Information distribution system, information distributing method, node, and recording medium

• US 8,713,145 B2
• Filed: 05/02/2008
• Issued: 04/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/24/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Ushiyama, Kentaro
• Primary Examiner(s): RECEK, JASON D
• Application Number:
  US12/149,494
• Publication Number:
  US 20080215663A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,188 Days
• Field of Search: 709/223, 709/226, 709/201
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/134 Distributed indices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1837 Management specially adapted to peer-to-peer storage networks topology management mechanisms of peer-to-peer networks H04L67/1042
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1065 Discovery involving distributed pre-established resource-based relationships among peers, e.g. based on distributed hash tables [DHT] pre-configuration of logical or physical connections H04L67/1053
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes

Abstract

A node is provided in an information distribution system having a plurality of nodes capable of performing communication with each other via a network and in which at least one piece of distribution information is copied and stored into a plurality of nodes, the node managing node information indicative of a node that stores the copied distribution information.

The node includes: node information storing means for storing the node information; dividing determining means, when amount of the stored node information becomes equal to or larger than a predetermined reference amount, for determining that a part of the node information is divided and managed by a new node; and, node information deleting means for deleting the node information managed by the new node from the node information storing means.

Claims

1. A node in an information distribution system comprising a plurality of nodes capable of performing communication with each other via a network and in which at least one distribution information is stored into a plurality of nodes, comprising:

a first memory configured to store i) node information indicating a node that stores the distribution information, the distribution information being shared by the plurality of nodes, the node information including IP address of a node that stores the distribution information, and ii) instructions; and

a first processor that is configured to execute the instructions to;

determine that a part of the node information stored in the first memory is to be divided, in response to determining that an amount of the node information stored in the first memory becomes equal to or larger than a first predetermined reference amount;

divide a part of the node information stored in the first memory, in accordance with the determination that the part of the node information stored in the first memory is to be divided;

transmit the node information divided to another node; and

delete the node information transmitted to the other node from the first memory.

2. The node according to claim 1,

wherein in response to determining that information requesting deletion of node information which is managed by the other node is received from the node indicated in the node information managed by the other node, the first processor deletes the node information indicated in the received deletion request information from the first memory.

3. The node according to claim 1,

wherein in response to determining that amount of node information to be managed by the node itself becomes equal to or larger than a second predetermined reference amount, the first processor determines that a part of the node information is divided and managed by the other node.

4. The node according to claim 1,

wherein in response that the other node is determined to be managing node information, the first processor transmits managing node change information indicating that the node information is to be managed by the other node, to the node indicated in the node information to be managed by the other node.

5. The node according to claim 4,

wherein in response to determining that node information is determined to be managing the other node, the first processor obtains other identification information to be associated with distribution information corresponding to the node information to be managed by the other node, and transmits the managing node change information including the other identification information to the node.

6. A node for receiving managing node change information sent from the node of claim 5, comprising:

a second memory configured to store instructions, and

a second processor that is configured to execute the instructions stored in the second memory to transmit the other identification information included in the received managing node change information together with registration request information including the node information of the node itself toward the other node.

7. The node according to claim 6,

wherein the registration request information is a request for registering the node information also in a node existing in a transfer path to the other node.

8. A node for receiving managing node change information transmitted from the node according to claim 5, comprising:

a second memory configured to store instructions, and

a second processor that is configured to execute the instructions stored in the second memory to transmit identification information associated with distribution information corresponding to node information managed by the node which has transmitted the managing node change information, together with information requesting deletion of the node information of the node itself, toward the node.

9. The node according to claim 8,

wherein the deletion request information denotes a request of deleting the node information in a node existing in a transfer path to the node which has transmitted the managing node change information.

10. A node for receiving managing node change information sent from the node of claim 4, comprising:

a second memory configured to store instructions, and

a second processor that is configured to execute the instructions stored in the second memory to transmit registration request information including the node information of the node itself to an other node indicated in the received managing node change information.

11. The node according to claim 1,

wherein the first processor obtains belonging information to which the node indicated in the node information belongs, which is stored in the first memory, and belonging information indicative of a network connection group belonged to in the network, and

wherein the first processor divides a part of the node information so that the node information indicative of the node having the same belonging information is to be managed by different nodes.

12. The node according to claim 1,

wherein the first processor obtains access frequency information indicative of frequency of access to the node indicated in the node information stored in the first memory, and

wherein the first processor divides a part of the node information so that total of access frequency to the node indicated in the node information is equally divided into the node itself and the other node on the basis of the access frequency information in the nodes.

