter with a content source;

performing a DPI by the DPI unit on each packet of a plurality of packets that comes from the associated content source; and

storing content of the inspected each packet if the inspection by the DPI unit determined that the content is a content of interest;

wherein content is determined to be of interest for the node and storable therein when it is from a particular content source and for which multiple requests for such content have been received at the node within a specified period.

13. The caching method of claim 12, wherein the selecting of packets from a plurality of packets for inspection comprises:

configuring the DPI unit to establish a ratio between a number of packets selected for inspection and a total number of packets on a network, such that not all packets passing over the network are inspected.

14. The caching method of claim 12, wherein a source of content is considered to be identified upon an identification count exceeding a predetermined threshold value.

15. The caching method of claim 12, further comprises:

decreasing the numerical value of the identification counter if the count did not increase for a predefined period of time.

16. The caching method of claim 12, wherein the content is video.

17. The caching method of claim 12, wherein storing content occurs after inspection of the content of a received data packet by the DPI unit.