DistOS-2011W Akamai and CDN - Revision history

Frahman: /* Conclusion */

2011-03-08T06:38:45Z

Conclusion

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	=Conclusion=		=Conclusion=

	~~Summarize~~ the ~~report~~, ~~point~~ to ~~future~~ work.		Content Distribution Networks are an excellent example of the power of a distributed system. The traffic off-loaded and diverted by these networks reduces considerable strain on individual content and service providers resulting in an internet user’s experience to be much more positive. Such a network cements itself into the structure of the internet as the demand for complex applications and streaming media increases.

			The CoralCDN provides a decent open environment for users and providers alike to access content that does not have the funding required for the pre-emptive infrastructure that a commercial solution like Akamai provides. In the realm of openness, CoralCDN does provide a quality solution to stick to their slogan of democratizing content publication. The peer-to-peer model makes it ideal for a contributory and voluntary, open system. It is the user community that works to distribute content that they themselves find useful.

			Akamai Technologies controls a massive system that has spread around the world at a steady rate. With the amount of distribution they have raises significant monitoring and administration challenges, but also allows them to provide a robust, commercial solutions. Any provider expecting a significant amount of traffic for an application or media streaming is a good candidate to benefit from the service.

			Future work, as highlighted in the discussion, will be to evolve with security, reliability, administration and malicious traffic challenges and concerns. Like any distributed system, the issues will also revolve around DDos prevention, bandwidth hogs, and spreading malware. Constant, efficient monitoring of all traffic is required to improve on this distribution network foundation.

	=References=		=References=

Frahman: /* Discussion */

2011-03-08T03:07:12Z

Discussion

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 =Discussion=
-What was interesting?  What was surprising?  Here you can go out on tangents relating to your work
+==Challenges==
 =Conclusion=

Frahman: /* CoralCDN */

2011-03-07T19:55:22Z

CoralCDN

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	Consider the use case of an internet user (browser) seeking out some content from a specific provider. The provider, or user, can call on the Coral system (Resolver) to retrieve the content in question. The user or provider simply needs to append “.nyud.net:8090” to the URL to make use of the system. In this example, a specific image file is requested from a website, using the CoralCDN system.		Consider the use case of an internet user (browser) seeking out some content from a specific provider. The provider, or user, can call on the Coral system (Resolver) to retrieve the content in question. The user or provider simply needs to append “.nyud.net:8090” to the URL to make use of the system. In this example, a specific image file is requested from a website, using the CoralCDN system.

	The example used was a website experiencing high traffic at the time of study. http://www.livethesheendream.com was used as an example as the site experienced the “Slashdot” effect at time of study. (http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/celebrities/2011/03/02/17469286.html)		The example used was a website experiencing high traffic at the time of study. <nowiki>http://www.livethesheendream.com</nowiki> was used as an example as the site experienced the “Slashdot” effect at time of study.(http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/celebrities/2011/03/02/17469286.html)

	From packet captures, when accessing the base image http://livethesheendream.com/images/sheen.jpg, the server IP was traced to 64.207.144.170, resolving to a server in Culver City, California, United States. When attempting to access the appended URL of http://livethesheendream.com.nyud.net:8090/images/sheen.jpg , the packet trace revealed that the content came from 130.127.39.152, resolving to Anderson City, South Carolina, United States). This server is geographically closer to the user in Ottawa, showing that the algorithm and process is helpful. The user experience was also much more positive as the site loaded quickly in comparison to directly accessing the site. CoralCDN was helpful in accessing a site that was experiencing more traffic than it could handle.		From packet captures, when accessing the base image http://livethesheendream.com/images/sheen.jpg, the server IP was traced to 64.207.144.170, resolving to a server in Culver City, California, United States. When attempting to access the appended URL of http://livethesheendream.com.nyud.net:8090/images/sheen.jpg , the packet trace revealed that the content came from 130.127.39.152, resolving to Anderson City, South Carolina, United States). This server is geographically closer to the user in Ottawa, showing that the algorithm and process is helpful. The user experience was also much more positive as the site loaded quickly in comparison to directly accessing the site. CoralCDN was helpful in accessing a site that was experiencing more traffic than it could handle.

Frahman: /* References */

2011-03-07T19:54:02Z

References

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	[http://www.akamai.com/dl/feature_sheets/Akamai_Online_Video_Publishers_fs.pdf Akamai - Online Video Publishers] - Accessed February 28, 2011		[http://www.akamai.com/dl/feature_sheets/Akamai_Online_Video_Publishers_fs.pdf Akamai - Online Video Publishers] - Accessed February 28, 2011

			[http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/celebrities/2011/03/02/17469286.html Sheen tribute site 'just explodes'] - Accessed March 2, 2011

Frahman: /* CoralCDN */

2011-03-07T19:52:54Z

CoralCDN

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	CoralCDN offers a structure which leads to the democratization of content publication. It is structured in part as a peer-to-peer network, which makes use of voluntary aggregate bandwidth to minimize the effect of a mass amount of traffic to a particular website. CoralCDN empowers any user to use the service by appending a simple string to a URL.		CoralCDN offers a structure which leads to the democratization of content publication. It is structured in part as a peer-to-peer network, which makes use of voluntary aggregate bandwidth to minimize the effect of a mass amount of traffic to a particular website. CoralCDN empowers any user to use the service by appending a simple string to a URL.