13. The node according to claim 1,

wherein the first processor in response to determining that the node information managed by the other node is deleted, and the amount of node information stored becomes equal to or less than the first predetermined reference amount, merges the divided node information managed by the other node to the node information stored.

14. The node according to claim 13,

wherein the first processor, in response to determining that the merge is determined, merges information indicating that the divided node information which is managed by the other node is merged to the original node information to the other node.

15. A node for receiving merge information transmitted from the node according to claim 14, comprising:

a second memory configured to store the node information and instructions;

a second processor that is configured to execute the instructions stored in the second memory to;

transmit managing node change information indicating that the node information is to be managed by the original node, to a node indicated in the node information corresponding to the merge information; and

delete the node information corresponding to the merge information.

16. The node according to claim 15,

wherein in response to determining that an amount of the node information corresponding to the merge information stored becomes equal to or smaller than a second predetermined reference amount, the second processor transmits the managing node change information to a node indicated in the node information corresponding to the merge information, and

in response to determining that the amount of the node information corresponding to the merge information stored becomes equal to or smaller than the predetermined reference amount, the second processor deletes the node information corresponding to the merge information.

17. The node according to claim 15,

wherein the second processor, in response to determining that a part of the node information corresponding to the merge information is further divided and managed by a further another node and an amount of the node information corresponding to the merge information becomes equal to or less than a second predetermined reference amount, determines that the further divided node information is merged to the node information corresponding to the merge information;

and

the second memory is configured to merge the further divided node information to the node information corresponding to the merge information and store the resultant information,

wherein the second processor transmits the managing node change information to a node indicated in the node information corresponding to the merge information after the merge, and

the second processor deletes the node information corresponding to the merge information after the merge.

18. A node for receiving managing node change information transmitted from the node according to claim 15, comprising:

a second memory configured to store instructions, and

a second processor that is configured to execute the instructions stored in the second memory to;

transmit registration request information including the node information of the node itself, to the original node indicated in the received managing node change information.

19. A node for receiving managing node change information transmitted from the node according to claim 15, comprising:

a second memory configured to store instructions, and

a second processor this is configured to execute the instructions stored in the second memory,

wherein in response to that unique identification information is associated with the distribution information and the identification information is transmitted from one of the nodes, the identification information is transferred to a node that manages the node information corresponding to the distribution information associated with the identification information by an another node or a plurality of nodes, and

the second processor transmits identification information associated with distribution information corresponding to the node information managed by the original node, together with registration request information of the node information of the node itself, toward the original node.

20. The node according to claim 19,

wherein the registration request information denotes a request for registering the node information also in a node existing in a transfer path to the original node.

21. A node for receiving managing node change information transmitted from the node according to claim 15, comprising:

a second memory configured to store instructions, and

a second processor that is configured to execute the instructions stored in the second memory,

wherein in response to determining that unique identification information is associated with the distribution information and the identification information is transmitted from one of the nodes, the identification information is transferred to a node that manages the node information corresponding to the distribution information associated with the identification information by another node or a plurality of nodes, and

the second processor transmits identification information associated with distribution information corresponding to node information managed by the node which has transmitted the managing node change information, together with information requesting deletion of the node information of the node itself, toward the node.

22. The node according to claim 21,

wherein the deletion request information denotes a request for deleting the node information in a node existing in a transfer path to the node which has transmitted the managing node change information.

23. The node according to claim 13,

wherein in response to determining that the node information is divided at a plurality of times, the first processor determines that node information most recently divided among a plurality of times is merged to the original node information.

24. A non-transitory recording medium in which a node process program for making a computer function as the node according to claim 1 is computer-readably recorded.

25. The node according to claim 1,

wherein the information distribution system is a system in which at least one distribution information is stored into a plurality of the nodes via an overlay network constituted by the nodes,

the first processor, in response to determining that a part of the node information stored in the first memory is divided by the first processor, generates an instruction of causing another node which is connected to the overlay network and is different from the node having stored the divided part of the node information, to store the divided part of the node information.

26. The node according to claim 25,

wherein the first processor transmits the instruction generated to any one of the nodes connected to the overlay network.

