Web Cache Storage Reallocation for Device Failure
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Solution Overview
Problem
In web cache systems, the failure of a web cache device leads to the unavailability of cached information, resulting in increased load on remote servers and latency, as requests for cached information must be retrieved from the original source, wasting bandwidth and resources.
Innovation Solution
A web cache system with multiple web cache devices and a storage system, where upon detection of a failure, the storage space of the failed device is reallocated to another device, allowing it to take over control and provide local copies of requested information, using a voting algorithm or resource manager to determine which device assumes responsibility.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a web cache device fails, then the cached information becomes unavailable, but retrieving information from the original remote location increases network latency and consumes bandwidth
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the storage capabilities of multiple web cache devices into a unified storage system with shared storage spaces. When one cache device fails, other devices can access the failed device's storage space through the shared storage system, ensuring cached information remains available and eliminating the need to retrieve data from remote locations.
Solution Approach 2:
The storage system is designed to serve multiple web cache devices simultaneously, allowing any cache device to potentially access any storage space. This multi-functional design ensures that cached information is not tied to a single device, maintaining availability even when individual devices fail.
2Quantity of substance
If cached information is stored on a single web cache device, then storage capacity is limited, but expanding storage requires additional devices which increases system complexity
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple storage devices are merged into a unified storage system that appears as a single resource to web cache devices. This combination provides expanded storage capacity while maintaining simple access protocols, avoiding the complexity of managing multiple independent storage systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The storage system acts as an intermediary layer between web cache devices and physical storage devices. This abstraction layer simplifies the interface, allowing cache devices to access storage spaces without directly managing the complexity of underlying storage device configurations and failover mechanisms.
3Productivity
If web cache devices are geographically distributed to reduce load on web servers, then information retrieval speed improves, but coordination and management of cache consistency becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The storage system provides universal access capabilities that work across geographically distributed web cache devices. Any cache device can access any storage space through standardized protocols, maintaining fast local retrieval while enabling coordinated access to cached information across the distributed system without complex device-specific management.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and apparatus for managing a web cache system includes storage spaces allocated to web cache devices for storing cached information. Upon failure of a web cache device, the storage space allocated to that device is reallocated to a different operational device, so that the cached information in that reallocated storage space may be used.