Abstract: Network traffic information from multiple sources, at multiple time scales, and at multiple levels of detail are integrated so that users may more easily identify relevant network information. The network monitoring system stores and manipulates low-level and higher-level network traffic data separately to enable efficient data collection and storage. Packet traffic data is collected, stored, and analyzed at multiple locations. The network monitoring locations communicate summary and aggregate data to central modules, which combine this data to provide an end-to-end description of network traffic at coarser time scales. The network monitoring system enables users to zoom in on high-level, coarse time scale network performance data to one or more lower levels of network performance data at finer time scales.

Abstract: Network traffic information from multiple sources, at multiple time scales, and at multiple levels of detail are integrated so that users may more easily identify relevant network information. The network monitoring system stores and manipulates low-level and higher-level network traffic data separately to enable efficient data collection and storage. Packet traffic data is collected, stored, and analyzed at multiple locations. The network monitoring locations communicate summary and aggregate data to central modules, which combine this data to provide an end-to-end description of network traffic at coarser time scales. The network monitoring system enables users to zoom in on high-level, coarse time scale network performance data to one or more lower levels of network performance data at finer time scales.

Abstract: For an accelerated transaction, a client directs a request to a client-side transaction handler that forwards the request to a server-side transaction handler, which in turn provides the request, or a representation thereof, to a server for responding to the request. The server sends the response to the client via the server-side transaction handler and the client-side transaction handler. When data is to be sent between handlers, the sending transaction handler compares data segments with segments stored in its persistent segment storage and replaces segments with references to entries in its persistent segment storage that match or closely match the segments to be replaced. The transaction accelerators could handle multiple clients and/or multiple servers and the segments stored in the persistent segment stores can relate to different transactions, different clients and/or different servers. Persistent segment stores can be prepopulated with segment data from other transaction accelerators.

Abstract: An overlay protocol and system for allowing multicast routing in the Internet to be performed at the application level. The overlay protocol uses “native” Internet multicast and multicast routing protocols to route information, according to overlay routing tables. Overlay groups are mapped to native multicast groups to exploit native multicasting in regional or local forwarding domains. Use of the overlay protocol allows overlay distribution to be handled in a more intelligent and bandwidth-managed fashion. Overlay routers are placed at each of several local area networks, Internet service provider's point of presence, enterprise, or other cohesively-managed locations. The overlay computers are configured according to bandwidth and security policies, and perform application-level multicast distribution across the otherwise disjoint multicast networks by using the overlay routing. The result is an overlay multicast network that is effectively managed according to local network management policies.

Abstract: A system of network proxies distributes data to multiple servers. Each network proxy is associated with a server. A network proxy intercepts a client request for data. If the network proxy determines that the request can be served using a copy of data stored on the local server, rather than the data stored on a remote server, it diverts the request to the local server. If the network proxy determines that the request cannot be served using a data from the local server, the network proxy diverts the request to a remote server storing the primary copy of the data. A server map specifies the locations of the primary copies of data. When a primary copy of data is updated on one of the servers, the associated network proxy propagates the updated data to the other servers. The servers can provide data from files, e-mail services, databases, or multimedia services.

Abstract: In a network having transaction acceleration, for an accelerated transaction, a client directs a request to a client-side transaction handler that forwards the request to a server-side transaction handler, which in turn provides the request, or a representation thereof, to a server for responding to the request. The server sends the response to the server-side transaction handler, which forwards the response to the client-side transaction handler, which in turn provides the response to the client.

Abstract: In a network supporting transactions between clients and servers and proxies that are interposable in a network path between at least one client and at least one server, wherein a pair of proxies can modify a packet stream between a client and a server such that packet data from the client to the server is transformed at a client-side proxy of the proxy pair and untransformed at a server-side proxy of proxy pair and such that packet data from the server to the client is transformed at the server-side proxy and untransformed at the client-side proxy, a method and apparatus for a discovering proxy to transparently discover its position in a proxy pair by using proxy signals to indicate to other proxies that could pair with the discovering proxy. A discovering proxy might determine that it is a client-side proxy by receipt of a packet from client without a proxy signal. A discovering proxy might determine that it is a server-side proxy by receipt of a packet from server without a return proxy signal.

Abstract: Transactions are accelerated by the transaction handlers by storing segments of data used in the transactions in persistent segment storage accessible to the server side transaction handler and in persistent segment storage accessible to the client side transaction handler. When data is to be sent between the transaction handlers, the sending transaction handler compares the segments of the data to be sent with segments stored in its persistent segment storage and replaces segments of data with references to entries in its persistent segment storage that match or closely match the segments of data to be replaced. The receiving transaction store reconstructs the data sent by replacing segment references with corresponding segment data from its persistent segment storage.

Abstract: In a network having transaction acceleration, for an accelerated transaction, a client directs a request to a client-side transaction handler that forwards the request to a server-side transaction handler, which in turn provides the request, or a representation thereof, to a server for responding to the request. The server sends the response to the server-side transaction handler, which forwards the response to the client-side transaction handler, which in turn provides the response to the client. Transactions are accelerated by the transaction handlers by storing segments of data used in the transactions in persistent segment storage accessible to the server-side transaction handler and in persistent segment storage accessible to the client-side transaction handler.

Abstract: In a network having transaction acceleration, for an accelerated transaction, a client directs a request to a client-side transaction handler that forwards the request to a server-side transaction handler, which in turn provides the request, or a representation thereof, to a server for responding to the request. The server sends the response to the server-side transaction handler, which forwards the response to the client-side transaction handler, which in turn provides the response to the client.

Abstract: Self-discovering transaction accelerators improve communications between a client and a server. A client directs a message to a server. A client-side transaction accelerator intercepts the message, terminates the connection with the client, and accelerates the request by replacing segments of data with references. The accelerated request is forwarded to a server-side transaction accelerator through a new connection. The server-side transaction accelerator reconstructs the message by replacing the reference with segment data in a persistent segment store accessible to the server-side transaction accelerator. The reconstructed request is then provided to the server. Accelerations may occur in any direction of communication. Persistent segment stores can be pre-populated with segment data from other transaction accelerators and anticipated transactions.

Abstract: Two or more network traffic processors connected with the same LAN and WAN are identified as neighbors. Neighboring network traffic processors cooperate to overcome asymmetric routing, thereby ensuring that related sequences of network traffic are processed by the same network proxy. A network proxy can be included in a network traffic processor or as a standalone unit. A network traffic processor that intercepts a new connection initiation by a client assigns a network proxy to handle all messages associated with that connection. The network traffic processor conveys connection information to neighboring network traffic processors. The neighboring network traffic processors use the connection information to redirect network traffic associated with the connection to the assigned network proxy, thereby overcoming the effects of asymmetric routing. The assigned network proxy handles redirected network traffic in much the same way that it would handle network traffic received directly.

Abstract: Self-discovering transaction accelerators improve communications between a client and a server. A client directs a message to a server. A client-side transaction accelerator intercepts the message, terminates the connection with the client, and accelerates the request by replacing segments of data with references. The accelerated request is forwarded to a server-side transaction accelerator through a new connection. The server-side transaction accelerator reconstructs the message by replacing the reference with segment data in a persistent segment store accessible to the server-side transaction accelerator. The reconstructed request is then provided to the server. Accelerations may occur in any direction of communication. Persistent segment stores can be pre-populated with segment data from other transaction accelerators and anticipated transactions.

Abstract: Transactions are accelerated by the transaction handlers by storing segments of data used in the transactions in persistent segment storage accessible to the server side transaction handler and in persistent segment storage accessible to the client side transaction handler. When data is to be sent between the transaction handlers, the sending transaction handler compares the segments of the data to be sent with segments stored in its persistent segment storage and replaces segments of data with references to entries in its persistent segment storage that match or closely match the segments of data to be replaced. The receiving transaction store reconstructs the data sent by replacing segment references with corresponding segment data from its persistent segment storage.

Abstract: Virtual storage arrays consolidate data storage at a data center for physical and virtual computer systems at one or more branch network locations. Standalone and virtualized computer systems at a branch network location load, execute, and store their operating systems, applications, and data using virtual storage arrays and do not require any built-in or external non-volatile data storage devices such as hard disk drives or solid-state drives at the branch network location. The virtual disks of the virtual storage array are mapped to physical data storage at the data center and accessed via a WAN using storage block-based protocols. A storage block cache at the branch network location includes storage blocks prefetched based on knowledge about the computer systems at the branch network location and the behavior of their operating systems and applications.

Abstract: In a network that conveys requests from clients to servers and responses from servers to clients, a network transaction accelerator for accelerating transactions involving data transfer between at least one client and at least one server over a network comprising a client-side engine, a server-side engine and a transaction predictor configured to predict, based on past transactions, which transactions are likely to occur in the future between the client and server. The transaction predictor might be in the server-side engine, the client-side engine, or both.

Abstract: A virtualization system provides virtualized servers at a branch network location. Virtualized servers are implemented using virtual machine applications within the virtualization system. Data storage for the virtualized servers, including storage of the virtual machine files, is consolidated at a data center network location. The virtual disks of the virtualized servers are mapped to physical data storage at the data center and accessed via a WAN using storage block-based protocols. The virtualization system accesses a storage block cache at the branch network location that includes storage blocks prefetched based on knowledge about the virtualized servers. The virtualization system can include a virtual LAN directing network traffic between the WAN, the virtualized servers, and branch location clients. The virtualized servers, virtual LAN, and virtual disk mapping can be configured remotely via a management application.

Abstract: In a coding system, input data within a system is encoded. The input data might include sequences of symbols that repeat in the input data or occur in other input data encoded in the system. The encoding includes determining a target segment size, determining a window size, identifying a fingerprint within a window of symbols at an offset in the input data, determining whether the offset is to be designated as a cut point and segmenting the input data as indicated by the set of cut points. For each segment so identified, the encoder determines whether the segment is to be a referenced segment or an unreferenced segment, replacing the segment data of each referenced segment with a reference label and storing a reference binding in a persistent segment store for each referenced segment, if needed.

Abstract: Virtual storage arrays consolidate branch data storage at data centers connected via wide area networks. Virtual storage arrays appear to storage clients as local data storage, but actually store data at the data center. Virtual storage arrays may prioritize storage client and prefetching requests for communication over the WAN and/or SAN based on their associated clients, servers, storage clients, and/or applications. A virtual storage array may transfer large data sets from a data center to a branch location while providing branch location users with immediate access to the data set stored at the data center. Virtual storage arrays may be migrated by disabling a virtual storage array interface at a first branch location and then configuring another branch virtual storage array interface at a second branch location to provide its storage clients with access to storage array data stored at the data center.

Abstract: In a network supporting transactions between clients and servers and proxies that are interposable in a network path between at least one client and at least one server, wherein a pair of proxies can modify a packet stream between a client and a server such that packet data from the client to the server is transformed at a client-side proxy of the proxy pair and untransformed at a server-side proxy of proxy pair and such that packet data from the server to the client is transformed at the server-side proxy and untransformed at the client-side proxy, a method and apparatus for a discovering proxy to transparently discover its position in a proxy pair by using proxy signals to indicate to other proxies that could pair with the discovering proxy. A discovering proxy might determine that it is a client-side proxy by receipt of a packet from client without a proxy signal. A discovering proxy might determine that it is a server-side proxy by receipt of a packet from server without a return proxy signal.