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LinuxDirector: A connection director for scalable internet services

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Abstract

LinuxDirector is a connection director that supports load balancing among multiple Internet servers, which can be used to build scalable Internet services based on clusters of servers. LinuxDirector extends the TCP/IP stack of Linux kernel to support three IP load balancing techniques, VS/NAT, VS/TUN and VS/DR. Four scheduling algorithms have been implemented to assign connections to different servers. Scalability is achieved by transparently adding or removing a node in the cluster. High availability is provided by detecting node or daemon failures and reconfiguring the system appropriately. This paper describes the design and implementation of LinuxDirector and presents several of its features including scalability, high availability and connection affinity.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Laboratory for Parallel & Distributed Processing, National University of Defense Technology, 410073, Changsha, P.R. China

    Zhang Wensong, Jin Shiyao & Wu Quanyuan

Authors
  1. Zhang Wensong
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  2. Jin Shiyao
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  3. Wu Quanyuan
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Zhang Wensong.

Additional information

ZHANG Wensong is a Ph.D. candidate at National Laboratory for Parallel & Distributed Processing. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from Changsha Institute of Technology in 1994 and 1997, respectively. His current research interests include clustering technology, operating systems, and object database systems. He also devotes a lot of his time to promoting Linux & open source development in China.

JIN Shiyao is a professor and Ph.D. advisor at National Laboratory for Parallel & Distributed Processing. His research interests include computer architecture, emulation, and performance evaluation.

WU Quanyuan is a professor and Ph.D. advisor at National Laboratory for Parallel & Distributed Processing. He is also a member of National ‘863’ Programme Steering Committee. His research interests include artificial intelligence, distributed computing, and software technologies.

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Zhang, W., Jin, S. & Wu, Q. LinuxDirector: A connection director for scalable internet services. J. Comput. Sci. & Technol. 15, 560–571 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02948838

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02948838

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