Patent ID: 7103640

Claim:
A method for retrieving data location information for data stored in a distributed network, comprising the steps of: a) receiving at a first client a data query for retrieving data associated with an identification string, wherein the data is stored at a data repository and wherein a location string associated with the identification string of the data is stored in at least one of a plurality of data location servers; b) transmitting a data location request from the first client to a server to retrieve the location string associated with the identification string in the data query, the data location request including the identification string; c) if the server is not a data location server, then operating the server as a next client and transmitting the data location request from the next client to a server logically associated with the next client; d) repeating c) until the data location request is transmitted to a data location server, wherein a communication path is defined between the first client and the data location server; and e) if the data location server does not possess the location string, transmitting a redirect message to the first client over the communication path, the redirect message containing information with which the first client is configured to determine a location of a second data location server, wherein the second data location server contains the location string.