Automated management of content servers based on change in demand

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for detecting a change in demand for server resources across a load-bearing system having one or more content servers hosting identical content, the load-bearing system being connected to a network of content servers; and automatically modifying the number of content servers on the load-bearing system in response to the change in demand.

Description

BACKGROUND

This invention relates to automated server replication.

The popularity of the World Wide Web as a communications medium lies in the richness of its information content and ease of use. Information in this medium exists as objects in a widely distributed collection of internetworked servers, each object uniquely addressable by its own Uniform Resource Locator (URL). The proliferation of commercial applications on the World Wide Web brings with it an increasing number of users making ever-increasing numbers of requests for web content. The problems of latency and bandwidth considerations manifest themselves in delay and lost information.

Network architects respond using an array of solutions, one of which is the server farm. This involves the use of multiple web servers with identical content, or the segmentation based upon functionality. For example, two servers for web functions, two for File Transfer Protocol (FTP), two as a database, and so forth. The use of multiple servers solves one problem at the expense of creating another. If there are multiple servers, how does the end user locate a particular web site? Presently, names and Universal Resource Locator (URLs) are resolved into unique single addresses by a Domain Name Service (DNS) residing in a DNS server. DNS servers maintain a list of domain names cross referenced to individual Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. However, if multiple web servers or server farms are used, a modified version of DNS service is used. A common approach to this problem is to modify the DNS system to be aware of a one-to-many mapping of names-to-IP-addresses. Thus, the DNS will return an IP address that comes from a list of possible IP addresses that correspond to a particular web object. Thus, from one moment to the next, a DNS query will resolve to different IP addresses. In this example, the modified DNS decides which IP address to return based on how busy each of the servers is.

In current network management systems, there are various methods of detecting and monitoring the load across a server or a server farm. One system uses a load capacity detection agent to monitor the load across a server or a server farm. In this system, when the load detection agent detects that a server farm, for example, is experiencing excess load, the agent notifies a system administrator of the system. The system administrator may decide to manually take action to either reduce the load across the server farm, or alternatively, increase the available load capacity by adding a server to the server farm. Generally, the system administrator adds a server by manually identifying an additional available server, and then modifying the entries in the load management system to include the IP address of the recently-added content server.

SUMMARY

In general, in one aspect, the invention provides a method and apparatus, including a computer program apparatus, implementing techniques for detecting a change in demand for server resources across a load-bearing system having one or more content servers hosting identical content, the load-bearing system being connected to a network of content servers; and automatically modifying the number of content servers on the load-bearing system in response to the change in demand.

Each content server on the network may be categorized as active or idle. The hosted content may be assigned a priority level, and a number defining a maximum number of content servers on the load-bearing system. A content server may be added to the load-bearing system if the change in demand is greater than a pre-configured threshold and the number of content servers on the load-bearing system is less than a maximum number assigned to the hosted content. The number of content servers may be modified by selecting an available content server on the network; loading hosted content onto the selected content server; and adding the selected content server to the load-bearing system. All of the content servers on the load-bearing system including the selected content server host identical content. The available content server having the lowest priority level, the highest available load capacity, or the least number of active sessions may be selected.

The hosted content may be assigned a number defining a minimum number of content servers on the load-bearing system. A content server may be removed from the load-bearing system if the change in demand is greater than a pre-configured threshold and the number of content servers on the load-bearing system is greater than a minimum number assigned to the hosted content. The content server having the highest available load capacity or the least number of active sessions may be removed.

Embodiments may have on or more of the following advantages. The invention uses scripting, or other software techniques, to automate the addition or removal of a content server from a load-bearing system. Automating the addition and removal of content servers gives, for example, a web hosting operation a way to manipulate server resources between high-activity servers and low-activity servers without requiring any user intervention. In particular, the invention serves the needs of “seasonal” or “spiky” web applications, such as tax preparation services or Superbowl-related web sites, which experience a tremendous increase in the number of hits at specific times of the year.

The details of one or more embodiments of the invention are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, objects, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1a-1d are block diagrams illustrating an internetwork topology including an network of content servers and a management server.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a process for automatically modifying the number of content servers on a load-bearing system.

