US 7,353,276 B2 · Bi-directional affinity

Abstract

A new network load balancing/firewall node for use in a system including multiple network load balancing/firewall nodes is disclosed. The network load balancing/firewall applies bi-directional load balancing affinity with regard to requests from external clients and corresponding responses from internal network servers. An external network load balancing adapter executes a load-balancing algorithm to determine whether a received client request is accepted by the network load balancing/firewall node. A firewall utility processes the received client request and maintains state information associated with the received client request. An internal network load balancing adapter executes a complementary load-balancing algorithm simultaneously on each network load balancing/firewall node to ensure that the same network load balancing/firewall node accepts a response from an internal network server corresponding to the received client request.

Claims14

Dependent claims

A network load balancing/external network interface node, for use in a system including multiple network load balancing/external network interface nodes, including bi-directional load balancing affinity with regard to requests from external clients and corresponding responses from internal network servers, the network load balancing/external network interface node comprising:

an external network load balancing adapter that executes a load-balancing algorithm to determine whether a received client request is accepted by the network load balancing/external network interface node;
an external network interface utility that processes the received client request and maintains state information associated with the received client request;
an internal network load balancing adapter that ensures the network load balancing/external network interface node accepts a response from an internal network server corresponding to the received client request, the internal network load balancing adapter comprising:
a complementary load-balancing algorithm to ensure that the network load balancing/external network interface node that processed the received client request processes the received server response, wherein the complementary load-balancing algorithm executes simultaneously on the network load balancing/external network interface nodes.

1 more element

A method for establishing bi-directional affinity for a load balancing firewall comprising multiple load balancing/firewall nodes interposed between an internal network comprising multiple published servers and an external network comprising requesting clients, the method comprising:

first receiving, by an external network load balancing interface of the load balancing firewall, a request from an external client;
first determining, based upon a load-balancing algorithm, a selected load balancing/firewall node that processes the request from the external client;
establishing, by the selected load balancing/firewall node, a connection state corresponding to the request from the external client;
passing, by the selected load balancing/firewall node, the request from the external client to a selected one of the multiple published servers;
second receiving, by an internal network load balancing interface of the load balancing firewall, a message from the selected one of the multiple published servers;
applying, by the internal network load balancing interface of the load balancing firewall, a complementary load-balancing algorithm to the message received during the second receiving step, the complementary load-balancing algorithm determining the selected load balancing/firewall node established during the first determining step, wherein the complementary load-balancing algorithm executes simultaneously on the load balancing/firewall nodes;
and
processing, by the selected load balancing/firewall node, the message from the selected one of the multiple published servers.

5 more elements

A computer-readable medium having computer-executable components thereon for a load balancing firewall comprising multiple load balancing/firewall nodes interposed between an internal network comprising multiple published servers and an external network comprising requesting clients, the components performing the steps of:

first receiving, by an external network load balancing interface of the load balancing firewall, a request from an external client;
first determining, based upon a load-balancing algorithm, a selected load balancing/firewall node that processes the request from the external client;
establishing, by the selected load balancing/firewall node, a connection state corresponding to the request from the external client;
passing, by the selected load balancing/firewall node, the request from the external client to a selected one of the multiple published servers;
second receiving, by an internal network load balancing interface of the load balancing firewall, a message from the selected one of the multiple published servers;
applying, by the internal network load balancing interface of the load balancing firewall, a complementary load-balancing algorithm to the message received during the second receiving step, the complementary load-balancing algorithm determining the selected load balancing/firewall node established during the first determining step, wherein the complimentary load-balancing algorithm executes simultaneously on the load balancing/firewall nodes;
and
processing, by the selected load balancing/firewall node, the message from the selected one of the multiple published servers.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Bi-directional affinity

Life of this patent

Bi-directional affinity

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims14