Abstract: A system and method for monitoring liveliness includes a management device which has an application layer where applications are executed. A connection monitor is located other than on the application layer, and the connection monitor is configured to receive requests from clients and deliver the requests to components on the application layer. The components include a generic application monitor which responds to liveliness monitor requests from the clients for all applications monitored, and one or more applications which response to requests to that application.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and computer program products for dynamically modifying an application program's behavior in response to changing environmental conditions (such as network changes, system changes, and so forth). The application may solicit such information, and/or may receive unsolicited environmental change notifications. In response to a change notification, the application may take one or more of the following approaches to adapt to the changing conditions: (1) alter its execution; (2) modify its use of, or control of, other cooperating application; and (3) modify the selection of application execution threads. (An application might also decide to make no changes in its behavior.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, and computer implemented instructions for managing traffic in a network data processing system. Traffic for a plurality of network paths is monitored. In response a packet for a particular network path within the plurality of network paths causing traffic for the particular network path to exceed a level of traffic allowed, an amount of available bandwidth is reduced based on a fair share for the particular network path.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, and computer implemented instructions for managing traffic in a network data processing system. Traffic for a plurality of network paths is monitored. In response a packet for a particular network path within the plurality of network paths causing traffic for the particular network path to exceed a level of traffic allowed, an amount of available bandwidth is reduced based on a fair share for the particular network path.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, and computer implemented instructions for managing traffic in a network data processing system. Traffic for a plurality of network paths is monitored. In response a packet for a particular network path within the plurality of network paths causing traffic for the particular network path to exceed a level of traffic allowed, an amount of available bandwidth is reduced based on a fair share for the particular network path.

Abstract: Techniques are disclosed that enable an application to prioritize its traffic in an application-specific manner, such that traffic which is most important to this application can be prioritized over traffic that is less important to this application, where this prioritization information is reflected in differential treatment of the traffic within the network. An application conveys relative priority information for its traffic to a Web proxy or edge server, and this device then consults stored policy information to determine how the traffic should be prioritized in the network. The Web proxy also ensures that usage of network resources is balanced among multiple applications. Cookies are used for transmitting priority information between the edge server and application in an efficient manner.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, and computer implemented instructions for managing traffic in a network data processing system. Traffic for a plurality of network paths is monitored. In response a packet for a particular network path within the plurality of network paths causing traffic for the particular network path to exceed a level of traffic allowed, an amount of available bandwidth is reduced based on a fair share for the particular network path.

Abstract: A system and method for monitoring liveliness includes a management device which has an application layer where applications are executed. A connection monitor is located other than on the application layer, and the connection monitor is configured to receive requests from clients and deliver the requests to components on the application layer. The components include a generic application monitor which responds to liveliness monitor requests from the clients for all applications monitored, and one or more applications which response to requests to that application.

Abstract: A method of, and system for, configuring a network infrastructure, which includes representing the network infrastructure as a composition of a predetermined number of functional building blocks, configuring a network blue print based on the predetermined number of functional building blocks, and mapping the predetermined number of functional building blocks onto available physical resources of the network infrastructure, such that network configuration can be automated for a wide set of services representing network configuration as a functional composition of elemental blocks.

Abstract: Techniques are disclosed that enable an application to prioritize its traffic in an application-specific manner, such that traffic which is most important to this application can be prioritized over traffic that is less important to this application, where this prioritization information is reflected in differential treatment of the traffic within the network. An application conveys relative priority information for its traffic to a Web proxy or edge server, and this device then consults stored policy information to determine how the traffic should be prioritized in the network. The Web proxy also ensures that usage of network resources is balanced among multiple applications. Cookies are used for transmitting priority information between the edge server and application in an efficient manner.

Abstract: Methods, systems and computer program products are provided for providing transactional quality of service providing transaction service level information from an application requesting a data transmission transaction to a communication process executing on a data processing system. The transaction service level information is provided separate from the data for the data transmission transaction. A quality of service level associated with the data transmission transaction is determined based on the transaction service level information received from the application. Other embodiments also provide for establishing a quality of service level without reference to transaction data content while further embodiments provide for establishing a quality of service level for responses.

