[Tfug] Web server names

[Bexley Hall]

Hi Zack,

On 1/22/2013 5:04 PM, Zack Williams wrote:
> On Tue, Jan 22, 2013 at 9:40 AM, Bexley Hall<bexley401 at yahoo.com>  wrote:
>> So, it is roughly the WWW equivalent of a 3DNS service?
>
> It's not load balancing, per se. CDN's are more about putting caching
> servers that contain data closer to clients, for reduced latency and
> bandwidth costs across the internet as a whole.

Ah, OK.

> One example of this is Netflix - in a modernized version of sales
> pitches like "Ask your cable provider for the Extreme Knitting
> Channel!", they're trying to get people to pressure their ISP's to
> install a CDN box:
>
> https://signup.netflix.com/superhd
>
> The actual specs of the box are here (it's basically as many HDD's
> will physically fit into a 4U case):
>
> https://signup.netflix.com/openconnect
>
> The entire point of this is to reduce NetFlix's bandwidth bills, by
> copying video to their CDN box at each ISP's local storage once, then

-------------------^^^^^ (suggests box is part of netflix.com domain)

> serving it out a bunch of times over the ISP's "last mile"
> connections.

But, if *simply* a WWW caching service, then it could/would
(conceivably) cache *all* WWW requests that clients of that
ISP make, right?  I.e., why does ISP want to invest in a
bit of kit aimed *solely* at netflix customers (that it happens
to serve) if it doesn't also buy them something for themselves?

{Of course, if Netflix is *the* big bandwidth hog at the ISP,
then it cuts down on the ISP's upstream traffic.  OTOH, if HULU,
etc. are also utilizing lots of ISP bandwidth, then the ISP
would want that box to also cache *those* requests.  I suspect
ISP's would quickly tire of each new content provider pressuring
them to add Yet Another Box *just* for their needs).

I guess the question I am asking is:  Does this box look like
GENERAL local cache for the ISP?  Or, "remote" cache (wrt Netflix)
for the "foreign" service?

--don