Distributed Timer Service Architecture for Low-Latency Delivery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing techniques for managing large-scale user-specific timers face challenges with high latency and network requests, requiring complex and error-prone solutions for handling billions of active timers and stateful timers, especially in distributed environments.
Innovation Solution
A distributed timer service with a wait condition primitive supports multi-tenancy, using a durable in-memory database and append-only logs to manage timers efficiently, ensuring fault tolerance and at-least-once delivery, with features like sharded time buckets and consumer groups for even distribution and recovery from failures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If existing techniques for storing and processing unique per user timers are used, then timer functionality can be provided, but high latency and large amounts of network requests occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary timer service component that sits between the marketing journey system and the timer storage layer. This intermediary pre-positions timers in memory before their expiration time, batches timer creations and expirations, and efficiently manages the timer lifecycle. By acting as a mediator, it reduces direct network requests and IOPs to the underlying storage system, thereby reducing latency and improving timer processing speed.
2Quantity of substance
If existing techniques for managing large-scale timers are used, then timer functionality is provided, but high amounts of storage IOPs are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple timer operations into batched processing. Instead of handling each timer creation and expiration as individual IOPs, the system batches timer creations together and processes timer expirations in groups. This merging of operations significantly reduces the total number of storage IOPs required to manage large-scale timers, improving storage efficiency while maintaining the ability to handle billions of active timers.
3Adaptability or versatility
If distributed timer handling is implemented, then scale is improved, but complexity and error-proneness increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service mechanisms within the timer service, including automatic pre-positioning of timers in memory before expiration, automated batching of timer operations, and self-managed failure recovery. The system automatically handles timer lifecycle management without requiring complex external coordination, reducing system complexity while maintaining distributed scale capability. The timer service autonomously manages its own state and operations, making the distributed system more manageable and less error-prone.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed are systems and methods for implementing timers as a service. A request to create a timer is received. The request corresponds to a wait state condition associated with an event in a data stream. The request specifies an endpoint for a payload associated with an expiration of the timer. The timer is created based on the wait state condition. The creating of the timer includes publishing information pertaining to the timer in a database. The timer is consumed. The consuming of the timer includes processing the information pertaining to the timer. Based on the expiration of the timer, the payload associated with the expiration of the timer is sent to the specified endpoint.