Integrated point of presence server network

• US 6,405,252 B1
• Filed: 08/23/2000
• Issued: 06/11/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Akamai Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Speedera Networks Incorporated (Akamai Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Swildens, Eric Sven-Johan, Day, Richard David, Gupta, Ajit Kumar
• Primary Examiner(s): Burgess, Glenton B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): SALAD, ABDULLAHI ELMI
• Application Number:
  US09/644,927
• Time in Patent Office: 657 Days
• Field of Search: 709/223, 709/224, 709/226, 709/235, 709/105, 709/214, 709/219, 709/238, 709/104, 370/229, 370/401, 711/118, 711/133
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/14 Charging , metering or billing arrangements for data wireline or wireless communications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5009 Determining service level performance parameters or violations of service level contracts, e.g. violations of agreed response time or mean time between failures [MTBF]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5032 Generating service level reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0852 Delays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0876 Network utilisation, e.g. volume of load or congestion level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/12 Network monitoring probes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/55 Testing of service level quality, e.g. simulating service usage
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4511 using domain name system [DNS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4541 Directories for service discovery
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10015 Access to distributed or replicated servers, e.g. using brokers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1008 based on parameters of servers, e.g. available memory or workload monitoring of computer activity G06F11/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1038 Load balancing arrangements to avoid a single path through a load balancer
• 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 67/288 Distributed intermediate devices, i.e. intermediate devices for interaction with other intermediate devices on the same level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A network of point of presence servers sharing a hostname includes a first network probe server configured to determine traffic loads of a plurality of customer web servers, and configured to determine latency of web cache servers in the network of point of presence servers, each of the customer web servers storing a web page, a first domain name server coupled to the first network probe server, configured to receive a request from a user for the web page at a first web address, the first web address including the hostname, configured to determine a customer web server from the plurality of customer web servers that is appropriate for the request, the customer web server having a traffic load lower than traffic loads of remaining customer web servers from the plurality of customer web servers, configured to determine an IP address of the customer web server, configured to return the IP address of the customer web server, configured to receive a request from the user for static content on the web page at a second web address, the second web address including the hostname, and configured to determine a web cache server from the network of point of presence servers that is appropriate for the request, the web cache server having a latency lower than latency of remaining web cache servers within the network network of point of presence servers, and the web cache server configured to retrieve the static content, and to provide the static content to the user.

Claims

1. A network of point of presence servers sharing a hostname. comprises:

a first network probe server configured to determine traffic loads of a plurality of customer web servers, and configured to determine latency of web cache servers in the network of point of presence servers, each of the customer web servers storing a web page;

a first domain name server coupled to the first network probe server, configured to receive a request from a user for the web page at a first web address, the first web address including the hostname, configured to determine a customer web server from the plurality of customer web servers that is appropriate for the request, the customer web server having a traffic load lower than traffic loads of remaining customer web servers from the plurality of customer web servers, configured to determine an IP address of the customer web server, configured to return the IP address of the customer web server, configured to receive a request from the user for static content on the web page at a second web address, the second web address including the hostname, and configured to determine a web cache server from the network of point of presence servers that is appropriate for the request, the web cache server having a latency lower than latency of remaining web cache servers within the network network of point of presence servers; and

the web cache server configured to retrieve the static content, and to provide the static content to the user.

2. The network of claim 1

wherein the first network probe server is also configured to determine traffic load of web cache servers in the network of point of presence servers; and

wherein the web cache server also has a traffic load lower than traffic loads of remaining web cache servers within the network network of point of presence servers.

3. The network of claim 1

wherein the web cache server is also configured to determine whether it includes the static content, and configured to generate a web cache miss signal, if the static content is not included;

and

the network further comprising a web server coupled to the web cache configured to determine whether it includes the static content in response to the web cache miss signal, configured to request data from a customer web server that includes the static content, if the static content is not included, and configured to store the static content;

wherein the web cache server is also configured to receive the static content from the web server.

4. The network of claim 3 wherein the first domain name server is also configured to determining traffic loads of a plurality of customer web servers, each of the customer web servers storing the static content, and is configured to determine another customer web server from the plurality of customer web servers that is appropriate for the request, the another customer web server having a traffic load lower than traffic loads of remaining customer web servers from the plurality of customer web servers.

5. The network of claim 4 wherein the first domain name server is also configured to determining another IP address of the another customer web server, and configured to request the static content from the another customer web server at the another IP address.

6. The network of claim 1 wherein the first domain name server and the network probe server reside on a common point of presence server.

7. The network of claim 1 wherein the request from the user for the web page is transferred from a second domain name server.

8. A network of point of presence servers comprises:

a first network probe server configured to determine load measurements of a plurality of customer web servers, each of the customer web servers addressable by a first domain name, configured to determine performance metric measurement of point of presence servers in the network of point of presence servers, each of the point of presence servers addressable by a second domain name;

a first domain name server coupled to a client domain name server and to the first network probe server, the first domain name server configured to receive a first request from the client DNS server to resolve the first domain name, the client DNS server receiving a request from a user of a web page address that includes the first domain name, configured to determine a customer web server from the plurality of customer web servers, the customer web server having load measurements lower than load measurements of other customer web servers from the plurality of customer web servers, configured to determine an IP address of the customer web server, and configured to return the IP address of the customer web server to the client DNS server;

the first domain name server is also configured to receive a second request from the client DNS server to resolve the second domain name, the client DNS server receiving a request for data from the user of a uniform resource locator that includes the second domain name, configured to determine a point of presence server from the network of point of presence servers, the point of presence server having performance metric measurements lower than performance metric measurements of other point of presence servers from the network of point of presence servers, and configured to provide the IP address of the point of presence server to the client DNS server; and

a web cache server having the IP address of the point of presence server configured to providing the data to the user.

