Abstract: Some embodiments provide a content delivery network (CDN) solution that affords the CDN control over those elements of customer content that are delivered by third parties. The CDN integrates a distributed set of monitoring agents. Each monitoring agent monitors the delivery performance of third parties to the region in which the agent operates. The CDN uses the performance monitoring information to dynamically manage the content tags to the third-party delivered elements of CDN-customer content. Specifically, a CDN server retrieves the parent page for requested CDN-customer content. The CDN server identifies the region from where the request originates and retrieves the logs from the monitoring agents monitoring from that region. The CDN server then modifies the base page by dynamically removing the tags to the third-party delivered elements that are reported in the monitoring agent logs as being unavailable, inaccessible, or underperforming in the identified region.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide systems and methods for determining a server of a distributed hosting system to optimally distribute content to an end user. The method includes identifying an IP address of the end user. Based on the IP address, a set of servers send packets to the end user to derive performance metrics. The performance metrics are used to determine a server from the set of servers that optimally distributes content to the end user. The method modifies a configuration for resolving end user requests such that the optimal server is identified to the end user when the end user requests content from the hosting system. Some embodiments determine the optimal server by providing downloadable content that is embedded with a monitoring tool. The monitoring tool causes the end user to derive performance metrics for the hosting system when downloading a particular object from a set of servers.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a content delivery network (CDN) solution that affords the CDN control over those elements of customer content that are delivered by third parties. The CDN integrates a distributed set of monitoring agents. Each monitoring agent monitors the delivery performance of third parties to the region in which the agent operates. The CDN uses the performance monitoring information to dynamically manage the content tags to the third-party delivered elements of CDN-customer content. Specifically, a CDN server retrieves the parent page for requested CDN-customer content. The CDN server identifies the region from where the request originates and retrieves the logs from the monitoring agents monitoring from that region. The CDN server then modifies the base page by dynamically removing the tags to the third-party delivered elements that are reported in the monitoring agent logs as being unavailable, inaccessible, or underperforming in the identified region.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a file system for purging content based on a single traversal of the file system that identifies the directory containing the content without performing a secondary traversal within the directory to target the operation to only the file that are associated with content such that other files contained in the directory are unaffected. The file system supplements traditional directory structures with file-level directories. Each file-level directory is created to contain a root file associated with particular content, different variants of the particular content, and supporting files. Consequently, the file system can complete an operation targeting particular content by performing that operation on the file-level directory containing the particular content, thereby eliminating the need to conduct a file-by-file traversal of the containing directory as a prerequisite to identifying the files associated with the particular content and performing the operation on the files individually.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a proprietary 64-bit consistent distribution scheme that preserves the efficiencies of CARP while providing a significantly more balanced distribution of requests that is on par with schemes reliant on computationally expensive cryptographic hashes. The scheme performs hashing of requested URLs and identifiers of available servers over a 64-bit space while optimizing the hashing to remove computationally expensive operations. Some embodiments provide a variant of the scheme to provide a differentiated distribution on the basis of one or more differentiating factors. A first variant utilizes load factor values to adjust the resulting hashes and to produce a first distribution of differentiated content that varies from a second distribution of undifferentiated content.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide systems and methods for determining a server of a distributed hosting system to optimally distribute content to an end user. The method includes identifying an IP address of the end user. Based on the IP address, a set of servers send packets to the end user to derive performance metrics. The performance metrics are used to determine a server from the set of servers that optimally distributes content to the end user. The method modifies a configuration for resolving end user requests such that the optimal server is identified to the end user when the end user requests content from the hosting system. Some embodiments determine the optimal server by providing downloadable content that is embedded with a monitoring tool. The monitoring tool causes the end user to derive performance metrics for the hosting system when downloading a particular object from a set of servers.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide systems and methods for determining a server of a distributed hosting system to optimally distribute content to an end user. The method includes identifying an IP address of the end user. Based on the IP address, a set of servers send packets to the end user to derive performance metrics. The performance metrics are used to determine a server from the set of servers that optimally distributes content to the end user. The method modifies a configuration for resolving end user requests such that the optimal server is identified to the end user when the end user requests content from the hosting system. Some embodiments determine the optimal server by providing downloadable content that is embedded with a monitoring tool. The monitoring tool causes the end user to derive performance metrics for the hosting system when downloading a particular object from a set of servers.