diff --git a/coordinator.go b/coordinator.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..6a091a4c61
--- /dev/null
+++ b/coordinator.go
@@ -0,0 +1,122 @@
+package influxdb
+
+import (
+	"errors"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/influxdb/influxdb/data"
+	"github.com/influxdb/influxdb/meta"
+)
+
+const defaultReadTimeout = 5 * time.Second
+
+var ErrTimeout = errors.New("timeout")
+
+// Coordinator handle queries and writes across multiple local and remote
+// data nodes.
+type Coordinator struct {
+	MetaStore meta.Store
+	DataNode  data.Node
+}
+
+// ShardMapping contiains a mapping of a shardIDs to a points
+type ShardMapping map[uint64][]Point
+
+func (c *Coordinator) MapShards(wp *WritePointsRequest) (ShardMapping, error) {
+
+	// holds the start time ranges for required shard groups
+	timeRanges := map[time.Time]*meta.ShardGroupInfo{}
+
+	rp, err := c.MetaStore.RetentionPolicy(wp.Database, wp.RetentionPolicy)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+
+	for _, p := range wp.Points {
+		timeRanges[p.Time.Truncate(rp.ShardGroupDuration)] = nil
+	}
+
+	// holds all the shard groups and shards that are required for writes
+	for t := range timeRanges {
+		g, err := c.MetaStore.CreateShardGroupIfNotExists(wp.Database, wp.RetentionPolicy, t)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		timeRanges[t] = g
+	}
+
+	shardMapping := make(ShardMapping)
+	for _, p := range wp.Points {
+		g, ok := timeRanges[p.Time.Truncate(rp.ShardGroupDuration)]
+
+		sid := p.SeriesID()
+		shardInfo := g.Shards[sid%uint64(len(g.Shards))]
+		points, ok := shardMapping[shardInfo.ID]
+		if !ok {
+			shardMapping[shardInfo.ID] = []Point{p}
+		} else {
+			shardMapping[shardInfo.ID] = append(points, p)
+		}
+	}
+	return shardMapping, nil
+}
+
+// Write is coordinates multiple writes across local and remote data nodes
+// according the request consistency level
+func (c *Coordinator) Write(p *WritePointsRequest) error {
+
+	// FIXME: use the consistency level specified by the WritePointsRequest
+	pol := newConsistencyPolicyN(1)
+
+	_, err := c.MapShards(p)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
+	// FIXME: build set of local and remote point writers
+	ws := []PointsWriter{}
+
+	type result struct {
+		writerID int
+		err      error
+	}
+	ch := make(chan result, len(ws))
+	for i, w := range ws {
+		go func(id int, w PointsWriter) {
+			err := w.Write(p)
+			ch <- result{id, err}
+		}(i, w)
+	}
+	timeout := time.After(defaultReadTimeout)
+	for range ws {
+		select {
+		case <-timeout:
+			// return timeout error to caller
+			return ErrTimeout
+		case res := <-ch:
+			if !pol.IsDone(res.writerID, res.err) {
+				continue
+			}
+			if res.err != nil {
+				return res.err
+			}
+			return nil
+		}
+
+	}
+	panic("unreachable or bad policy impl")
+}
+
+func (c *Coordinator) Execute(q *QueryRequest) (chan *Result, error) {
+	return nil, nil
+}
+
+// remoteWriter is a PointWriter for a remote data node
+type remoteWriter struct {
+	//ShardInfo []ShardInfo
+	//DataNodes DataNodes
+}
+
+func (w *remoteWriter) Write(p *WritePointsRequest) error {
+	return nil
+}
diff --git a/coordinator_test.go b/coordinator_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..6966ba1f1b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/coordinator_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,130 @@
+package influxdb_test
+
+import (
+	"fmt"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/influxdb/influxdb"
+	"github.com/influxdb/influxdb/meta"
+	"github.com/influxdb/influxdb/test"
+)
+
+func TestCoordinatorWriteOne(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Skip("later")
+	ms := test.MetaStore{}
+	ms.RetentionPolicyFn = func(db, rp string) (*meta.RetentionPolicyInfo, error) {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("boom!")
+	}
+	c := influxdb.Coordinator{MetaStore: ms}
+
+	pr := &influxdb.WritePointsRequest{
+		Database:         "mydb",
+		RetentionPolicy:  "myrp",
+		ConsistencyLevel: influxdb.ConsistencyLevelOne,
+	}
+	pr.AddPoint("cpu", 1.0, time.Now(), nil)
+
+	if err := c.Write(pr); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Coordinator.Write() failed: %v", err)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestCoordinatorEnsureShardMappingOne tests that a single point maps to
+// a single shard
+func TestCoordinatorEnsureShardMappingOne(t *testing.T) {
+	ms := test.MetaStore{}
+	rp := test.NewRetentionPolicy("myp", time.Hour, 3)
+
+	ms.RetentionPolicyFn = func(db, retentionPolicy string) (*meta.RetentionPolicyInfo, error) {
+		return rp, nil
+	}
+
+	ms.CreateShardGroupIfNotExistsFn = func(database, policy string, timestamp time.Time) (*meta.ShardGroupInfo, error) {
+		return &rp.ShardGroups[0], nil
+	}
+
+	c := influxdb.Coordinator{MetaStore: ms}
+	pr := &influxdb.WritePointsRequest{
+		Database:         "mydb",
+		RetentionPolicy:  "myrp",
+		ConsistencyLevel: influxdb.ConsistencyLevelOne,
+	}
+	pr.AddPoint("cpu", 1.0, time.Now(), nil)
+
+	var (
+		shardMappings influxdb.ShardMapping
+		err           error
+	)
+	if shardMappings, err = c.MapShards(pr); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("unexpected an error: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if exp := 1; len(shardMappings) != exp {
+		t.Errorf("MapShards() len mismatch. got %v, exp %v", len(shardMappings), exp)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestCoordinatorEnsureShardMappingMultiple tests that MapShards maps multiple points
+// across shard group boundaries to multiple shards
+func TestCoordinatorEnsureShardMappingMultiple(t *testing.T) {
+	ms := test.MetaStore{}
+	rp := test.NewRetentionPolicy("myp", time.Hour, 3)
+	test.AttachShardGroupInfo(rp, []uint64{1, 2, 3})
+	test.AttachShardGroupInfo(rp, []uint64{1, 2, 3})
+
+	ms.RetentionPolicyFn = func(db, retentionPolicy string) (*meta.RetentionPolicyInfo, error) {
