Patent ID: 8924589

Claim:
A computer-readable storage medium not including signals for storing instructions that when executed by a computer system, causes the system to: receive client communications of a client at a mid-tier proxy server; access configuration information, with the mid-tier proxy server, that defines a plurality of backend servers of a server cluster for selection and for directing queries, and represents the mid-tier proxy server as a data storage component that appears to host one or more data store instances; query the plurality of backend servers defined in the configuration information to identify the one of the one or more data store instances that is online, mounted, and not failed as a currently active data store instance and identify a backend server hosting the currently active data store instance as an active backend server; route the client communications via the mid-tier proxy server to the active backend server; and retrieve state information from the active backend server, the state information maintaining states of all of the one or more data store instances and associated backend servers, the states comprising one of active and inactive, wherein data store instances and associated backend servers are in the active state when the data store instances and associated backend servers are online and not failed, and inactive when offline or failed, the currently active data store instance receiving the routed client communications via the proxy component based on the state information retrieved from the active backend server.