Connection Manager for Server Resource Optimization
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Servers face overload when managing a large number of simultaneous connections to clients, especially when clients are behind firewalls or NATs, due to resource-intensive persistent connections, leading to inefficiencies and limitations in handling server-initiated transactions.
Innovation Solution
A connection manager system that establishes persistent connections with clients and manages these connections efficiently, using a specialized TCP/IP stack to maintain multiple client connections while only forwarding application-level transactions to the server, thereby reducing server resource consumption and enabling server-initiated transactions without modifying existing firewalls or NATs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a server establishes persistent connections with a large number of clients, then server-initiated transactions become possible, but server resource consumption increases and leads to overload
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a connection manager as an intermediary component between the server and clients. The connection manager maintains persistent connections with clients on behalf of the server, allowing server-initiated transactions without requiring the server to directly manage numerous persistent connections. This mediator approach enables the server to initiate transactions while offloading the connection maintenance burden, thus resolving the contradiction between enabling server-initiated transactions and reducing server resource consumption.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the server manages many simultaneous persistent connections, then all clients remain accessible, but the overhead of managing connections overwhelms the server
Solution Approach 1:
The connection manager serves as an intermediary that handles connection management tasks, allowing the server to focus on processing transactions rather than managing connections. The connection manager maintains the connection pool and handles connection lifecycle events, thereby improving connection management efficiency while keeping all clients accessible.
Solution Approach 2:
The system segments connection management functions from transaction processing functions. The connection manager handles connection establishment, maintenance, and teardown, while the server focuses on business logic and transaction processing. This segmentation improves overall system productivity by allowing each component to specialize in its core function.
3Reliability
If standard TCP/IP implementation is used for each connection, then connection state tracking is reliable, but significant system memory is allocated and computing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The connection manager merges multiple client connections into a single connection pool, sharing common data structures and resources. Instead of each connection having separate full TCP/IP stacks with duplicate state information, the connection manager consolidates connection state tracking, reducing overall system memory allocation while maintaining reliable connection state monitoring through shared data structures.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and apparatus for a connection manager have been disclosed. By providing for persistent connections with clients, the connection manager allows for servers to communicate with clients, which would otherwise be inaccessible.