Like reference symbols in the various drawings indicate like elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIGS. 1a-1d, an exemplary internetwork 100 includes a network of servers 102 connected to a network of clients 104 through the Internet 106. The network of servers 102 includes a management server 108 and a group of content servers 110.

The content servers 110 are nodes on the network 102 that perform the actual serving of content, for example, Web pages or FTP files. Although only nine content servers 110 are shown in FIGS. 1a through 1d, it will be understood that any number of content servers may be connected to the network 102. Each content server 110 is capable of receiving queries from clients, doing substantially all the processing necessary to formulate responses to the queries, and providing these responses to the clients. Web servers, for example, respond to requests from clients (e.g., through browser software) for access to files and data. Other types of servers allow clients to share access to network devices, such as shared printers or disk storage.

In one exemplary commercial setting, each content server 110 is a managed node on the network 102 maintained by a network operator, such as Genuity Inc. of Woburn, Mass. By the term “managed node”, it is meant that each content server 110 runs a management process that allows another computer to query the managed node for information. For example, Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) describes how a computer formats a message to send to the managed node. Software on the managed node, called an SNMP agent (not shown), examines SNMP messages it receives, and responds accordingly. Each SNMP agent maintains a local database of variables that describe the state of the content server 110 and may, optionally, affect its operation. Each SNMP agent's local database includes, but need not be limited to the following: the number of packets and bytes sent and received from the Internet 106, the number of broadcasts, the current output queue size, the current transaction rate, the current processor utilization, and the current disk utilization.

Content servers 110 are the systems which store information that may be accessed using web browser software such as Netscape Communicator® and Microsoft's Internet Explorer®. Content servers transmit their information in response to receiving a message of a format specified by Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP). The format of the server's response is also specified by HTTP, and is understood by web browser software.

Network management on the network 102 can be done from management servers, an example of which is shown as management server 108, which are general-purpose computers running management software. The management server 108 interacts with the SNMP agents in the content servers 110 using the SNMP protocol. This protocol allows the management server 108 to query the state of an agent's local variables, and change them if necessary. For example, the management server 108 can issue commands and get responses that allow the management server 108 to monitor the resources available (i.e., available load capacity) on each content server 110, and express them in a way that enables the content servers 110 to be categorized as active or idle. In one example, the management server 108 only considers the CPU resource, and neglects all others. In other implementations, the management server 108 uses a more complex combination of considerations, with load metrics ranging from the instantaneous CPU utilization and IO queue length, through to a linear combination of CPU, memory and IO queue lengths. The management server 108 can also modify network routing tables, and chance the status of network links and devices. The collection of all possible variables available via SNMP is given in a data structure called the Management Information Base (MIB), which is formally defined in the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) Request For Comment (RFC) 1213. The IETF is a large open international community of network designers, operators, vendors, and researchers concerned with the evolution of the Internet architecture and smooth operation of the Internet—it is open to any individual.

The management server 108 also houses several other software components, which include in one implementation, an image manager 116, and a content storage system 118. In the illustrated examples on FIGS. 1a-1d, a single server implements the software components of the management server 108. However, it should be noted that two or more servers connected to the network 102 may implement the software components.

The router 114 uses any one of a number of dynamic routing algorithms (e.g., distance vector routing and link state routing) to decide where to send packets addressed to a particular IP address; for example, how to get to a particular content server which are all distinguished based on their assigned IP address. Dynamic routing algorithms change their routing decisions in response to changes in the topology of the network 102. A set of files is stored in the content storage system 118. Each file contains content data, applications and all the necessary software required to implement a web site presence on the Internet 106. Each file can be loaded onto a content server 110 by the image manager 116. In one implementation, the image manager 116 maintains a table (shown below) that includes, for each file, a priority level, a minimum number and a maximum number of content servers 110 that can be used to implement the web site. The priority level indicates to the management server 108 the relative importance—to the network operator, Genuity Inc., for example—of implementating a particular web site in situations in which several web sites are vying for limited server capacity. In one implementation, a five-point scale is used to designate a priority level: “highest”, “high”, “medium”, “low” and “lowest”. Generally, the higher the priority level assigned to a file, the more server resources (up to the maximum number of content servers 110 identified in the table) are allocated to implement the web site. By default, content servers 110 that are idle are assigned a “lowest” priority level. When a file having a “highest” priority level is loaded onto a content server 110 that is idle, for example, the priority level of the content server 110 changes from “lowest” to “highest”.

