Patent ID: 7953790
Filing Date: 2011-05-31
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
1. A method of inheriting session information when a client browser is piloted from one web application server of a plurality of web application servers of one web site to another web site, and back to the one web application server of the plurality of web application servers of said one web site, the method comprising: receiving by an authentication server of the one web site an initial request to access the one web site by the client browser, the authentication server presenting one IP address to the client browser for accessing the one web site, and the authentication server further authorizing the initial request; forwarding, by the authentication server, the initial request via a first cluster address of a plurality of cluster addresses to a load balancing server of the one web site, the plurality of cluster addresses being cluster addresses of the load balancing server, and wherein requests received at the load balancing server via the first cluster address are forwarded by the load balancing server to one web application server of the plurality of web application servers according to a load balancing strategy, the load balancing server selectively addressing each web application server of the plurality of web application servers of the one web site, each web application server of the plurality of web application servers comprising a web application, a first redirect application and a second redirect application, the first redirect application accepting requests to begin a web application session, and the second redirect application accepting requests to restore a web application session upon return by the client browser to the one web site; dispatching, by the load balancing server, the initial request to the one web application server of the plurality of web application servers of the one web site; subsequent to receipt of the initial request at the one web application server, generating via a first redirect application executing on the one web application server a redirect response setting therein a second cluster address of the plurality of cluster addresses of the load balancing server for redirecting the client browser on the basis of the second cluster address, the second cluster address being a virtual address of the load balancing server, the second cluster address being associated by the load balancing server with the one web application server, and the load balancing server directing requests addressed to the second cluster address through the load balancing server to the one web application server; transmitting the redirect response comprising the set second cluster address to the client browser; responsive to receipt of the redirect response at the client browser, setting at the client browser the second cluster address in a cookie associated with the one IP address of the authentication server; and receiving another request from the client browser, the client browser having been piloted back to the one web site from the another web site, the another request comprising the cookie associated with the one IP address, the another request being forwarded by the load balancing server via the first cluster address to another web application server of the plurality of web application servers, the another web application server, on the basis of receiving the cookie comprising the second cluster address, executing the second redirect application to generate another redirect response for redirecting the client browser via the second cluster address back to the one web application server for resuming the web application session, wherein the another redirect response, when received by the client browser, causes an automatic browser refresh to redirect the client browser via the second cluster address back to the one web application server.