Methods for managing traffic in a multi-service environment and devices thereof

• US 9,503,375 B1
• Filed: 06/30/2011
• Issued: 11/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: F5 Networks, Inc. (F5 Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: F5 Networks, Inc. (F5 Incorporated)
• Inventors: Natarajan, Ravi, Amdahl, Saxon
• Primary Examiner(s): Young, Steve
• Application Number:
  US13/173,943
• Time in Patent Office: 1,972 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/00 Error detection; Error correction; Monitoring error detection, correction or monitoring in information storage based on relative movement between record carrier and transducer G11B20/18; monitoring, i.e. supervising the progress of recording or reproducing G11B27/36; in static stores G11C29/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0896 Bandwidth or capacity management, i.e. automatically increasing or decreasing capacities flow or congestion control using dynamic resource allocation, e.g. in-call renegotiation, H04L47/76
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control

Abstract

A method, computer readable medium, and device that manages traffic in a multi-service environment including determining a self score for a front virtual service which is coupled to one or more inner virtual services. An aggregate score for the front virtual service is determined based on an aggregate score for each of the one or more inner virtual services and a number of connections between each of the one or more inner virtual services and the front virtual service. An advertised score for the front virtual service for load balancing is obtained based on the determined self score and the determined aggregate score.

Claims

1. A method for managing traffic in a multi-service environment, the method comprising:

determining, by a traffic management computing device, for a front virtual service coupled to a plurality of inner virtual services, a front virtual service self score based on a minimum one of a plurality of inner virtual service self scores obtained from the plurality of inner virtual services;

determining, by the traffic management computing device, an aggregate score for the front virtual service based on an average of advertised scores obtained from each of a plurality of the inner virtual services, the average of advertised scores determined based on a respective weighting factor applied to each of the obtained advertised scores, wherein each of the weighting factors is based on a number of connections between a respective one of the inner virtual services and the front virtual service;

obtaining, by the traffic management computing device, an advertised score for the front virtual service based on at least one of the determined front virtual service self score for the front virtual service or the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service;

recording, by the traffic management computing device, a timestamp when the advertised score for the front virtual service is obtained; and

load balancing, by the traffic management computing device, incoming network traffic flows comprising one or more packets, based on the obtained advertised score for the front virtual service when a predetermined time period starting from when the timestamp was recorded has not elapsed, wherein the load balancing further comprises transmitting the one or more packets.

2. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the determining with the traffic management device the aggregate score for the front virtual service further comprises:

multiplying, by the traffic management computing device, the one of a plurality of inner virtual service self scores for each of the inner virtual services with the corresponding number of connections between the front virtual service and that one of the inner virtual services;

summing, by the traffic management device, each of the multiplied one of a plurality of inner virtual service self scores together; and

dividing, by the traffic management device, the summed multiplied one of a plurality of inner virtual service self scores by a total number of the connections between each of the inner virtual services and the front virtual service to obtain the aggregate score for the front virtual service.

3. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the advertised score for the front virtual service is obtained based on a minimum of the determined front virtual service self score for the front virtual service and the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service.

4. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the advertised score for the front virtual service is obtained based on an average of the determined front virtual service self score for the front virtual service and the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service.

5. The method as set forth in claim 1, further comprising:

recording, by the traffic management computing device, a score timestamp when the advertised score for the front virtual service is determined.

6. The method as set forth in claim 5, further comprising:

determining, by the traffic management computing device, when the score timestamp has expired before determining the advertised score for the front virtual service; and

updating, by the traffic management computing device, at least one of the determined front virtual service self score for the front virtual service or the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service when the score timestamp is determined to be expired.

7. The method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the front virtual service self score comprises an available capacity of the plurality of inner virtual services.

8. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon instructions for managing traffic in a multi-service environment comprising machine executable code which when executed by at least one processor, causes the processor to perform steps comprising:

determining for a front virtual service coupled to a plurality of inner virtual services, a front virtual service self score based on a minimum one of a plurality of inner virtual service self scores obtained from the plurality of inner virtual services;

determining an aggregate score for the front virtual service based on an average of advertised scores obtained from each of a plurality of the inner virtual services, the average of advertised scores determined based on a respective weighting factor applied to each of the obtained advertised scores, wherein each of the weighting factors is based on a number of connections between a respective one of the inner virtual services and the front virtual service;

obtaining an advertised score for the front virtual service based on at least one of the determined front virtual service self score for the front virtual service or the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service;

recording a timestamp when the advertised score for the front virtual service is obtained; and

load balancing incoming network traffic flows comprising one or more packets, based on the obtained advertised score for the front virtual service when a predetermined time period starting from when the timestamp was recorded has not elapsed, wherein the load balancing further comprises transmitting the one or more packets.