Assume, for example, that three files—file “A”, file “B”, and file “C”—are stored in the content storage system 118. The second, third and fourth table entries are populated with the following data:

File	Priority Level	Min. Number	Max. Number
A	highest	1	7
B	medium	1	3
C	low	1	3

Initially, each file is loaded and run on one or more content servers 110, indicated in dashed lines in FIG. 1a as load-bearing system A 120, load-bearing system B 122, and load-bearing system C 124. If a load-bearing system, such as load-bearing system A 120, has multiple content servers 110, the load on the system is distributed using one of the following schemes: (1) a load-sharing scheme; (2) a load-balancing scheme; or (3) a load-leveling scheme. Generally, content servers 110 in a load-sharing system that utilizes the load-sharing scheme are viewed in binary. That is, the server is either idle or busy, and load may only be placed on idle servers. Load-balancing schemes attempt to ensure that the load on each content server 110 in the system is within a small degree of the load present on every other content server in the system. Load-leveling schemes can be viewed as the middle ground between the load-sharing and load-balancing schemes. Rather than trying to obtain an even distribution across the system, or utilizing only the content servers 110 that are idle, the load-leveling scheme distributes load in a manner that minimizes congestion.

Referring to FIG. 2, a process 200 residing in the management server 108 periodically checks (202) the available load capacity on each load-bearing system. In one implementation, the process 200 polls each content server 110 in a load-bearing system to determine its available load capacity.

If the process 200 detects (204) that the load on the load-bearing system B 122, for example, is greater than a preconfigured threshold level (i.e., there is insufficient aggregate available load capacity), the process then determines (206) whether the number of content servers 110 in the load-bearing system B 122 is less than the maximum number that may be allocated to that system. If so, the process 200 will add a content server 110 to the load-bearing system B 122 if one is available. By use of the term “available”, it is meant that the content server 110 is idle and may be added to a load-bearing system, or alternatively, the content server has a lower priority level and may be removed from a particular load-bearing system and allocated to a different load-bearing system. For example, as shown in FIG. 1b, if the load-bearing system C 124 is implemented by a single content server 124a, the content server 124a is not available for re-allocation to either of the other two load-bearing systems 120 and 122, because the network operator has designated in the table that at least one content server 110 in the network 102 must be allocated to the load-bearing system C 124.

The process 200 first polls all of the content servers 110 on the network 102 to determine (210) if there is an available content server 110 on the network 102. If none of the content servers 110 are available, the process 200 logs and signals the event (208) to the network operator maintaining the network 102. Otherwise, the process 200 selects (212) one of the available content servers for addition to the load-bearing system B 122. If there are multiple available content servers 110, the process 200 will typically select one that is idle for addition to the load-bearing system B 122. However, if all of the available content servers 110 on the network 102 are active, as shown in FIG. 1c, the process 200 makes the selection as follows:

• • (1) If there is only one available content server 110, the process 200 selects that content server 110.
  • (2) If there are multiple available content servers 110, the process 200 selects the content server 110 having the lowest priority level.
  • (3) If there are multiple available content servers 110 having the lowest priority level, the process 200 polls each of those content servers 110 to determine which content server 110 has the highest available load capacity and selects that content server 110. Alternatively, the process 200 polls each of those content servers 110 to determine which content server 110 has the least number of running processes in progress (called “active sessions”) and selects that content server 110.

Once the selection is made, say, for example, the process 200 selects the content server having an IP address of “128.11.234.59” 124b in the load-bearing system C 124, as shown in FIG. 1c, the process 200 can be configured to immediately stop all future client queries directed to the load-bearing system C 124 from being sent to the selected content server 124b for processing. The process 200 can also be configured to wait until all of the active sessions on the selected content server 124b have been terminated before removing that content server 124b from the load-bearing system C 124. Once removed, the process 200 retrieves the file “B” from the content storage system 118 and uses the image manager 116 to load (214) it onto the selected content server 124b. Referring to FIG. 1d, the process 200 then starts the selected content server 124b having the recently-loaded file “B”, and modifies the DNS system to add (216) the content server having an IP address of “128.11.234.59” 124b to the load-bearing system B 122. Thereafter, when a client requests a service by entering in a web browser the URL for the web site implemented by the load-bearing system B 122, the request can be directed to the content server 124b.

