Systems and methods for content-aware load balancing

A method of satisfying requests in a system comprised of a plurality of servers, comprising the steps of:

• providing at least one load balancer for routing requests to the plurality of servers;
• obtaining, at the at least one load balancer, a request from a client;
• examining, at the at least one load balancer, the request;
• estimating costs of satisfying the request by at least two of the plurality of servers;
• sending, from the load balancer, information obtained in the estimating step to a server of the plurality of servers along with the request;
• and
• using, at the server, the information to satisfy the request.

A system for satisfying requests from at least one client, comprising:

• a plurality of servers;
• at least one content-aware load balancer for routing requests to the plurality of servers;
• and
• at least one cost analyzer associated with the at least one content-aware load balancer for estimating costs of satisfying requests by different servers based on at least one of numbers and costs of remote accesses for satisfying requests.

Apparatus for satisfying requests from at least one client in a system comprised of a plurality of servers, the apparatus comprising:

• a memory;
• and
• at least one processor coupled to the memory and operative to:
• (i) obtain a request from a client;
• (ii) examine content of the request;
• and (iii) estimate costs of satisfying the request by at least two of the plurality of servers based on estimating at least one of a number and a cost of at least one remote access for satisfying the request.

A method for satisfying requests from at least one client in a system comprised of a plurality of servers, comprising the steps of:

• obtaining a request from a client;
• examining content of the request;
• and
• estimating costs of satisfying the request by at least two of the plurality of servers based on estimating at least one of a number and a cost of at least one remote access for satisfying the request.

An article of manufacture for use in satisfying requests from at least one client in a system comprised of a plurality of servers, comprising a machine readable medium containing one or more programs which when executed implement the steps of:

• obtaining a request from a client;
• examining content of the request;
• and
• estimating costs of satisfying the request by at least two of the plurality of servers based on estimating at least one of a number and a cost of at least one remote access for satisfying the request.

A method for providing a load balancing service, comprising the step of:

• a service provider providing a service to a customer which comprises:
• obtaining a request from a client;
• examining content of the request;
• and
• estimating costs of satisfying the request by at least two of the plurality of servers based on estimating at least one of a number and a cost of at least one remote access for satisfying the request.