Server resource allocation

I actually was designing an architecture similar to this one when I was dreaming up a similar game concept. I noticed SL maps geographical boundaries onto separate machines. This seems like a really inefficient way of allocating resources. I wonder why this was decided.

What I suggest is a little more complicated but allows for much greater server utilization (cheaper and faster for everyone). Why not dynamically draw up the boundaries depending on where the action is at? That way you won't have one machine that is taxed like crazy while the neighbor is sitting idle.

Stability.

If someone makes a physical prim that sends the servers into a deep think, your system would crash the entire world. As it is right now, it only crashes 1/108th of the world.

Molecular,

In other words, geography-based distribution is a workaround for a bad engine? That's hardly a sufficient argument.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, the geographical region-to-server approach to resource allocation is simplistic and not efficient.

I look forward to SL2 when they use a grown-up distributed system, not the toy they have now.

If you think SL is so simple then please for the love of god help them get the border crossings fixed. I am SICK SICK SICK of getting stuck between sims and whatnot.

When they offer me a job, I'll be all over that. But seriously, I didn't say I had the solution, but there is ICE and some other wonderful stuff for really kick-ass load balancing.

http://www.zeroc.com/

So just put a restriction on how much of the world a server could enlarge it's coverage to and not allow servers to expand if they are near capacity. Still get sim blackouts, but wouldn't crash all the sims.

Edit:
On second though property lines and such would have to be factured into this. First they should make it so prims in other sims that straddle the boundries are not phantom. This would minimize the effect of the moving sim boundries...