The Internet is a Critical infrastructure supporting our information-based society. Our dependence on this infrastructure is similar to our dependence on the world's power grids and global transportation systems. Failures of the network infrastructure or major applications running on it can have an enormous financial and social cost, with serious consequences to the organizations and consumers that depend on these servcies.<BR><BR>Supporting reliable networks and networked application services involves some of the most complex-engineering and operational challenges that are dealt with in any industry. This unique and valuable guide addresses the challenges faced by service providers and the approaches they use to deliver reliable services to their users. The book offers a systematic, inter disciplinary approach and coverage of practical problems arising in real, operational deployments. Leading practitioners and researchers present their unique perspectives on the subject matter, and provide "best practices" to help translate ideas into practice.<BR><BR>This comprehensive text/reference on reliable Internet services and applications is suitable for an advanced undergraduate or graduate course, and will be of value to researchers seeking to understand the challenges faced by service providers and to identify areas that are ripe for research. The guidebook will be particularly useful to practitioners who want to broaden their understanding of the field, and/or to deepen their knowledge of the fundamentals.