What is Content Delivery Network (CDN)

A content delivery network is a group of computers that have been connected together via the Internet to form a network. They will operate without the knowledge of the user for the purpose of delivering content. Much of the content that is delivered by the CDN are large media files. The nodes for content delivery networks will be used from various locations, and they will often be connected to backbones. The nodes will work together to provide the content that is requested by users, and they will clandestinely move the content to make sure the delivery process is rapid. While this optimization may come in many forms, it often is connected to the reduction of bandwidth costs, as well as improving the overall performance.

There is no set amount for the number of nodes that a CDN will use, but it may number in the tens of thousands. When a request for content is made, these requested will be transferred to nodes that are proficient in assisting with the task. When the CDN is optimized for a high level of performance (which is often the case), the locations that can produce the content the fastest will be chosen. The locations which are the best will generally be those that have the least number of hops. However, there may be times when the CDN will be optimized in terms of cost, and in a situation like this, a location that is less costly will be used rather than one that has the lowest number of hops.

In most cases, these two objectives will be one and the same. When the CDN is calibrated for performance, the locations that can serve the content the fastest to the user will be picked. Many of these locations will often be less costly so the system can achieve two goals at once. To understand the techniques for a CDN, it is first important for you to understand the design structure of the Internet. When the Internet was first invented, it was constructed based on an end to end principle. This principle is important, because it keeps the central network relatively simple. The design of the central network allows it to be highly proficient for using forward data packets.

Written by Fast Host on May 29th, 2007 with comments disabled.
Read more articles on Content delivery.

[+] Digg: Feature this article
[+] Del.icio.us: Bookmark this article
[+] Furl: Bookmark this article

Comments disabled

Comments on this article have been disabled.

What is Content Delivery Network (CDN)

Comments disabled

Identification

Article search

Sections

Last articles

Categories

Monthly archives

Favourite sites

Blogroll

Subscribe to this site