9. The network of claim 8 wherein the load measurements comprise latency measurements.

10. The network of claim claim 8 wherein the performance metric measurements comprise memory load measurements, HTTP response measurements, or FTP response measurements.

11. The network of claim 8

wherein the web cache is configured to determine whether it includes the data and to provide a miss signal when the data is not stored;

the network further comprising a web server coupled to the web cache configured to determine whether it includes the data in response to the miss signal from the web cache, configured to retrieve the data from another customer web server from the plurality of customer web servers when the point of presence server does not include the data, and configured to provide the data to the web cache.

12. The network of claim 11 wherein the first domain name server is also configured to determine the other customer web server from the plurality of customer web servers, the other customer web server having load measurements lower than load measurements of remaining customer web servers from the plurality of customer web servers.

13. The network of claim 8

wherein the first network probe server is also configured to determine load measurements of a plurality of second customer web servers, each of the second customer web servers addressable by a third domain name, and each of the second customer web servers storing data configured to service the request from a second user;

wherein the first domain name server is also configured to receive a first request from a second client DNS server to resolve the third domain name, the second client DNS server receiving the request from the second user of a second web page address that includes the third domain name, configured to determine a second customer web server from the plurality of second customer web servers, the second customer web server having load measurements lower than load measurements of other second customer web servers from the plurality of second customer web servers, configured to determine an IP address of the second customer web server, and configured to provide the IP address of the second customer web server to the second client DNS server.

14. The network of claim 13

wherein the first domain name server is also configured to receive a second request from the second client DNS server to resolve the second domain name, the second client DNS server receiving a request from the second user of a second uniform resource locator that includes the second domain name;

the network further comprising another web cache server configured to retrieve a second set of data in response to the second uniform resource locator, and configured to provide the second set of data to the user.

15. A network of point of presence servers comprises:

a network probe server configured to determine traffic measurements of a plurality of customer web servers, each of the customer web servers addressable by the first domain name, and each of the customer web servers storing data associated with the first uniform resource locator, configured to determine server performance metric measurement to other point of presence servers in the network of point of presence servers with regards to a first user, and configured to determine server performance metric measurement to other point of presence servers in the network of point of presence servers with regards to a second user;

a first DNS server coupled to the network probe server configured to receive a first request from a first client DNS server to resolve the first domain name, the first request from the first client DNS server determined in response to the first uniform resource locator entered by the first user, the first uniform resource locator comprising the first domain name, configured to determine a first customer web server from the plurality of customer web servers, the first customer web server having traffice measurements lower than load measurements of other customer web servers from the plurality of customer web servers, configured to determine an IP address of the first customer web server; and

configured to provide the IP address of the first customer web server to the first client DNS server; and

a second DNS server coupled to the network probe server configured to receive a first request from a second client DNS server to resolve the first domain name, the first request from the second client DNS server determined in response to the first uniform resource locator entered by the second user, configured to determining the first customer web server from the plurality of customer web servers, the first customer web server having traffice measurements lower than load measurements of other customer web servers from the plurality of customer web servers, configured to determine an IP address of the first customer web server, and configured to provide the IP address of the first customer web server to the second client DNS server;

wherein the first DNS server is also configured to receive a second request from the first client DNS server to resolve a second domain name, the second request from the first client DNS server determined in response to a second uniform resource locator comprising the second domain name, the second uniform resource locator from the first customer web server, and configured to determine a third point of presence server from the network of point of presence servers, the third point of presence server having performance metric measurements lower than performance metric measurements of other point of presence server with regards to the first user;

wherein the second DNS server is also configured to receive a second request from the second client DNS server to resolve the second domain name, the second request from the second client DNS server determined in response to the second uniform resource locator comprising the second domain name, the second uniform resource locator from the first customer web server, and configured to determine a fourth point of presence server from the network of point of presence servers, the fourth point of presence server having performance metric measurements lower than performance metric measurements of other point of presence server with regards to the second user;

the network further comprising;

a first web cache at the third point of presence server configured to retrieve data, and configured to provide the data to the first user; and

a second web cache at the fourth point of presence server configured to retrieve data, and configured to provide the data to the second user.

16. The network of claim 15 wherein the traffic measurements comprise latency measurements.

17. The network of claim 15 wherein the performance metric measurements comprise CPU load measurements, HTTP response measurements, or FTP response measurements.

18. The network of claim 15 wherein

the first web cache at the third point of presence is also configured to determine whether the first web cache includes the data, and configured to provide a miss signal if it does not include the data; and

wherein the network further comprises a web server coupled to the first web cache for providing the data to the first web cache in response to the miss signal.

19. The network of claim 18 wherein the web server is also configured to determine whether the web server includes the data, and configured to retrieve the data from another customer web site when the web server does not include the data.

20. The network of claim 19 wherein the first DNS server is also configured to determine another customer web server from the plurality of customer web servers, the other customer web server having load measurements lower than load measurements of remaining customer web servers from the plurality of customer web servers, the another customer web server including the data.