Patent ID: 8224963

Claim:
A server for accepting connection requests from client terminals through a network, comprising: a maximum-connection-number setting counter for setting a maximum number of connections that can be connected simultaneously to the server; a connection-number counter for indicating a number of client terminals currently connected to the server; a connectable-number counter for indicating a number of client terminals that can be connected to the server, a connection-order setting unit which, upon receiving a first connection request from a first client terminal of said client terminals, and in response to a refusal to grant the first connection request due to the number of client terminals currently connected to the server, sets an order of connection for said first client terminal; and a connection managing unit for allowing connection of said client terminals according to said order of connection, upon receiving a second connection request from the first client terminal of said client terminals after said first connection request; wherein the connection managing unit transmits a program to the first client in response to the refusal to grant the first connection request, wherein the first client terminal executes the program, and wherein execution of the program by the first client terminal causes the second connection request to be automatically executed again by the first client terminal after a predetermined time interval, wherein the number of client terminals that can be connected to the server is equal to a difference between a value of the maximum number of connections that can be connected simultaneously to the server and a quantity equal to a value of the number of client terminals currently connected to the server and a number of client terminals whose reference number is resent in a connection-right acquired pool section.