Distributing service sessions

• US 10,021,174 B2
• Filed: 05/15/2014
• Issued: 07/10/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/25/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: A10 Networks Incorporated
• Original Assignee: A10 Networks Incorporated
• Inventors: Sankar, Swaminathan, Karampurwala, Hasnain, Gupta, Rahul, Kamat, Gurudeep, Jalan, Rajkumar
• Primary Examiner(s): Taylor, Nicholas
• Assistant Examiner(s): ROY, SANJOY K
• Application Number:
  US14/279,270
• Publication Number:
  US 20160044095A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,517 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/306 Route determination based on the nature of the carried application
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1004 Server selection for load balancing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1012 based on compliance of requirements or conditions with available server resources

Abstract

Provided are methods and systems for distributing service sessions from a client device in a service data network. A packet of the service session is received by a forwarding node. The forwarding node determines whether the packet matches a service address associated with the service session. Responsive to the determining, a servicing node associated with the service address is selected based on a forwarding policy. The packet is sent to the selected servicing node. The servicing node determines whether the packet is a service request packet. A server is selected based on a service policy, wherein the server is configured to serve the service session. The packet is sent to the server. Before being received by a forwarding node, the packet is received by a gateway node. The gateway node determines whether the packet matches the service address and selects the forwarding node based on a notification.

Claims

1. A method for dynamically distributing a service session from a client device, the method comprising:

receiving, by a gateway node, from a network controller, a forwarding policy, the forwarding policy comprising a service address serviced by a first forwarding node and a second forwarding node;

receiving, by each of the first forwarding node and the second forwarding node, from the network controller, the forwarding policy, the forwarding policy further including a service address serviced by a plurality of servicing nodes;

receiving, by each of the plurality of servicing nodes, from the network controller, a service policy for selecting one of a plurality of servers;

wherein each of the service address serviced by the first forwarding node and the second forwarding node and the service address serviced by the plurality of servicing nodes represents a network address for servicing the service session between the client device and a server;

receiving, by the gateway node, from the client device, a packet of the service session, the packet including at least a destination network address;

determining, by the gateway node, that the destination network address of the packet matches the service address included in the forwarding policy;

determining, by the gateway node, that the first forwarding node does not match the forwarding policy for the service address, the forwarding policy further including predetermined criteria for selecting one of the first forwarding node and the second forwarding node;

selecting, by the gateway node, the second forwarding node based on the sending, by the gateway node, the packet to the second forwarding node;

receiving, by the second forwarding node, the packet of the service session;

determining, based on the forwarding policy, by the second forwarding node, that the destination network address of the packet matches the service address serviced by a servicing node of the plurality of servicing nodes;

responsive to the determining, selecting, by the second forwarding node, the servicing node from the plurality of servicing nodes based on the forwarding pokey; and

sending, by the second forwarding node, the packet to the servicing node, the servicing node forwarding the packet to the server of a plurality of servers, the servicer being selected by the servicing node based on a service policy.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the forwarding policy comprises a source network address.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the selecting the servicing node from the plurality of servicing nodes based on the forwarding policy comprises:

retrieving a packet source network address associated with the packet; and

comparing the packet source network address to the forwarding policy.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the source network address comprises an IP address of the client device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the server is selected by the servicing node based on a service policy.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the notification further comprises a source network address of the packet.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the gateway node communicates with the second forwarding node over a routing protocol session with the second forwarding node.

8. A system for distributing a service session from a client device, the system comprising:

one or more forwarding nodes comprising at least a first forwarding node and a second forwarding node; and

a gateway node configured to;

receive, from a network controller, a forwarding policy, the forwarding policy comprising a service address serviced by a first forwarding node and a second forwarding node;

receive, from the client device, a packet of the service session, the packet including at least a destination network address;

determine that the destination network address of the packet matches the service address included in the forwarding policy;

determine that the first forwarding node does not match the forwarding policy for the service address, the forwarding policy further including predetermined criteria for selecting one of the first forwarding node and the second forwarding node;

select the second forwarding node based on the forwarding policy;

send the packet to the second forwarding node; and

wherein each of the first forwarding node and the second forwarding node is configured to;

receive, from the network controller, a second notification, the second notification including a service address serviced by a plurality of servicing nodes;

wherein each of the service address serviced by the first forwarding node and the second forwarding node and the service address serviced by the plurality of servicing nodes represents a network address for servicing the service session between the client device and a server;

wherein the second forwarding node is configured to;

receive the packet of the service session;

determine, based on the forwarding policy, that the destination network address of the packet matches the service address included in the second notification;

responsive to the determining, select the servicing node from the plurality of servicing nodes based on the forwarding policy; and

send the packet to the servicing node, the servicing node forwarding the packet to the server of a plurality of servers, the server being selected by the servicing node based on a service policy.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the forwarding policy comprises a source network address.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the one or more forwarding nodes further:

retrieve a packet source network address associated with the packet; and

compare the packet source network address to the forwarding policy.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the source network address comprises an IP address of the client device.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the server is selected by the servicing node based on a service policy.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the gateway node is configured to communicate over a routing protocol session with the one or more forwarding nodes.

14. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having embodied thereon a program, the program being executable by a processor to perform a method receiving by a gateway node, from a network controller, a forwarding policy, the forwarding policy comprising a service address serviced by a first forwarding node and a second forwarding node;

receiving, by each of the plurality of servicing nodes, from the network controller, a service policy for selecting one of a plurality of servers;

receiving, by each of the first forwarding node and the second forwarding node, from the network controller, a second notification, the second notification including a service address serviced by a plurality of servicing nodes;

wherein each of the service address serviced by the first forwarding node and the second forwarding node and the service address serviced by the plurality of servicing nodes represents a network address for servicing the service session between the client device and a server;

receiving, by the gateway node, from the client device, a packet of the service session, the packet including at least a destination network address;

determining, by the gateway node, that the destination network address of the packet matches the service address included in the forwarding policy;

determining, by the gateway node, that the first forwarding node does not match the forwarding policy for the service address, the forwarding policy further including predetermined criteria for selecting one of the first forwarding node and the second forwarding node;

selecting, by the gateway node, the second forwarding node based on the forwarding policy;

sending, by the gateway node, the packet to the second forwarding node;

receiving, by the second forwarding node, the packet of the service session;

determining, based on the forwarding policy, by the second forwarding node, that the destination network address of the packet matches the service address serviced by a servicing node of the plurality of servicing nodes;

responsive to the determining, selecting, by the second forwarding node, the servicing node from the plurality of servicing nodes based on the forwarding policy; and

sending, by the second forwarding node, the packet to the servicing node, the servicing node forwarding the packet to the server of a plurality of servers, the server being selected by the servicing node based on a service policy.