9. The medium as set forth in claim 8, wherein the determining the aggregate score for the front virtual service further comprises:

multiplying the one of a plurality of inner virtual service self scores for each of the inner virtual services with the corresponding number of connections between the front virtual service and that one of the inner virtual services;

summing each of the multiplied one of a plurality of inner virtual service self scores together; and

dividing the summed multiplied one of a plurality of inner virtual service self scores by a total number of the connections between each of the inner virtual services and the front virtual service to obtain the aggregate score for the front virtual service.

10. The medium as set forth in claim 8, wherein the advertised score for the front virtual service is obtained based on a minimum of the determined front virtual service self score for the front virtual service and the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service.

11. The medium as set forth in claim 8, wherein the advertised score for the front virtual service is obtained based on an average of the determined front virtual service self score for the front virtual service and the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service.

12. The medium as set forth in claim 8, further having stored thereon instructions further comprising machine executable code which when executed by the at least one processor, causes the processor to perform steps further comprising recording a score timestamp when the advertised score for the front virtual service is determined.

13. The medium as set forth in claim 12 further comprising:

determining when the score timestamp has expired before determining the advertised score for the front virtual service; and

updating at least one of the determined front virtual service self score for the front virtual service or the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service when the score timestamp is determined to be expired.

14. The medium as set forth in claim 8, wherein the front virtual service self score comprises an available capacity of the plurality of inner virtual services.

15. A traffic management device comprising:

one or more processors; and

a memory coupled to the one or more processors, the one or more processors configured to be capable of executing programmed instructions comprising and stored in the memory to;

determine for a front virtual service which is coupled to a plurality of inner virtual services, a front virtual service self score based on a minimum one of a plurality of inner virtual service self scores obtained from the plurality of inner virtual services;

determine an aggregate score for the front virtual service based on an average of advertised scores obtained from each of a plurality of the inner virtual services, the average of advertised scores determined based on a respective weighting factor applied to each of the obtained advertised scores, wherein each of the weighting factors is based on a number of connections between a respective one of the inner virtual services and the front virtual service;

obtain an advertised score for the front virtual service based on at least one of the determined front virtual service self score for the front virtual service or the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service;

record a timestamp when the advertised score for the front virtual service is obtained; and

load balance incoming network traffic flows comprising one or more packets, based on the obtained advertised score for the front virtual service when a predetermined time period starting from when the timestamp was recorded has not elapsed, wherein the load balancing further comprises transmitting the one or more packets.

16. The device as set forth in claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured to be capable of executing programmed instructions to determine the aggregate score for the front virtual service comprising and stored in the memory to:

multiply the one of a plurality of inner virtual service self scores for each of the inner virtual services with the corresponding number of connections between the front virtual service and that one of the inner virtual services;

sum each of the multiplied one of a plurality of inner virtual service self scores together; and

divide the summed multiplied one of a plurality of inner virtual service self scores by a total number of the connections between each of the one or more inner virtual services and the front virtual service to obtain the aggregate score for the front virtual service.

17. The device as set forth in claim 15, wherein the advertised score for the front virtual service is obtained based on a minimum of the determined front virtual service self score for the front virtual service and the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service.

18. The device as set forth in claim 15, wherein the advertised score for the front virtual service is obtained based on an average of the determined front virtual service self score for the front virtual service and the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service.

19. The device as set forth in claim 15, wherein the one or more processors is further configured to be capable of executing programmed instructions comprising and stored in the memory to record a score timestamp when the advertised score for the front virtual service is determined.

20. The device as set forth in claim 19, wherein the one or more processors is further configured to be capable of executing programmed instructions comprising and stored in the memory to:

determine when the score timestamp has expired before determining the advertised score for the front virtual service; and

update at least one of the determined self score for the front virtual service or the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service when the score timestamp is determined to be expired.

21. The device as set forth in claim 15, wherein the front virtual service self score comprises an available capacity of the plurality of inner virtual services,

obtaining a self score for each of the inner virtual services;

and

determining the self score for the front virtual service based on at least one of an average or a minimum of the obtained self scores for each of the inner virtual services,

determining whether the timestamp has expired before determining the advertised score for the front virtual service; and

updating at least one of the determined self score for the front virtual service or the determined aggregate score for the front virtual service when the timestamp is determined to be expired.