Patent ID: 7698416

Claim:
A method of managing a server failure, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of: intercepting, at a network element, a first message that indicates both an identified session and session change information to change a session state that is associated with the identified session, wherein the first message was originally sent from a client; wherein the first message is not addressed to the network element; wherein the identified session is between the client and a first server and exists before the first message is intercepted at the network element; changing and storing the session state at the network element based on the session change information; generating, at the network element, a second message that is based on the first message and the session state, and that requests data from the first server; sending the second message to the first server; detecting, at the network element, an inability of the first server to service a request; in response to detecting the inability, selecting a second server that is separate from the first server; sending the second message toward the second server; receiving, from the second server, a first response that contains the data; generating, at the network element, a second response that is based on the data and the session state; and sending the second response to the client as a response to the first message; wherein the method is performed by one or more computing devices.