Additional GRM features

Features for optimizing request routing

The GRM feature supports several failover and load balancing mechanisms. In addition, the GRM feature enables you to filter the IP addresses returned to clients based on protocols and location. See the Guide to Global Request Manager for details.

Integration with other Network Appliance content delivery products

NetCache works seamlessly with other products in the Network Appliance content delivery suite that enable telcos, service providers, and enterprises to build robust CDNs including ContentDirector. ContentDirector enables you to store content in a central location, such as a data center, and push that data to NetCache appliances located throughout the network. ContentDirector can be integrated with GRM to enable the GRM server to send content requests to the closest GRM agent appliance that contains the requested content. This redirection combines the speed of prepopulated content and higher data integrity of geographic proximity.

With ContentDirector, you can target specific content for particular locations and make the content available before peak demand. For example, if you are providing a specific set of movie clips for a CDN, you can push those clips to GRM agent caches at off-hours, when demand on the network is low.

ContentDirector configuration provides the GRM server with information about domains, center groups, and center caches--information that administrators setting up GRM without ContentDirector must configure. See the ContentDirector documents on the NOW Web site (http://now.netapp.com) for more information about ContentDirector and how to set up ContentDirector and GRM to work together.

Note
The WebWasher Corporation ContentReporter application gathers log files from each NetCache appliance and records the information in the ContentReporter database. You can use third-party applications to create reports that help you with billing and with planning content to push. Contact your Network Appliance sales representative or the WebWasher Corporation to obtain ContentReporter.