Watchtower: Fast, secure mobile page loads using remote dependency resolution

Ravi Netravali, James Mickens, Anirudh Sivaraman, Hari Balakrishnan

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

20 Scopus citations

Abstract

Remote dependency resolution (RDR) is a proxy-driven scheme for reducing mobile page load times; a proxy loads a requested page using a local browser, fetching the page’s resources over fast proxy-origin links instead of a client’s slow last-mile links. In this paper, we describe two fundamental challenges to efficient RDR proxying: the increasing popularity of encrypted HTTPS content, and the fact that, due to time-dependent network conditions and page properties, RDR proxying can actually increase load times. We solve these problems by introducing a new, secure proxying scheme for HTTPS traffic, and by implementing WatchTower, a selective proxying system that uses dynamic models of network conditions and page structures to only enable RDR when it is predicted to help. WatchTower loads pages 21.2%–41.3% faster than state-of-the-art proxies and server push systems, while preserving end-to-end HTTPS security.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationMobiSys 2019 - Proceedings of the 17th Annual International Conference on Mobile Systems, Applications, and Services
PublisherAssociation for Computing Machinery, Inc
Pages430-443
Number of pages14
ISBN (Electronic)9781450366618
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 12 2019
Externally publishedYes
Event17th ACM International Conference on Mobile Systems, Applications, and Services, MobiSys 2019 - Seoul, Korea, Republic of
Duration: Jun 17 2019Jun 21 2019

Publication series

NameMobiSys 2019 - Proceedings of the 17th Annual International Conference on Mobile Systems, Applications, and Services

Conference

Conference17th ACM International Conference on Mobile Systems, Applications, and Services, MobiSys 2019
Country/TerritoryKorea, Republic of
CitySeoul
Period6/17/196/21/19

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Computer Science Applications
  • Computer Networks and Communications

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