Apparatus, system, and method for facilitating delivery of asynchronous response messages

• US 7,496,037 B2
• Filed: 06/14/2005
• Issued: 02/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Hughes, Gerald Dean, Yuan, Jack Chiu-Chiu
• Primary Examiner(s): HSU, ALPUS
• Application Number:
  US11/152,516
• Publication Number:
  US 20070005678A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,351 Days
• Field of Search: 370/235, 370/401, 370/412, 709/202, 709/238, 713/153, 726/4, 726/21
• US Class Current: 370/235
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• 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 67/101 based on network conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5681 Pre-fetching or pre-delivering data based on network characteristics

Abstract

A database server storing an authorization module and a rerouting module. The authorization module may be configured to define a second network interface module authorized to relay a response message queued in a hold queue associated with a first network interface module, where the response message is generated in response to a first request message. The rerouting module may be configured to route the response message from the hold queue to the second network interface module in response to a second request message requesting messages queued in the hold queue. The present invention thus enables delivery of requested queued messages despite failure of the request for such messages to correspond to the queue in which the messages are contained.

Claims

1. An apparatus for facilitating delivery of asynchronous response messages to a client, the apparatus comprising:

a database server comprising a processor and a memory device configured to store executable and operational data, the memory device comprising;

an authorization module which designates a second network interface module authorized to relay a response message queued in a hold queue associated with a first network interface module, wherein the response message is generated in response to a first request message; and

a rerouting module which routes the response message from the hold queue to the second network interface module in response to a second request message, the second request message requesting at least one message queued in the hold queue associated with the first network interface module, wherein the at least one message queued comprises the response message.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the authorization module designates the second network interface module upon connection of the database server to at least one network interface module.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the authorization module designates the second network interface module during a database session.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a router which arbitrarily routes the first request message to one of a plurality of network interface modules, the plurality of network interface modules comprising the first network interface module.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the router also arbitrarily routes the second request message to one of the plurality of network interface modules, the plurality of network interface modules comprising the second network interface module.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the authorization module further designates at least one additional network interface module authorized to relay the response message queued in the hold queue associated with the first network interface module.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the rerouting module selects a network interface module across which to route the response message from a subset of the network interface modules designated by the authorization module.

8. A system for facilitating delivery of asynchronous response messages to a client, the system comprising:

a load optimizer configured to arbitrarily route a request message to a database server across one of a plurality of network interface modules; and

a database server comprising a processor and a memory device configured to store executable and operational data, the memory device comprising;

an authorization module which designates a second network interface module authorized to relay a response message queued in a hold queue associated with a first network interface module, wherein the response message is generated in response to a first request message; and

a rerouting module which routes the response message from the hold queue to the second network interface module in response to a second request message, the second request message requesting at least one message queued in the hold queue associated with the first network interface module, wherein the at least one message queued comprises the response message.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the load optimizer maintains load balance across the plurality of network interface modules.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the authorization module designates the second network interface module upon connection of the database server to at least one network interface module.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the authorization module designates the second network interface module during a database session.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the authorization module further designates at least one additional network interface module authorized to relay the response message queued in the hold queue associated with the first network interface module.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the rerouting module selects a network interface module across which to route the response message from a subset of the network interface modules designated by the authorization module.

14. The system of claim 8, further comprising a coupling facility maintaining the hold queue associated with the first network interface module and which enables a plurality of database servers to access the hold queue.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the coupling facility further comprises a second hold queue associated with the second network interface module.

16. A computer readable medium tangibly embodying a program of computer-readable instructions executable by a digital processing apparatus to perform operations to facilitate delivery of asynchronous response messages to a client, the operations comprising:

loading an authorization mapping designating a second network interface module authorized to relay a response queued in a hold queue associated with a first network interface module;

receiving, across the first network interface module, a first request;

generating a response to the first request;

storing the response in the hold queue corresponding to the first network interface module;

receiving, across a second network interface module, a second request for at least one message queued in the hold queue associated with the first network interface module, the at least one message comprising the response; and

routing the response from the hold queue to the second network interface module in accordance with the authorization mapping.

17. The computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein receiving, across the first network interface module, the first request further comprises receiving the first request across the first network interface module as a result of an arbitrary routing decision by a load optimizer.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 16, the operations further comprising modifying the authorization mapping to identify at least one additional network interface module authorized to relay a response queued in the hold queue associated with the first network interface module.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 16, the operations further comprising maintaining the hold queue in a coupling facility accessible by more than one database server.

20. A system for facilitating delivery of asynchronous response messages to a client, the system comprising:

a coupling facility storing a hold queue associated with a first network interface module, the coupling facility enabling access to the hold queue by one or more database servers;

a first database server in communication with the coupling facility, the first database server authorized to access the hold queue associated with the first network interface module; and

a second database server in communication with the coupling facility and authorized to access the hold queue associated with the first network interface module,

each of the first and second database servers comprising a processor and a memory device configured to store executable and operational data, the data comprising;

an authorization module which designates a second network interface module authorized to relay a response message queued in the hold queue associated with the first network interface module, wherein the response message is generated in response to a first request message; and

a rerouting module which routes the response message from the hold queue to the second network interface module in response to a second request message, the second request message requesting at least one message queued in the hold queue associated with the first network interface module, wherein the at least one message queued comprises the response message.