TRANSPARENT REDIRECTION OF CLIENTS TO A SURROGATE PAYLOAD SERVER THROUGH THE USE OF A PROXY LOCATION SERVER

In some embodiments, a first location server, in response to a request from a client to access an object, determines whether a first location information stored at the first location server indicates locations of instance(s) of the object. The first location server, in response to a determination that the first location information indicates the locations of the instances of the object, determines a first location of a first instance of the object at a first payload server and a second location of a second instance of the object at a second payload server from the first location information. The first location server determines priority values of the first and second locations. The first location server generates a reply to the request, the reply indicating the first and second locations of the first and second instances of the object, and the priority values of the first and second locations.