SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR DISTRIBUTING HEURISTICS TO NETWORK INTERMEDIARY DEVICES

• US 20120198038A1
• Filed: 01/30/2011
• Published: 08/02/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CA, Inc. (d/b/a CA Technologies) (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Blue Coat Systems Incorporated (Gen Digital Inc.)
• Inventors: Porter, Kevin, Kelly, Thomas J., Long, Darrell, Lizon, Marcin Lukasz, Maki, Eric, Tremblay, Kim, Vance, Jennifer
• Granted Patent: US 9,237,068 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/082 the condition being updates or upgrades of network functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0894 Policy-based network configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5054 Automatic deployment of services triggered by the service manager, e.g. service implementation by automatic configuration of network components
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5682 Policies or rules for updating, deleting or replacing the stored data

Abstract

A policy distribution server provides, on a subscription basis, policy updates to effect desired behaviors of network intermediary devices. The policy updates may specify caching policies, and may in some instances, include instructions for data collection by the network intermediary devices. Data collected in accordance with such instructions may be used to inform future policy updates distributed to the network intermediary devices.

Claims

1. A method, comprising distributing, from a policy distribution server to one or more network intermediary devices communicatively coupled to the policy distribution server, on a subscription basis, policy updates to effect desired behaviors of the network intermediary devices.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the policy updates comprise caching policy updates.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the caching policy updates comprise caching policy language files.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the policy updates include directives for data collection by the network intermediary devices.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the caching policy updates include directives for the network intermediary devices to cache or not cache one or more of specified web sites or specified objects.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the caching policy updates include directives for the network intermediary devices to employ specific caching methodologies for specified web sites or specified objects.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein the caching policy updates include directives for the network intermediary devices to cache specified web sites or objects beyond their respective time to live.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein prior to distributing the policy updates, the network intermediary devices are authenticated.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein distributions to the network intermediary devices occur periodically and randomly from one another.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the distributions to the network intermediary devices are made responsive to requests for same by the network intermediary devices.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein distributions to the network intermediary devices are made responsive to requests for same by the network intermediary devices, said requests being made according to schedules directed by previously distributed policy updates.

12. A system, comprising a policy distribution server communicatively coupled to one or more network intermediary devices and configured to deliver to the network intermediary devices, on a subscription basis, policy updates to effect desired behaviors of the network intermediary devices.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the policy updates comprise caching policy updates.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the caching policy updates comprise caching policy language files.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the caching policy updates include some or all of:

directives for data collection by the network intermediary devices, directives for the network intermediary devices to cache or not cache one or more of specified web sites or specified objects, directives for the network intermediary devices to employ specific caching methodologies for specified web sites or specified objects, and directives for the network intermediary devices to cache specified web sites or objects beyond their respective time to live.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein prior to distributing the policy updates, the network intermediary devices are authenticated.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein distributions to the network intermediary devices occur periodically and randomly from one another.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the distributions to the network intermediary devices are made responsive to requests for same by the network intermediary devices.

19. The system of claim 12, wherein distributions to the network intermediary devices are made responsive to requests for same by the network intermediary devices, said requests being made according to schedules directed by previously distributed policy updates.

20. A network intermediary device, comprising:

a transactor configured to establish a connection at a beginning of a client/intermediary device communication, facilitate processing of a request and response throughout the communication, and close the connection at an end of the communication;

a policy administrator configured to maintain current versions of policies distributed to the network intermediary device from a policy distribution server and assign to the transactor a most current version of a policy available at a beginning of the communication; and

a policy evaluator configured to collect statistics regarding operations of the transactor for various communications and policies for reporting to the policy distribution server.

wherein, the transactor is further configured to handle the communication in accordance with an assigned policy specified by the policy administrator and perform designated activities in accordance with the assigned policy when the communication reaches specified checkpoints.