Abstract: Methods, systems and computer program products are provided for type of service classification of a communication request for an application executing on a server. An application plug-in associated with the application is provided in an operating system kernel of the server. The application plug-in receives the communication request and obtains application level information from the received communication request. The application plug-in further assigns a type of service classification to the received communication request based on the obtained application level information and provides the assigned type of service classification information for the communication request to a process executing on the server for processing communications from the server responsive to the communication request.

Abstract: A fast policy classification method and system. A policy differentiator can be provided which can include a policy repository configured to store hierarchical policy classification trees. The policy differentiator further can include a hashing module configured to produce integer values for string based selector attributes. In one aspect of the invention, the hashing module can include a longest string hashing function. A policy matching engine can be provided which is configured to locate policy rules in the hierarchical policy classification trees according to the integer values produced for the string based selector attributes. Finally, a policy matching engine interface can be provided through which policy queries and resulting policy decisions of the policy matching engine can be communicated between the policy matching engine and the policy enforcement entity.

Abstract: Methods, systems and computer program products provide for distributing workload between data processing systems executing an application which communicates over a network, by receiving a request for a connection to the application over the network, obtaining workload information for the data processing systems, obtaining network quality of service (QoS) information associated with communications over the network for the data processing systems and utilizing the workload information and the corresponding network quality of service information for the data processing systems so as to provide workload metrics. The requested connection to the application is distributed based on the generated workload metrics.

Abstract: Methods, systems and computer program products according to embodiments of the present invention provide distributing workload between a plurality of data processing systems in a cluster of data processing systems, wherein each of the plurality of data processing systems is executing an instance of an application which communicates over a network such that a connection request to the application may be distributed to any one of the plurality of data processing systems. Such workload distribution may be provided by defining a subset of the plurality of data processing systems which are to receive connection requests to the application having at least one predefined characteristic. A request for a connection to the application is received over the network and it is determined if the request has a characteristic corresponding to the characteristic associated with the subset of the plurality of data processing systems.

Abstract: A value-based caching system and method. A value based cache method can include partitioning a cache into different value-based partitions. Data to be stored in the cache can be valued and the valued data can be cached in individual ones of the value-based partitions. Subsequently, cache entries can be evicted from the value-based partitions. Finally, the caching and evicting can be managed according to the valuing step. In this regard, the cache and eviction management step can ensure greater cache responsiveness for data having a greater value relative to other valued data.

Abstract: Methods, systems and computer program products are provided for transferring a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) connection with a client device between data processing systems in a cluster of data processing systems. An operating system kernel of a first data processing system obtains application level information from a transaction received from the client over the connection. In addition, application state information associated with the connection may be obtained from the first application. A second application at a second data processing system is selected for transfer of the connection based on the obtained information and the connection is transferred to the second data processing system. The transfer includes providing to the second data processing system the associated state information of the first communication protocol stack and, optionally, the obtained application state information associated with the connection from the first application.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention include methods, systems and computer program products which provide for processing an event having a classification based on associated policy rules where the policy rules are conditioned on the classification. A policy rules hash table is provided including a plurality of policy rule entries, each policy rule entry being associated with a hash index. A hash index is generated using a classification hash length based on the classification of the event, the classification having an associated length at least equal to the classification hash length. A policy rule entry in the policy rules hash table is identified that corresponds to the generated hash index. It is determined if a classification field length associated with the identified policy rule corresponds to the classification hash length. The identified policy rule entry is executed if the hash length associated with the identified policy rule corresponds to the classification hash length.

Abstract: A value-based caching system and method. A value based cache method can include partitioning a cache into different value-based partitions. Data to be stored in the cache can be valued and the valued data can be cached in individual ones of the value-based partitions. Subsequently, cache entries can be evicted from the value-based partitions. Finally, the caching and evicting can be managed according to the valuing step. In this regard, the cache and eviction management step can ensure greater cache responsiveness for data having a greater value relative to other valued data.

Abstract: Techniques are disclosed that enable an application to prioritize its traffic in an application-specific manner, such that traffic which is most important to this application can be prioritized over traffic that is less important to this application, where this prioritization information is reflected in differential treatment of the traffic within the network. An application conveys relative priority information for its traffic to a Web proxy or edge server, and this device then consults stored policy information to determine how the traffic should be prioritized in the network. The Web proxy also ensures that usage of network resources is balanced among multiple applications. Cookies are used for transmitting priority information between the edge server and application in an efficient manner.