Quantifiable Savings with Burstware® Side by side comparisons of bursting and streaming demonstrate the bandwidth savings achievable with Burstware®. These savings translate directly into dollars conserved; Burstware® services the same number of clients with fewer routers, servers, switches, wires and other costly infrastructure. burst.com has used a standard process control software package to simulate typical network and application scenarios, factoring in three types of values: Network topology Application configuration Video load Bandwidth at the server's network leg Length of video play Maximum number of clients Bandwidth at the client’s network leg Bandwidth required by each video The variation over time in the number of clients playing video Intelligent Management of Network Resources Intelligent use of network resources plays a crucial role in making video delivery affordable. By tracking up-to-the-moment data consumption and network statistics and adapting resource use accordingly, you not only get the most "bandwidth for your buck", but also more control over video delivery and network usage. Streaming Locks In Resources Conventional streaming architectures rigidly configure the number of simultaneous client video streams. They offer no opportunity to manage the amount of data each client uses, when the data is sent, and which network legs, routers, and servers handle the data. Because the data delivery is "just-in-time", any delays from re-routing the data delivery will interrupt video play. Bursting Offers Flexibility to Manage Resources The bursting approach sends more data in shorter periods of time. As a result, there are longer periods of time when a client does not need servicing, giving Burstware® the flexibility to manage network resources and act as a central planner. This flexibility allows Burstware® to focus resources where and when they are needed. This ensures that clients get what they need to enjoy a good viewing experience and ensures that the resulting load is intelligently distributed across the network. In order to manage network resources, Burstware® tracks a variety of information, including: Client consumption rates and the state of client buffers Network and server conditions Client data not yet sent Burstware® uses this information to manage resources, guaranteeing each client a high quality of service. Burstware® Meets Each Client's Needs Consumption rates vary over time. A particular video may contain few frame-to-frame variations, resulting in fairly static images that require less data to encode. A video player that is paused consumes nothing during the pause. Using an intelligent buffer management scheme, Burstware® monitors client buffer levels "behind the scenes", replenishing diminishing buffers with regulated bursts of data. By tracking consumption rates and buffer levels, Burstware® can give each client the bandwidth it needs, when it needs it, thereby ensuring each client a high quality viewing experience. As Figure 5 illustrates, Burstware® delivers the data to clients that need it the most: Clients whose video streams are not especially demanding of bandwidth are allocated only what they need. The bandwidth they don't use can be used for other clients. Monitoring Network and Server Conditions Burstware® is intelligent enough to determine which network legs or servers are overburdened and shift the load accordingly. Using this knowledge, Burstware® can control the amount of video data placed on the network, thereby tuning network usage. If a network component fails entirely, Burstware® can re-route the data from the failed server, network leg, or router to one that is functioning. While Burstware is re-routing the data, the client continues to play from its buffer. Here are two examples: If a machine hosting a Burstware® Server crashes, Burstware® clients loading video data from this server will find a Burstware Server™ on another machine and resume loading. In this way, video viewing continues uninterrupted. Using "connection acceptance" criteria, a Burstware Server™ that is too busy to take on more clients can send a client to another server for data. All contents ©2000 burst.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Legal Information