Server Failover via Private Network During DoS Attacks
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for handling denial-of-service (DoS) attacks and broadcast storms often result in server shutdown, leading to prolonged downtime and potential secondary attacks on standby servers, as they lack effective mechanisms to assess and switch between primary and standby servers during such events.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that includes modules to monitor data rates, assess whether primary and standby servers are under attack, and seamlessly switch roles between them using a private network, ensuring continuous operation by activating the standby server only when the primary server is no longer under attack or a broadcast storm.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If the primary server shuts down during a DoS attack or broadcast storm, then the server stops receiving harmful data, but the server experiences prolonged downtime and may be attacked again after reboot
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by having a standby server ready in advance to take over immediately when the primary server is attacked. The standby server is pre-configured and monitored, so no time is lost in setting up backup capabilities or detecting the attack condition before failover occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The standby server acts as an intermediary that receives harmful data intended for the primary server. By redirecting traffic to the standby server, the system protects the primary server from DoS attacks while maintaining service continuity, eliminating the need for the primary server to shut down.
2Reliability
If the primary server switches to a standby server during an attack, then service continuity is maintained, but the standby server may also be under attack
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses feedback mechanisms where the primary server monitors the standby server's status before and during failover. The primary server checks whether the standby server is under attack by monitoring its responsiveness and health indicators, ensuring that a compromised standby server does not become the new primary server.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary verification of the standby server's status before initiating failover. The primary server checks if the standby server is available and not under attack, ensuring that the failover process only occurs when a healthy standby server is ready to take over.
3Measurement precision
If the system monitors data rates to detect attacks, then attack detection accuracy is improved, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system detects attacks by monitoring changes in data rate parameters. By setting thresholds for acceptable data rates and detecting deviations from normal patterns, the system achieves accurate attack detection using simple parameter-based monitoring rather than complex analysis algorithms.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed to failover to a standby server when a primary server is under broadcast storm or denial-of-service (“DoS”) attack. A primary attack sensing module is included to monitor a rate of incoming data from a computer network to a primary server and to determine if the rate of incoming data is above a primary data rate threshold. A standby contact module is included to request a standby data rate status from a standby server in response to the primary attack module determining that the rate of incoming data to the primary server is above the primary data rate threshold. The standby server is connected to the primary server over a private network. The standby data rate status includes a determination by the standby server of whether a rate of data received by the standby server is above a standby data rate threshold. A standby receiver module is included to receive a standby data rate status from the standby server over the private network. A switchover module is included to deactivate the primary server and to send a command to activate the standby server as a primary server in response to the received standby data rate status indicating that the rate of data received by the standby server has not exceeded the standby data rate threshold.