Data replication using ephemeral tree structures

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer-readable instructions, comprising:

• instructions for receiving a data file, at a publisher node from a computer node, for distribution to multiple computer nodes in a distributed computing system;
• instructions for generating an ephemeral tree structure of the computer nodes, the tree structure having multiple hierarchical levels, the hierarchical levels indicating a network hierarchy of the distributed computing system, each of the hierarchical levels having one of the computer nodes that is elected as a leader node for the corresponding hierarchical level, wherein the ephemeral tree structure is different for different data files, and wherein a leader node of a specified hierarchical level is elected by selecting one of the computer nodes in the specified hierarchical using a key, the key determined as a function of a filename of the data file or a timestamp;
• and
• instructions for propagating the data file to the computer nodes across the hierarchical levels by transmitting the data file from the publisher node to a leader node of a first hierarchical level of the hierarchical levels, and transmitting the data file from a leader node of a current hierarchical level of the hierarchical levels to a leader node of a next hierarchical level of the hierarchical levels that is a child of the current hierarchical level until the leader node of a last hierarchical level of the hierarchical levels receives the data file.

A system, comprising:

• a processor;
• a memory;
• a tree management node configured to generate an ephemeral tree structure of computer nodes in a distributed computing system, the ephemeral tree structure configured to propagate a data file to the computer nodes, the ephemeral tree structure having multiple hierarchical levels, the hierarchical levels indicating a network hierarchy of the distributed computing system, each of the hierarchical levels having one of the computer nodes that is elected as a leader node for the corresponding hierarchical level, wherein the leader node for the corresponding hierarchical level is elected by selecting one of the computer nodes in the corresponding hierarchical level using a key, the key determined as a function of a filename of the data file or a timestamp, wherein the ephemeral tree structure is configured to propagate the data file from a leader node of a current hierarchical level of the hierarchical levels to leader nodes of remaining of the hierarchical levels that are children of the current hierarchical level progressively;
• a request module configured to receive a request from a computer node of the computer nodes for obtaining the data file, the second module further configured to receive the request at a leader node of a specified hierarchical level to which the computer node belongs;
• and
• a data transceiver module configured to transmit the data file to the computer node from the leader node of the specified hierarchical level.