Abstract: Mechanisms and techniques provide a method for routing a packet that includes a content request and an Internet Protocol address and port number that identify a source transmitting the packet. The method relates to selecting a routing policy to forward the packet, based upon at least a portion of content request. The method includes a data communications device receiving a packet having a content request and an Internet Protocol address and port number that identify a source transmitting the packet. The device performs a network address translation, based upon at least a portion of the content request, to translate the Internet Protocol address and port number of the packet to a respective communications device Internet Protocol address and communications device port number. The device then selects a routing policy based upon the communications device Internet Protocol address and routes the packet to a destination according to the routing policy.

Abstract: An improved client network address translation (“NAT”) system is provided. Methods are provided for initializing connection control blocks with the client NAT addresses when a storage pool of connection control blocks are allocated. This avoids the costly overhead as connections are created and destroyed. Unlike the prior art solutions, once the connection control blocks of the present invention are allocated, they remain in effect until the storage subpool is deleted. Secondly, in order to provide as large a pool of client NAT addresses as possible, methods are provided for using intervals to allocate and reclaim client NAT addresses as subpools are allocated and freed.