+		return rp, nil
+	}
+
+	ms.CreateShardGroupIfNotExistsFn = func(database, policy string, timestamp time.Time) (*meta.ShardGroupInfo, error) {
+		for i, sg := range rp.ShardGroups {
+			if timestamp.Equal(sg.StartTime) || timestamp.After(sg.StartTime) && timestamp.Before(sg.EndTime) {
+				return &rp.ShardGroups[i], nil
+			}
+		}
+		panic("should not get here")
+	}
+
+	c := influxdb.Coordinator{MetaStore: ms}
+	pr := &influxdb.WritePointsRequest{
+		Database:         "mydb",
+		RetentionPolicy:  "myrp",
+		ConsistencyLevel: influxdb.ConsistencyLevelOne,
+	}
+
+	// Three points that range over the shardGroup duration (1h) and should map to two
+	// distinct shards
+	pr.AddPoint("cpu", 1.0, time.Unix(0, 0), nil)
+	pr.AddPoint("cpu", 2.0, time.Unix(0, 0).Add(time.Hour), nil)
+	pr.AddPoint("cpu", 3.0, time.Unix(0, 0).Add(time.Hour+time.Second), nil)
+
+	var (
+		shardMappings influxdb.ShardMapping
+		err           error
+	)
+	if shardMappings, err = c.MapShards(pr); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("unexpected an error: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if exp := 2; len(shardMappings) != exp {
+		t.Errorf("MapShards() len mismatch. got %v, exp %v", len(shardMappings), exp)
+	}
+
+	for _, points := range shardMappings {
+		// First shard shoud have 1 point w/ first point added
+		if len(points) == 1 && points[0].Time != pr.Points[0].Time {
+			t.Fatalf("MapShards() value mismatch. got %v, exp %v", points[0].Time, pr.Points[0].Time)
+		}
+
+		// Second shard shoud have the last two points added
+		if len(points) == 2 && points[0].Time != pr.Points[1].Time {
+			t.Fatalf("MapShards() value mismatch. got %v, exp %v", points[0].Time, pr.Points[1].Time)
+		}
+
+		if len(points) == 2 && points[1].Time != pr.Points[2].Time {
+			t.Fatalf("MapShards() value mismatch. got %v, exp %v", points[1].Time, pr.Points[2].Time)
+		}
+
+	}
+}
diff --git a/points.go b/points.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..bb82e75f00
--- /dev/null
+++ b/points.go
@@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
+package influxdb
+
+import (
+	"hash/fnv"
+	"sort"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// Point defines the values that will be written to the database
+type Point struct {
+	Name   string
+	Tags   Tags
+	Time   time.Time
+	Fields map[string]interface{}
+}
+
+func (p *Point) SeriesID() uint64 {
+
+	// <measurementName>|<tagKey>|<tagKey>|<tagValue>|<tagValue>
+	// cpu|host|servera
+	encodedTags := p.Tags.Marshal()
+	size := len(p.Name) + len(encodedTags)
+	if len(encodedTags) > 0 {
+		size++
+	}
+	b := make([]byte, 0, size)
+	b = append(b, p.Name...)
+	if len(encodedTags) > 0 {
+		b = append(b, '|')
+	}
+	b = append(b, encodedTags...)
+	// TODO pick a better hashing that guarantees uniqueness
+	// TODO create a cash for faster lookup
+	h := fnv.New64a()
+	h.Write(b)
+	sum := h.Sum64()
+	return sum
+}
+
+type Tags map[string]string
+
+func (t Tags) Marshal() []byte {
+	// Empty maps marshal to empty bytes.
+	if len(t) == 0 {
+		return nil
+	}
+
+	// Extract keys and determine final size.
+	sz := (len(t) * 2) - 1 // separators
+	keys := make([]string, 0, len(t))
+	for k, v := range t {
+		keys = append(keys, k)
+		sz += len(k) + len(v)
+	}
+	sort.Strings(keys)
+
+	// Generate marshaled bytes.
+	b := make([]byte, sz)
+	buf := b
+	for _, k := range keys {
+		copy(buf, k)
+		buf[len(k)] = '|'
+		buf = buf[len(k)+1:]
+	}
+	for i, k := range keys {
+		v := t[k]
+		copy(buf, v)
+		if i < len(keys)-1 {
+			buf[len(v)] = '|'
+			buf = buf[len(v)+1:]
+		}
+	}
+	return b
+}
diff --git a/points_test.go b/points_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..68db5b6d85
--- /dev/null
+++ b/points_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+package influxdb_test
+
+import (
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/influxdb/influxdb"
+)
+
+var tags = influxdb.Tags{"foo": "bar", "apple": "orange", "host": "serverA", "region": "uswest"}
+
+func TestMarshal(t *testing.T) {
+	got := tags.Marshal()
+	if exp := "apple|foo|host|region|orange|bar|serverA|uswest"; string(got) != exp {
+		t.Log("got: ", string(got))
+		t.Log("exp: ", exp)
+		t.Error("invalid match")
+	}
+}
+
+func BenchmarkMarshal(b *testing.B) {
+	for i := 0; i < b.N; i++ {
+		tags.Marshal()
+	}
+}
diff --git a/shard_test.go b/shard_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..2c80e84db4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/shard_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,45 @@
+package influxdb
+
+import (
+	"reflect"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+)
+
+func TestShardWrite(t *testing.T) {
+	// Enable when shard can convert a WritePointsRequest to stored data.
+	// Needs filed encoding/types saved on the shard
+	t.Skip("not implemented yet")
+
+	sh := &Shard{ID: 1}
+
+	pt := Point{
+		Name:   "cpu",
+		Tags:   map[string]string{"host": "server"},
+		Time:   time.Unix(1, 2),
+		Fields: map[string]interface{}{"value": 1.0},
+	}
+	pr := &WritePointsRequest{
+		Database:        "foo",
+		RetentionPolicy: "default",
+		Points: []Point{
+			pt},
+	}
+
+	if err := sh.Write(pr); err != nil {
+		t.Errorf("LocalWriter.Write() failed: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	p, err := sh.Read(pt.Time)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("LocalWriter.Read() failed: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if exp := 1; len(p) != exp {
+		t.Fatalf("LocalWriter.Read() points len mismatch. got %v, exp %v", len(p), exp)
+	}
+
+	if !reflect.DeepEqual(p[0], pt) {
+		t.Fatalf("LocalWriter.Read() point mismatch. got %v, exp %v", p[0], pt)
+	}
+}
diff --git a/test/meta_store.go b/test/meta_store.go
index 1ea5f0e684..06e0f65239 100644
--- a/test/meta_store.go
+++ b/test/meta_store.go
@@ -14,11 +14,16 @@ var (
 )
 
