DoH-Mediated Third-Party Service Discovery for Edge Session Continuity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing edge computing systems face challenges in maintaining seamless communication between third-party applications and services due to IP address changes, leading to session drops and the need for re-attachment, without providing a straightforward process for application discovery across different edge computing sites.
Innovation Solution
Implementing DNS over HTTPS (DoH) to facilitate communication between edge servers and mobile applications by using IP unicast addresses for TLS sessions, enabling discovery and re-establishment of connections without relying on telecommunication network operators for location tracking.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If IP anycast address is used for service communication, then service availability and load balancing are improved, but session continuity deteriorates due to IP address changes causing session drops
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a DoH server as an intermediary between the mobile application and the edge service. The DoH server receives DNS queries from the mobile application, resolves the service domain name to obtain the current IP anycast address, and returns the resolved address to the application. This intermediary mechanism allows the application to dynamically obtain updated IP addresses without breaking the service communication, thus maintaining session continuity while utilizing IP anycast for load balancing and availability.
2Speed
If third party applications are deployed at edge computing sites, then latency is reduced and user experience is improved, but application discovery complexity increases across distributed sites
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal DoH server that can serve multiple functions across different edge computing sites. The same DoH server infrastructure is used both for DNS resolution and for providing service discovery information. The server maintains a mapping between service domain names and their current deployment locations (IP addresses), enabling applications to discover services at any edge site through a standardized interface. This universal approach simplifies application discovery while maintaining low latency by keeping services distributed at the edge.
3Reliability
If DNS resolution is performed over HTTPS, then security and privacy are improved, but communication overhead and processing time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a mechanism where the DoH server performs DNS resolution in advance and caches the results. When a mobile application needs to resolve a service domain name, the DoH server checks its cache first. If the resolution result is already cached and valid, it returns the cached IP address immediately without performing a full HTTPS-based DNS resolution. This preliminary action significantly reduces the time required for DNS resolution while maintaining the security benefits of DoH, as the initial resolution is still performed securely over HTTPS.
Data Source
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AI summary
A method and system support communication between a service executed by an edge server and a mobile application. The method includes receiving a transmission control protocol, TCP, handshake with an Internet Protocol, IP, anycast address from the mobile application; replying to the TCP handshake with an IP unicast address for the service to be utilized for a transport layer security, TLS, session; and establishing the TLS session between the service and the mobile application using the IP unicast address.