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide different frameworks that implement conflict avoidance systems and methods for ensuring uniqueness in identifying assets for different customers that are deployed to server capacity of one or more distributed platforms participating in a federation. Specifically, different frameworks are provided whereby the distributed platforms authorize use of a domain before configuring the domain to identify assets of a customer. A method performed in one such framework includes receiving a domain that is specified for identifying assets of a first customer belonging to a first distributed platform of the federation. The method determines whether the domain conflicts with a domain that is configured by a second distributed platform of the federation. The method then communicates with the first distributed platform (i) to configure the received domain when there is no conflict and (ii) to prevent the first distributed platform from configuring the received domain when there is a conflict.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide systems and methods for sandboxing content optimization to occur entirely within a network edge or PoP of a CDN. Some embodiments pass a first request for a first URL to a first back-end at the network edge that is configured to cache an optimized instance of the particular object. When the optimized instance of the particular object is not cached at the first back-end, a second request is issued for a second URL identifying a non-optimized instance of the particular object. The second request resolves internally within the network edge to a second back-end that is configured to cache the non-optimized object. The non-optimized object from the second back-end is optimized and passed to the first back-end. The first back-end caches the optimized instance of the non-optimized object and serves the optimized instance to a requesting end user.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a repository that manages configurations for a distributed platform and that automatedly configures servers of the distributed platform with different hierarchical sets of configurations while ensuring integrity and consistency across the servers and in the repository. In some embodiment, the repository includes a data store that stores configurations for a first set of servers that are operated by a first service provider and a second set of servers that are operated by a second service provider. The data store also identifies different sets of configurations to deploy to different sets of servers from the first and second sets of servers. The repository also includes a function processor to automatedly deploy the different sets of configurations to the different sets of servers and to perform functions for updating the configurations in a manner that ensures integrity and consistency.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide an optimized multi-hit caching technique that minimizes the performance impact associated with caching of long-tail content while retaining much of the efficiency and minimal overhead associated with first hit caching in determining when to cache content. The optimized multi-hit caching utilizes a modified bloom filter implementation that performs flushing and state rolling to delete indices representing stale content from a bit array used to track hit counts without affecting identification of other content that may be represented with indices overlapping with those representing the stale content. Specifically, a copy of the bit array is stored prior to flushing the bit array so as to avoid losing track of previously requested and cached content when flushing the bit arras and the flushing is performed to remove the bit indices representing stale content from the bit array and to minimize the possibility of a false positive.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide systems and methods for determining a server of a distributed hosting system to optimally distribute content to an end user. The method includes identifying an IP address of the end user. Based on the IP address, a set of servers send packets to the end user to derive performance metrics. The performance metrics are used to determine a server from the set of servers that optimally distributes content to the end user. The method modifies a configuration for resolving end user requests such that the optimal server is identified to the end user when the end user requests content from the hosting system. Some embodiments determine the optimal server by providing downloadable content that is embedded with a monitoring tool. The monitoring tool causes the end user to derive performance metrics for the hosting system when downloading a particular object from a set of servers.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide systems and methods for sandboxing content optimization to occur entirely within a network edge or PoP of a CDN. Some embodiments pass a first request for a first URL to a first back-end at the network edge that is configured to cache an optimized instance of the particular object. When the optimized instance of the particular object is not cached at the first back-end, a second request is issued for a second URL identifying a non-optimized instance of the particular object. The second request resolves internally within the network edge to a second back-end that is configured to cache the non-optimized object. The non-optimized object from the second back-end is optimized and passed to the first back-end. The first back-end caches the optimized instance of the non-optimized object and serves the optimized instance to a requesting end user.