Targeted Processing of Executable Requests Within A Hierarchically Indexed Distributed Database

Abstract

In one embodiment, a distributed database system supporting flexible configuration of data clusters is disclosed. The system includes a cluster manager, an index, and a dataset distributed over one or more database clusters. Where the nodes of the clusters may report ownership of a particular range, the index contains an alternate range. The cluster manager receives requests to access a range of data within database and queries the index to determine the appropriate nodes and/or clusters with which to connect. The cluster manager then directs the requestor to connect to the specified nodes and/or clusters.

1 - 20 . (canceled) 
     
     
         1 . A method of responding to a request for the evaluation of a computational query at a cluster, the method comprising:
 receiving a computational query at an API server;   translating the computational query into a set of indexed attributes and a plurality of instructions in an instruction set consistent with the database architecture of the cluster;   performing a first subquery of a first cluster index of the cluster using a first indexed attribute extracted from the computational query, wherein the first subquery results in the receipt of a first index response including a cluster and node configuration;   determining whether a second subquery is necessary based upon the first index response;   if a second subquery is necessary, performing a second subquery of a second cluster index using a second indexed attribute extracted from the computational query, wherein the second subquery results in the receipt of a second index response including a cluster and node configuration;   identifying a respondent node based upon the provided cluster and node configuration; and   transmitting the plurality of instructions to the respondent node.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first indexed attribute and the second indexed attribute are the same attribute. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first cluster index is different from the second cluster index. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the set of indexed attributes includes at least one of a requesting user, a query scope, a hierarchical path, and a query tag. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of instructions includes at least one of a regular expression, a Boolean expression, a natural language queries, and a data processing expression. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the computational query includes a security policy applying to the evaluation of the plurality of instructions. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the evaluation of the plurality of instructions is subject to a security policy provided from a security policy master store. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising the evaluation of the plurality of instructions by the respondent node. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the evaluation of the plurality of instructions by the respondent node further includes the processing of data included in a data store. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising returning a computational result from the respondent node, and proxying the computational result through the API server to a receiver. 
     
     
         11 . A system for evaluating a computational query at a cluster, the system comprising:
 an API server, the API server further including:
 a network port communicatively coupled to a cluster-external network; 
 a network port communicatively coupled to a cluster-internal network; 
 a query parser operative to translate a computational query received via the cluster-external network into a set of indexed attributes and a plurality of instructions in an instruction set consistent with the database architecture of the cluster; 
 a first cluster index mapping indexed attributes to cluster and node information; and 
 an index query engine operative to identify cluster and node information from a cluster index mapping given 
   a plurality of respondent nodes, each respondent node including:
 a network port communicatively coupled to the cluster-internal network; and 
 an expression evaluator operable to process the plurality of instructions and provide a computational result. 
   
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11 , further including a second cluster index mapping indexed attributes to cluster and node information, wherein the second cluster index is accessed in response to an indication included in the information returned from the first cluster index. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the first cluster index and the second cluster index are the same index. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the set of indexed attributes includes at least one of a requesting user, a query scope, a hierarchical path, and a query tag. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the plurality of instructions includes at least one of a regular expression, a Boolean expression, a natural language queries, and a data processing expression. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the computational query includes a security policy applying to the evaluation of the plurality of instructions. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 11 , further comprising a security policy master store, and wherein the processing of the plurality of instructions is subject to a security policy provided from the security policy master store. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 11 , further including an indexed storage associated with the respondent node, wherein the processing of the plurality of instructions by the respondent node further includes the processing of data retrieved from the indexed storage. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the API server is further operable to proxy the computational result by receiving it via the cluster-internal network port and transmitting it via the cluster-external network port.