Self-organized load balancing in proxy servers: Algorithms and performance

Proxy servers are common solutions to relieve organizational networks from heavy traffic by storing the most frequently referenced web objects in their local cache. These proxies are commonly known as cooperative proxy systems and are usually organized in such a way as to optimize the utilization of their storage capacity. However, the design of the organizational structure of such proxy system depends heavily on the designer's knowledge of the network's performance. This article describes three methods to tackle this load balancing problem. They allow the self-organization of proxy servers by modeling each server as an autonomous entity that can make local decisions based on the traffic pattern it has served.