Network Boot Read Cache Driver for Server Load Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current network boot systems experience performance deterioration when a large number of client terminals are booted simultaneously due to increased network access, limiting the number of terminals that can be supported without significant performance degradation.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a network boot system with client terminals equipped with a physical storage device and network interface, utilizing a read cache driver to cache data from the server locally, reducing subsequent network access and enhancing boot speed by treating the local disk as a read cache, thereby minimizing server load.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a large number of client terminals boot simultaneously from a server over the network, then the network boot system can support centralized OS management and diskless client operation, but the server throughput decreases proportionally to the number of clients causing performance deterioration
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a preliminary action by having client terminals download and cache the entire operating system image from the server to their local storage devices during system initialization or off-peak hours. This pre-caching mechanism ensures that subsequent boot operations can be performed locally without repeatedly accessing the server, thereby resolving the throughput degradation issue when multiple clients boot simultaneously while maintaining centralized OS management capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies the copying principle by creating local copies of the operating system image data on each client terminal's storage device. Instead of requiring all clients to access the original server copy during boot, each terminal uses its own local copy, eliminating the bottleneck of simultaneous network access to a single server resource and maintaining server throughput even as the number of supported clients increases
2Ease of operation
If client terminals access the server over the network for each boot operation, then centralized OS management is achieved, but network traffic increases and boot speed decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-downloading and storing the operating system image on the client terminal's local storage device before actual boot operations. This allows the system to maintain centralized OS management (the OS image is still provisioned and managed by the server) while enabling fast local boot operations that do not require repeated network access, thereby reducing boot time without sacrificing ease of centralized management
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses copying to create local replicas of the operating system image on each client terminal. This copying mechanism enables the terminal to boot from the local copy rather than accessing the server over the network during each boot operation, significantly reducing boot time while the server retains the capability to manage and update the original OS images centrally
Data Source
AI summary
To minimize network access to a server in a network boot system. A server which stores an OS operating on a client terminal and a client terminal which includes a physical storage device are connected to each other over a network. The client terminal includes a physical memory and a network interface, and the OS includes a network driver for driving the network interface, a filter driver for converting access to a local bus of the client terminal into access to the network, and a read cache driver for driving the storage device. The read cache driver caches data which is read out from the server by the filter driver in the storage device.