	[[File:coral-flow.gif]]		[[File:coral-flow.gif]]

Frahman: /* Akamai */

2011-03-07T19:52:37Z

Akamai

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	[[File:akamai-flow.gif]]		[[File:akamai-flow.gif]]

			Akamai works as a preconfigured proxy to serve content. A content provider will orient their HTML code to access pre-existing information on the Akamai servers. In the figure, the process is as simple as a series of redirects. The example highlights (1), a web user requesting a page containing a video clip from Canada’s ctv.ca. The HTML (2) that displays and positions this content links to the Akamai server which then determines an actual box to serve the content to via its internal DNS resolution. This server will be one of thousands, likely within miles of the user. The content is then streamed (3) to the user from this server.

	Akamai boasts a current implementation of 84 000 servers distributed in 72 countries and 1100 networks. A claim is also made that 15 to 20% of overall web traffic is handled daily.		Akamai boasts a current implementation of 84 000 servers distributed in 72 countries and 1100 networks. A claim is also made that 15 to 20% of overall web traffic is handled daily.

Frahman: /* Akamai */

2011-03-07T19:44:20Z

Akamai

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	== Akamai ==		== Akamai ==

			The use case scenario for an Akamai example involved streaming video from Canada’s CTV network. CTV is a listed customer of Akamai and makes use of their services to distribute their content. CTV makes available much of the programming they air on the network on their website. Usually, content is posted on the website within a few hours of it airing on the station.
			In looking at the HTML code for the player page, the redirects requesting specific Akamai resources are revealed. As the earlier figure illustrates, a subdomain is used to refer to the Akamai server (hdtoken.ctvdigital.net).

			The user experience was positive in viewing the content. The video loaded within a reasonable amount of time on a 16mbps DSL connection. Viewing the packet capture revealed that the server was based in Montreal, which is within a 200 kilometre range of the testing area. This can be considered a surprise as Akamai does have servers installed in the Ottawa region. It could go to show, however, that the closest server with enough resources was located 200 kilometres away.

	=Discussion=		=Discussion=

Frahman: /* Akamai */

2011-03-07T19:43:51Z

Akamai

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:43, 7 March 2011
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	[[File:akamai-flow.gif]]		[[File:akamai-flow.gif]]

			Akamai boasts a current implementation of 84 000 servers distributed in 72 countries and 1100 networks. A claim is also made that 15 to 20% of overall web traffic is handled daily.

	=Experiences/Comparison=		=Experiences/Comparison=

Frahman: /* CoralCDN */

2011-03-07T14:38:16Z

CoralCDN

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	The example used was a website experiencing high traffic at the time of study. http://www.livethesheendream.com was used as an example as the site experienced the “Slashdot” effect at time of study. (http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/celebrities/2011/03/02/17469286.html)		The example used was a website experiencing high traffic at the time of study. http://www.livethesheendream.com was used as an example as the site experienced the “Slashdot” effect at time of study. (http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/celebrities/2011/03/02/17469286.html)

	From packet captures, when accessing the base image http://livethesheendream.com/images/sheen.jpg, the server IP was traced to 64.207.144.170, resolving to a server in Culver City, California, United States. When attempting to access the appended URL of http://livethesheendream.com.nyud.net:8090/images/sheen.jpg , the packet trace revealed that the content came from 130.127.39.152, resolving to Anderson City, South Carolina, United States). This server is geographically closer to the user in Ottawa, showing that the algorithm and process is helpful.		From packet captures, when accessing the base image http://livethesheendream.com/images/sheen.jpg, the server IP was traced to 64.207.144.170, resolving to a server in Culver City, California, United States. When attempting to access the appended URL of http://livethesheendream.com.nyud.net:8090/images/sheen.jpg , the packet trace revealed that the content came from 130.127.39.152, resolving to Anderson City, South Carolina, United States). This server is geographically closer to the user in Ottawa, showing that the algorithm and process is helpful. The user experience was also much more positive as the site loaded quickly in comparison to directly accessing the site. CoralCDN was helpful in accessing a site that was experiencing more traffic than it could handle.

	== Akamai ==		== Akamai ==

Frahman: /* Experiences/Comparison */

2011-03-07T14:36:43Z

Experiences/Comparison

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	=Experiences/Comparison=		=Experiences/Comparison=

			To test out the implementation of both the CoralCDN process and Akamai, sites were browsed employing the two methods while performing a packet capture. In the case of CoralCDN, a heavily trafficked site experiencing the so-called “Slashdot” effect was accessed conventionally and via the CoralCDN method. For Akamai, a video was streamed off a broadcast network’s site. The packet captures revealed where the servers were located in proximity to the test run performed in Ottawa, Ontario.

	== CoralCDN ==		== CoralCDN ==