Connection concentrator for distributed object systems

Abstract

In a distributed object system, the services available on the network are modeled as network objects. A client typically communicates with and uses these objects using Internet connections. As the number of clients increase the servers can get overwhelmed by the number of connections coming into the server resulting in sluggish response and/or loss of service. The invention describes the mechanisms for reducing the required number of connections by automatically concentrating multiple connections onto a single connection. This is done by introducing shared intermediate connection concentrators called gateways. When the client invokes on an external object reference, the ORB running on the client automatically forwards the request to a gateway assigned to it, which then forwards it onto a shared connection to the server. The solution is symmetrical—if the server invokes on an object running inside the client, the invocation again flows through the gateway. The mechanisms described here do not require any explicit programming and can be turned ON or OFF via configuration. The disclosure also describes several policy and/or algorithm based schemes for assigning clients to gateways. Advantages of this invention include reduced interference, improved communication bandwidth, fault tolerance, modularity, scalability, and more efficient and cost-effective base stations and mobile stations.