Patent ID: 7562144

Claim:
In a directory server environment with multiple servers, a method comprising: responsive to receipt of a request for processing by the processor at a first server for access to a specific branch of a directory tree having branches of information that are (a) stored at specific master servers among the multiple servers and (b) individually accessible by requests at any one of the multiple servers, determining if the first server is a master server for that specific branch; comparing a frequency of access to the specific branch originating from the first server against pre-established threshold values, wherein said threshold values are established to trigger a master-server change for the specific branch based on the frequency of access to that specific branch requested at the first server relative to the other servers of the multiple servers; and when the threshold values are met, dynamically assigning the first server as a new master server for that specific branch; and automatically transferring the specific branch to the first server, which becomes the new master server for the specific branch.