Abstract: A method includes configuring worker services to operate in a stateless manner and providing support services that enable the worker services to operate in the stateless manner. The support services include (i) a management service for providing notifications of server removal and addition, (ii) a state maintenance service for maintaining state information in a central location, and (iii) a load balancer service for distributing requests among worker services. The method includes altering a number of servers allocated to at least one worker service, responsive to a notification from the management service. A private protocol is used between the worker services and toad balancer service (a) to send, from the worker services to the load balancer service, a respective pointer to the state information associated with the requests, and (b) to include the respective pointer in the requests when any of the requests are forwarded to any worker service.

Abstract: A network switching system and method and a computer program product for operating a network switch are disclosed. The network switch includes a multitude of input ports and a multitude of output ports. In one embodiment, one processing device is assigned to each of the input ports and output ports to process data packets received at the input ports and transferred to the output ports. In one embodiment, the method comprises creating an intermediate adjustable configuration of processing devices functionally between the input ports and the output ports, and assigning the processing devices of the intermediate configuration to forward the data packets from the input ports to the output ports to obtain a balance between latency and synchronization of the transfer of the data packets from the input ports to the output ports. In an embodiment, software is used to create and to adjust dynamically the intermediate configuration.

Abstract: A queue management method, system, and recording medium include a queue examining device configured to examine a reverse flow queue from a forwarder for an acknowledged packet and a dropping device configured to drop a packet in a forward flow queue if the packet in the forward flow queue includes the acknowledged packet in the reverse flow queue.

Abstract: A queue management method, system, and recording medium include a queue examining device configured to examine a reverse flow queue from a forwarder for an acknowledged packet and a dropping device configured to drop a packet in a forward flow queue if the packet in the forward flow queue includes the acknowledged packet in the reverse flow queue.

Abstract: A system for server migration includes a first computer hosting a service during a first period of time. A second computer hosts the service during a second, third and fourth period of time. A client computer communicates directly with the service at a first IP address, during the first period of time. The client computer communicates with the service at the first IP address, during the second and third periods of time, through a tunneled connection via a first subflow of a multi-path communication session. The client computer communicates directly with the service at the second IP address, during the third period of time, via a second subflow of the multi-path communication session, and discontinue the first subflow of the multi-path communication session while maintaining the second subflow of the multi-path communication session during the fourth period of time.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided for wireless network optimization. Wireless network traffic is optimized by receiving redirected traffic based on one or more configuration rules; and applying the redirected traffic to a protocol optimizer that optimizes the wireless network traffic based on one or more optimization rules. A management interface is optionally provided to manage the network optimization appliance. A process monitor is optionally provided to monitor one or more process threads to determine if the process threads have stalled. The process monitor can monitor other components and can be monitored by at least one other component.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided for wireless network optimization. Wireless network traffic is optimized by receiving redirected traffic based on one or more configuration rules; and applying the redirected traffic to a protocol optimizer that optimizes the wireless network traffic based on one or more optimization rules. A management interface is optionally provided to manage the network optimization appliance. A process monitor is optionally provided to monitor one or more process threads to determine if the process threads have stalled. The process monitor can monitor other components and can be monitored by at least one other component.

Abstract: Traffic redirection methods include determining a quality-affective factor comprising a quality-affective factor in an existing connection between a client and a server in a network. The quality-affective factor is compared to a threshold to determine whether the connection would benefit from a network processing function. A router is reconfigured to exclude the middlebox from the connection, if the connection would not benefit from the network processing function and if the middlebox is already present in the connection, to cease operation of the middlebox on the connection. The router reconfiguration is delayed until the connection is idle.

Abstract: Techniques are disclosed for load balancing in networks such as those networks handling telephony applications. By way of example, such techniques direct requests associated with calls to servers in a system comprised of a network routing calls between a plurality of callers and at least one receiver wherein a load balancer sends requests associated with calls to a plurality of servers as follows. A request associated with a call, a caller, or a receiver is received, depending on the particular load balancing technique. A server is selected to receive the request. A subsequent request is received. A determination is made whether or not the subsequent request is associated with the call, the caller, or the receiver, depending on the particular load balancing technique. The subsequent request is sent to the server based on determining that the subsequent request is associated with the call, the caller, or the receiver, again depending on the particular load balancing technique.

Abstract: A method includes positioning a proxy between a client and a server; the proxy receiving the client's Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) communications intended for establishing a communication connection to the server; the proxy initiating a TCP communication with the server after receiving the client's TCP; and the proxy determining a TCP congestion control algorithm based upon identifying information of the received client's TCP and on properties of the sever to provide optimum communications as a communication proxy between the client and the server.

Abstract: Methods for removing a middlebox from a network connection include determining a degree of mismatch between a sequence number in a first connection between the middlebox and a client and a sequence number in a second connection between the middlebox and a server, delaying acknowledgment signals from the middlebox on a connection to decrease the degree of mismatch, and establishing a direct connection between the client and the server without mediation by the middlebox when the degree of mismatch is zero.