 type MetaStore struct {
+<<<<<<< HEAD
 	OpenFn  func(path string) error
 	CloseFn func() error
 
 	CreateContinuousQueryFn func(query string) (*meta.ContinuousQueryInfo, error)
 	DropContinuousQueryFn   func(query string) error
+=======
+	CreateContinuousQueryFn func(q *influxql.CreateContinuousQueryStatement) (*meta.ContinuousQueryInfo, error)
+	DropContinuousQueryFn   func(q *influxql.DropContinuousQueryStatement) error
+>>>>>>> Allow coordinator to map points to multiple shards
 
 	NodeFn       func(id uint64) (*meta.NodeInfo, error)
 	NodeByHostFn func(host string) (*meta.NodeInfo, error)
@@ -48,6 +53,7 @@ type MetaStore struct {
 	SetPrivilegeFn func(p influxql.Privilege, username string, dbname string) error
 }
 
+<<<<<<< HEAD
 func (m MetaStore) Open(path string) error {
 	return m.OpenFn(path)
 }
@@ -62,6 +68,14 @@ func (m MetaStore) CreateContinuousQuery(query string) (*meta.ContinuousQueryInf
 
 func (m MetaStore) DropContinuousQuery(query string) error {
 	return m.DropContinuousQueryFn(query)
+=======
+func (m MetaStore) CreateContinuousQuery(q *influxql.CreateContinuousQueryStatement) (*meta.ContinuousQueryInfo, error) {
+	return m.CreateContinuousQueryFn(q)
+}
+
+func (m MetaStore) DropContinuousQuery(q *influxql.DropContinuousQueryStatement) error {
+	return m.DropContinuousQueryFn(q)
+>>>>>>> Allow coordinator to map points to multiple shards
 }
 
 func (m MetaStore) Node(id uint64) (*meta.NodeInfo, error) {