The Internet2 distributed storage infrastructure project: an architecture for Internet content channels

The strategy of the Internet2 Distributed Storage Infrastructure is to promote the development of innovative applications by focusing on Internet channels that enable differential investment in infrastructure to support specific services and content. In our sense a channel is a collection of content which can be transparently delivered to end user communities at a chosen cost/performance point through a flexible, policy-based application of resources. Three key elements of this approach are focusing on collections of content, policy-based application of resources through replication, and transparent delivery to end users. The resulting architectural developments may be as important to the commodity Internet as to next generation applications. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.