Patent ID: 7558854

Claim:
An access relaying apparatus which accesses a service server in response to a request for obtaining contents received from a client and transmits the contents obtained from the service server to the client, the access relaying apparatus comprising: a plurality of proxy servers that have a reply function to the request for obtaining the contents and generate access logs for the request; a shared disk device which is connected to the plurality of proxy servers and stores the access logs output from each of the proxy servers therein; first means for managing a first access limit per unit time indicating an upper limit of transmissions of requests for obtaining the contents which are transmitted to the service server as a destination of the requests; second means for managing a second access limit per unit time indicating an upper limit of transmissions of requests for obtaining the contents which are transmitted to a URL in the service server as a destination of the requests; and an administration server which monitors operating statuses of the plurality of proxy servers, reads the access logs which are recorded to the shared disk device, (1) uses said access logs to calculate a first average reply time for receiving contents from the service server, reduces the first access limit if the first average reply time is over a first access limit prescribed value and updates the first access limit, and sends a notification indicating the updated first access limit to each of the plurality of proxy servers, and (2) uses said access logs to calculate a second average reply time for receiving contents from the URL, reduces the second access limit if the second average reply time is over a second access limit prescribed value and updates the second access limit, and sends a notification indicating the updated second access limit to each of the plurality of proxy servers, wherein each of the proxy servers limits a number of accesses to the destination of the request within the first and second access limits updatable from the administration server, wherein each of the plurality of proxy servers replies with an error message to the client when a number of client requests received by the proxy servers is over the first and second access limits.