Abstract: A queue management method, system, and recording medium include a queue examining device configured to examine a reverse flow queue from a forwarder for an acknowledged packet and a dropping device configured to drop a packet in a forward flow queue if the packet in the forward flow queue includes the acknowledged packet in the reverse flow queue.

Abstract: Methods for inserting a middlebox into a network connection include monitoring network state information in a connection between a client and a server. When the connection is idle, a connection entry is created for each device and is initialized using state information gathered by monitoring the network connection. Redirection of the network connection is activated between the client and the server such that the middlebox mediates the connection. Methods for removing a middlebox from a network connection include determining a degree of mismatch between a sequence number in a first connection between the middlebox and a client and a sequence number in a second connection between the middlebox and a server, delaying acknowledgment signals from the middlebox on a connection to decrease the degree of mismatch, and establishing a direct connection between the client and the server without mediation by the middlebox when the degree of mismatch is zero.

Abstract: A method is provided for client-side monitoring in a cloud provider environment including a network having a plurality of nodes. The method includes estimating a logical topology of the network by clustering source-destination node pairs from among the plurality of nodes based on end-to-end performance measurements between various ones of the plurality of nodes. The method further includes estimating a performance state of the network for a client application based on end-to-end performance measurements. The method also includes at least one of scheduling and customizing a workload within the network based on the estimated logical topology and the estimated performance state of the network.

Abstract: A processor-implemented method, apparatus, and/or computer program product move Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) layer 4 connections between wirelessly-connected user equipment to a series of cell-towers, wherein an OSI layer 4 connection is extracted out of the underlying cellular protocols at the series of cell-towers. A detection is made that user equipment, which has a broken-out layer 4 connection, has moved from a first cell-tower to a second cell-tower. Traffic for an existing layer 4 connection from the user equipment is tunnelled between the first cell-tower and the second cell-tower. In response to a predetermined trigger event occurring, an ongoing bidirectional flow of data packets is migrated from the user equipment over to layer 4 connections maintained at the second cell-tower. Furthermore, OSI layer 4 connections for all server ports other than the proxied active layer 4 connections that are proxied in the web cache are byte cached.

Abstract: Traffic redirection methods include determining a quality-affective factor comprising a quality-affective factor in an existing connection between a client and a server in a network. The quality-affective factor is compared to a threshold to determine whether the connection would benefit from a network processing function. A router is reconfigured to exclude the middlebox from the connection, if the connection would not benefit from the network processing function and if the middlebox is already present in the connection, to cease operation of the middlebox on the connection. The router reconfiguration is delayed until the connection is idle.

Abstract: A snoop receiver, method and computer program product for increasing the efficiency of TCP protocol operations at the snoop receiver by assuming there is no reordering over the wireless hop. The method performs maintaining a copy of each packet received, the copy adapted for retransmission to the receiver device on behalf of the source device and maintaining for each packet received, a virtual send time (VST) value of that packet. The VST corresponds to a virtual time the packet was sent or retransmitted to the receiver device. There is further maintained an estimate of the receiver device's time (VRT) based on acknowledgement (ACK) messages for packets received from the receiver device. Responsive to receiving an acknowledgement for a packet sent at the time VST, the method infers any lost packets and retransmits a copy of any lost packets having a VST value sent before the receiver's VRT estimate.

Abstract: A snoop method for increasing the efficiency of TCP protocol operations at the snoop receiver by assuming there is no reordering over the wireless hop. The method performs maintaining a copy of each packet received, the copy adapted for retransmission to the receiver device on behalf of the source device and maintaining for each packet received, a virtual send time (VST) value of that packet. The VST corresponds to a virtual time the packet was sent or retransmitted to the receiver device. There is further maintained an estimate of the receiver device's time (VRT) based on acknowledgement (ACK) messages for packets received from the receiver device. Responsive to receiving an acknowledgement for a packet sent at the time VST, the method infers any lost packets and retransmits a copy of any lost packets having a VST value sent before the receiver's VRT estimate.

Abstract: A middlebox includes a network monitor module configured to determine a quality-affective factor in a connection between a client and a server in a network. A processor is configured to compare the quality-affective factor to a threshold to determine whether the connection would benefit from a network processing function. A network control module is configured to configure a router to exclude the middlebox from the connection if the connection would not benefit from the network processing function and if the middlebox is already present in the connection to cease operation of the middlebox on the connection. Router configuration is delayed until the connection is idle.

Abstract: A processor-implemented method, apparatus, and/or computer program product move Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) layer 4 connections between wirelessly-connected user equipment to a series of cell-towers, wherein an OSI layer 4 connection is extracted out of the underlying cellular protocols at the series of cell-towers. A detection is made that user equipment, which has a broken-out layer 4 connection, has moved from a first cell-tower to a second cell-tower. Traffic for an existing layer 4 connection from the user equipment is tunnelled between the first cell-tower and the second cell-tower. In response to a predetermined trigger event occurring, an ongoing bidirectional flow of data packets is migrated from the user equipment over to layer 4 connections maintained at the second cell-tower. Furthermore, OSI layer 4 connections for all server ports other than the proxied active layer 4 connections that are proxied in the web cache are byte cached.