System and method for server-based predictive caching of back-end system data

Abstract

A system and method for facilitating communication between a user and a network of information items. The system includes a remote data storage device for storing the information items, wherein the information items are stored in the form of pages, and wherein the pages contain a plurality of links to other information items; a client device having a user interface program thereon, for allowing a user to interface with the network and request the information items; a server device, in communication with the client device and in communication with the remote storage device, for handling information requests from multiple clients and for storing information retrieved from the data storage devices locally in a server cache memory; a data collection module for collecting and storing successive user actions; and a probability module in communication with the data collection module for calculating a probability for the links, and for comparing the probability to a predetermined threshold value, and for retrieving the information items associated with the links from the remote data storage devices and storing the information items in the server cache memory in advance of a user request for the selected information items.