Peer-to-Peer Content Sharing in CCNs via Tracking Service
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Solution Overview
Problem
In content-centric networks (CCNs), the process of a consumer becoming a 'seeder' to share content efficiently is hindered by the need to rename, re-hash, and re-sign content objects, which decreases network operation efficiency and requires updates in forwarding tables.
Innovation Solution
A system that utilizes a tracking service to register and verify content objects through signed manifests, allowing consumers to become seeders by creating a new manifest with a single cryptographic signature, eliminating the need for re-naming and re-signing, and enabling efficient peer-to-peer sharing by maintaining a list of name prefixes associated with content objects.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a consumer renames content to include its own routable prefix to become a seeder, then the consumer can serve as a content source for other consumers, but the network operation efficiency decreases due to renaming, re-hashing, and re-signing operations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a tracking service as an intermediary that maintains a mapping between original content names and consumer-generated name prefixes. This mediator eliminates the need for consumers to perform renaming, re-hashing, and re-signing operations locally, thereby resolving the technical contradiction by enabling seeder functionality without the computational overhead that would reduce network operation efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The tracking service performs preliminary actions by pre-establishing the mapping between original content names and consumer name prefixes before content sharing occurs. This advance preparation eliminates the need for real-time renaming and re-signing operations when consumers want to become seeders, thus maintaining network operation efficiency while enabling adaptability
2Adaptability or versatility
If a consumer renames content to include its own routable prefix, then the consumer can fulfill interests with its own prefix, but neighboring CCN nodes need to update their forwarding tables which decreases efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The tracking service acts as an intermediary that manages the complexity of forwarding table updates. Instead of requiring neighboring CCN nodes to directly update their forwarding tables when content names change, the tracking service maintains the mapping information and facilitates the routing process, thereby reducing device complexity while preserving the ability for consumers to fulfill interests with their own prefixes
3Adaptability or versatility
If traditional CCN renaming process is used to enable peer-to-peer sharing, then consumers can share content, but the process requires re-hashing and re-signing which increases complexity and reduces efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The tracking service serves as an intermediary that eliminates the need for consumers to perform re-hashing and re-signing operations. The tracking service maintains the mapping between original content names and new name prefixes, allowing consumers to share content through simple name prefix substitution without the complex cryptographic operations that would increase device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of requiring consumers to create new cryptographic signatures and hashes for renamed content, the system uses the original content objects with their existing signatures and hashes. The tracking service maintains a mapping that allows the same content object to be referenced under different name prefixes, thereby enabling peer-to-peer sharing without the complexity of re-computation and re-signing operations
Data Source
Figure 1A
Figure 1B
Figure 2A
AI summary
The system receives a list of one or more name prefixes associated with an original name, wherein the original name corresponds to an original root manifest that indicates a set of original content objects and includes a set of content object hash (COH) values for the indicated set of original content objects, and wherein the original root manifest is registered with a tracking service. Based on a name prefix from the list, the system receives the original root manifest and selects a peer node that stores one or more of the original content objects. The system determines which original content objects are stored at the selected peer node and generates an interest for an original content object, wherein the name for the interest includes the name prefix, and wherein the third interest includes a COH value for an original content object stored at the selected peer node.