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a repository that manages configurations for a distributed platform and that automatedly configures servers of the distributed platform with different hierarchical sets of configurations while ensuring integrity and consistency across the servers and in the repository. In some embodiment, the repository includes a data store that stores configurations for a first set of servers that are operated by a first service provider and a second set of servers that are operated by a second service provider. The data store also identifies different sets of configurations to deploy to different sets of servers from the first and second sets of servers. The repository also includes a function processor to automatedly deploy the different sets of configurations to the different sets of servers and to perform functions for updating the configurations in a manner that ensures integrity and consistency.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a reporting system for improved granular real-time performance statistics reporting in a distributed platform. The reporting system includes a statistic server and a portal. The statistics server is communicably coupled to servers of the distributed platform that produce statistical data related to the distribution of content and execution of services for different customers. The statistics server aggregates the statistical data from the plurality of servers in an optimized staggered manner during a recurring interval. This reduces the amount of statistical data that is passed at any particular instance in time from the servers the statistics servers. The statistics server incrementally updates a real-time performance report for a particular customer as the statistical data is aggregated for the particular customer so that the computational and memory overhead for deriving the performance report in real-time is reduce.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide different frameworks for seamlessly issuing and executing commands across servers of different federation participants. Each framework facilitates issuance and execution of a command that originates from a first federation participant and that is intended for execution at servers of a second federation participant. In some embodiments, a framework implements a method for enabling command interoperability between distributed platforms that each operate a set of servers on behalf of content providers. The method involves receiving a command targeting a particular configuration that a first distributed platform deploys to a server that is operated by a second distributed platform. The method identifies the server of the second distributed platform that is deployed with the particular configuration.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide different frameworks for seamlessly issuing and executing commands across servers of different federation participants. Each framework facilitates issuance and execution of a command that originates from a first federation participant and that is intended for execution at servers of a second federation participant. In some embodiments, a framework implements a method for enabling command interoperability between distributed platforms that each operate a set of servers on behalf of content providers. The method involves receiving a command targeting a particular configuration that a first distributed platform deploys to a server that is operated by a second distributed platform. The method identifies the server of the second distributed platform that is deployed with the particular configuration.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide an optimized multi-hit caching technique that minimizes the performance impact associated with caching of long-tail content while retaining much of the efficiency and minimal overhead associated with first hit caching in determining when to cache content. The optimized multi-hit caching utilizes a modified bloom filter implementation that performs flushing and state rolling to delete indices representing stale content from a bit array used to track hit counts without affecting identification of other content that may be represented with indices overlapping with those representing the stale content. Specifically, a copy of the bit array is stored prior to flushing the bit array so as to avoid losing track of previously requested and cached content when flushing the bit arrays and the flushing is performed to remove the bit indices representing stale content from the bit array and to minimize the possibility of a false positive.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide different frameworks for seamlessly issuing and executing commands across servers of different federation participants. Each framework facilitates issuance and execution of a command that originates from a first federation participant and that is intended for execution at servers of a second federation participant. In some embodiments, a framework implements a method for enabling command interoperability between distributed platforms that each operate a set of servers on behalf of content providers. The method involves receiving a command targeting a particular configuration that a first distributed platform deploys to a server that is operated by a second distributed platform. The method identifies the server of the second distributed platform that is deployed with the particular configuration.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide different frameworks that implement conflict avoidance systems and methods for ensuring uniqueness in identifying assets for different customers that are deployed to server capacity of one or more distributed platforms participating in a federation. Specifically, different frameworks are provided whereby the distributed platforms authorize use of a domain before configuring the domain to identify assets of a customer. A method performed in one such framework includes receiving a domain that is specified for identifying assets of a first customer belonging to a first distributed platform of the federation. The method determines whether the domain conflicts with a domain that is configured by a second distributed platform of the federation. The method then communicates with the first distributed platform (i) to configure the received domain when there is no conflict and (ii) to prevent the first distributed platform from configuring the received domain when there is a conflict.