27. A node in an information distribution system comprising a plurality of nodes capable of performing communication with each other via a network and in which at least one distribution information is stored into a plurality of nodes,

wherein node information corresponding to same distribution information is divided and transmitted to another node, the node information being indicative of a node that stores the distribution information, the distribution information being shared by the plurality of nodes, the node information including IP address of a node that stores the distribution information, and

the node comprises:

a first memory configured to store the node information and instructions; and

a first processor that is configured to execute the instruction to;

determine that the node information corresponding to the same distribution information transmitted to the other node is to be merged to the stored node information, in response to determining that an amount of the stored node information becomes equal to or smaller than a predetermined reference amount, and

merge the node information corresponding to the same distribution information transmitted to the other node, to the stored node information, in accordance with the determination that the node information corresponding to the same distribution information transmitted to the other node is to be merged.

28. An information distribution system comprising a plurality of nodes capable of performing communication with each other via a network and in which at least one distribution information is stored into a plurality of nodes,

wherein a node for managing node information indicative of a node that stores copied distribution information, comprises:

a first memory configured to store i) the node information indicating a node that stores the distribution information, the distribution information being shared by the plurality of nodes, the node information including IP address of a node that stores the distribution information, and ii) instructions; and

a first processor that is configured to execute the instructions to;

determine that a part of the node information stored in the first memory is to be divided, in response to determining that an amount of the node information stored in the first memory becomes equal to or larger than a predetermined reference amount;

divide a part of the node information stored in the first memory, in accordance with the determination that the part of the node information stored in the first memory is to be divided;

transmit the node information divided to another node,

delete the node information transmitted to the other node from the first memory; and

transmit managing node change information indicating that the node information is to be managed by the other node, to a node indicated in the node information managed by the other node, in response to determining that the node information is determined to be managed by the other node, and

wherein the first processor of the node which receives the managing node change information transmitted transmits registration request information including the node information of the node itself, to another node indicated in the managing node change information received.

29. The information distribution system according to claim 28,

wherein the first processor of the node for managing the node information indicative of the node that stores the copied distribution information, in response to determining that the node information managed by the other node is deleted, and then, the amount of node information stored becomes equal to or less than the predetermined reference amount, merges the divided node information managed by the other node to the node information stored;

and

in response to determining that the merge is determined, the first processor transmits merge information indicating that the divided node information which is managed by the new node is merged to the original node information, to the other node, and

wherein a node that receives the transmitted merge information comprises;

a second processor, and

a second memory configured to store the node information;

wherein the first processor transmits managing node change information indicating that the node information is to be managed by the original node, to a node indicated in the node information corresponding to the merge information; and

the first processor deletes the node information corresponding to the merge information, and

wherein the second processor of the node that has received the managing node change information transmitted transmits registration request information including the node information of the node itself, to the original node indicated in the managing node change information received.

30. An information distributing method in an information distribution system comprising a plurality of nodes capable of performing communication with each other via a network and in which at least one distribution information is stored into a plurality of nodes,

wherein managing node information indicative of a node that stores the copied distribution information comprises:

storing the node information, the node information indicating a node that stores the distribution information, the distribution information being shared by the plurality of nodes, the node information including IP address of a node that stores the distribution information;

in response to determining that an amount of the node information stored in a first memory becomes equal to or larger than a predetermined reference amount, determining that a part of the node information stored in the first memory is to be divided;

dividing a part of the node information stored in the first memory, in accordance with the determination that the part of the node information stored in the first memory is to be divided;

transmitting the node information divided to an other node;

deleting the node information transmitted to other node from the node; and

transmitting managing node change information indicating that the node information is to be managed by the other node, to a node indicated in the node information managed by the other node, in response to determining that the node information is determined to be managed by the other node, and

wherein transmitting managing node change information comprises transmitting registration request information including the node information of the node itself, to another node indicated in the managing node change information received.

31. The information distributing method according to claim 30,

wherein managing the node information indicative of the node that stores the copied distribution information further comprises:

determining to merge the divided node information managed by the other node to the node information stored, in response to determining that the node information managed by the other node is deleted, and then, the amount of node information stored becomes equal to or less than the predetermined reference amount; and

transmitting merge information indicating that the divided node information which is managed by the new node is merged to the original node information, to the other node, in response to determining that the merge is determined,

wherein a node that receives the transmitted merge information performs;

storing the node information;

transmitting managing node change information indicating that the node information is to be managed by the original node, to a node indicated in the node information corresponding to the merge information; and

deleting the node information corresponding to the merge information, and

wherein transmitting managing node change information comprises;

transmitting registration request information including the node information of the node itself, to the original node indicated in the managing node change information received.