Referring to FIG. 1c, if the process 200 detects (218) that the load on the load-bearing system B 122, for example, is less than a preconfigured threshold level, the process 200 then determines (220) whether the number of content servers 110 in the load-bearing system B 122 is more than the minimum number that may be allocated to that system 122. If so, the process 200 may select (222) a content server 110 from the load-bearing system B 122 for removal if the aggregate available load capacity of the load-bearing system B, the historical demand for services implemented by the load-bearing system B, as well as damping considerations, among others, warrants removal of a content server. The process 200 selects a content server for removal much in the same manner described above. That is, the selection may be made by polling each of the content servers 110 in the load-bearing system B 122 to determine which content server 110 has the highest available load capacity and selecting that content server 110. Alternatively, the selection may be made by polling each of those content servers 110 to determine which content server 110 has the least number of active sessions and selecting that content server 110. The process 200 can be configured to wait until all of the active sessions on the selected content server 110 have been terminated before removing (224) that content server 110 from the load-bearing system B 122, and categorizing it as idle.

Other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. A method comprising: using a computer to detect a change in demand for server resources across a first load-bearing system having one or more content servers hosting content, the first load-bearing system being connected to a network comprising at least a second load-bearing system having a plurality of other content servers;automatically modifying the number of content servers on the first load-bearing system in response to the change in demand if a number of the one or more content servers on the first load bearing system is less than a maximum threshold of content servers, wherein the modifying act comprises adding at least one of the other content servers to the first load-bearing system from the second load bearing system;determining whether a total number of the other content servers on the second load-bearing system is greater than a minimum threshold of content servers associated with content hosted by the other content servers; andif the total number is greater than the minimum threshold of content servers, selecting a content server hosting content of a lowest priority level to be the added content server; andif multiple content servers on the second load-bearing system host content of the lowest priority level, selecting a content server having the least number of active sessions among the other content servers hosting content of the lowest priority level on the second load bearing system to be the added content server.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the selected other content server has the highest available load capacity.

3. A method comprising: using a computer to detect a change in demand for server resources across a first load-bearing system having one or more content servers hosting content, the first load-bearing system being connected to a network comprising at least a second load-bearing system and a third load-bearing system each having a plurality of other content servers;in response to the change in demand, if a number of the one or more content servers on the first load bearing system is less than a maximum threshold of content servers, referencing a table to select at least one of the other content servers of the second-load bearing system or the third load-bearing system to add to the first load-bearing system, wherein the table comprises priority information related to content hosted on the other content servers;referencing the table to determine whether a total number of the other content servers of the second load-bearing system is greater than a minimum threshold of content severs associated with the content hosted by the other content servers of the second load-bearing system; andif the total number is greater than the minimum threshold of content servers, selecting a content server hosting content of a lowest priority level from the at least one of the other content servers from the second load-bearing system to be the added content server; andif multiple content servers on the second load-bearing system host content of the lowest priority level, selecting a content server having a least number of active sessions among the other content servers hosting content of the lowest priority level to be the added content server.

4. A method as recited in claim 3, wherein further comprising: if the total number of content servers of the second load-bearing system is less than the minimum threshold of other content servers associated with the content hosted by the other content servers of the second load-bearing system, referencing the table to determine whether a total number of the other content servers of the third load-bearing system is greater than a minimum threshold of content servers associated with the content hosted by the other content servers of the third load-bearing system, and if so, selecting the at least one of the other content servers from the third load-bearing system to be the added content server.

5. A method as recited in claim 4, wherein the selecting act comprises: selecting from the other content servers of the third load-bearing system the content server having the highest available load capacity among the other content servers of the third load-bearing system to be the added content server.

6. A method as recited in claim 3, wherein the selecting act comprises: selecting from the other content servers of the second load-bearing system the content server having the highest available load capacity among the other content servers of the second load-bearing system to be the added content server.