Intel 1520 User Manual

Intel NetStructure Cache Appliance Administrator’s Guide

In Web proxy caching, the Intel NetStructure Cache Appliance handles arbitrary 
Web requests to distant Web servers on behalf of a set of users. Server 
acceleration (also known as reverse proxy caching or virtual Web hosting) is 
slightly different. In server acceleration, the appliance is the Web server to which 
the user is trying to connect. The Web server host name resolves to the appliance, 
which is acting as the real Web server.

Having a fast, scalable, fault-tolerant appliance absorb the main Web server 
request traffic can improve the speed and quality of service of Web serving, 
reducing load and hot spots on the backup Web servers, while still maintaining 
the publishing environment available on the backup Web servers.

If the appliance has the desired object in cache, it serves the document quickly. If 
the document is not in cache, the appliance requests the document from another 
backup Web server that has all the content. A configuration table specifies which 
backup Web server has the required content.

A Web host can maintain a scalable appliance serving engine and maintain a set 
of low-cost, low-performance, less reliable PC Web servers as the backup 
servers. A single appliance can act as the virtual Web server for multiple backup 
Web servers, as shown in Figure 6.

r

eal.janes_books.com

The Intel NetStructure 

Cache Appliance serves

documents on behalf of

real.janes_books.com

and 

big.server.net

requests for 

www.janes_books.com
and jazz.flute.org

 

resolve to virtual IP of 
Intel NetStructure 
Cache Appliance 

big.server.net 

hosts jazz.flute.org