Patent ID: 8250220
Filing Date: 2012-08-21
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
1. A system for a requesting client to determine the closest available endpoint for accessing a service and for establishing a network connection from the requesting client to the endpoint in a computer network environment that includes a plurality of endpoints which provide the service and a nearest endpoint locator, the system comprising one or more computer processors and computer-readable storage having computer executable instructions, wherein, when the instructions are executed upon the one or more computer processors, the system performs a method comprising: transmitting a request from the requesting client to the nearest endpoint locator, wherein the request identifies a service of interest desired by the requesting client; receiving at the requesting client from the nearest endpoint locator an ordered enumeration of a plurality of endpoints, each of the plurality of endpoints in the received ordered enumeration providing the service of interest, the requesting client establishing a network connection from the requesting client to an endpoint from the ordered enumeration.