New Challenges in Quality of Services Control Architectures in Next Generation Networks

A mesura que Internet i les xarxes IP s'han anat integrant dins la societat i les corporacions, han anat creixent les expectatives de nous serveis convergents així com les expectatives de qualitat en les comunicacions. Les Next Generation Networks (NGN) donen resposta a les noves necessitats i representen el nou paradigma d'Internet a partir de la convergència IP. Un dels aspectes menys desenvolupats de les NGN és el control de la Qualitat del Servei (QoS), especialment crític en les comunicacions multimèdia a través de xarxes heterogènies i/o de diferents operadors. A més a més, les NGN incorporen nativament el protocol IPv6 que, malgrat les deficiències i esgotament d'adreces IPv4, encara no ha tingut l'impuls definitiu.Aquesta tesi està enfocada des d'un punt de vista pràctic. Així doncs, per tal de poder fer recerca sobre xarxes de proves (o testbeds) que suportin IPv6 amb garanties de funcionament, es fa un estudi en profunditat del protocol IPv6, del seu grau d'implementació i dels tests de conformància i interoperabilitat existents que avaluen la qualitat d'aquestes implementacions. A continuació s'avalua la qualitat de cinc sistemes operatius que suporten IPv6 mitjançant un test de conformància i s'implementa el testbed IPv6 bàsic, a partir del qual es farà la recerca, amb la implementació que ofereix més garanties.El QoS Broker és l'aportació principal d'aquesta tesi: un marc integrat que inclou un sistema automatitzat per gestionar el control de la QoS a través de sistemes multi-domini/multi-operador seguint les recomanacions de les NGN. El sistema automatitza els mecanismes associats a la configuració de la QoS dins d'un mateix domini (sistema autònom) mitjançant la gestió basada en polítiques de QoS i automatitza la negociació dinàmica de QoS entre QoS Brokers de diferents dominis, de forma que permet garantir QoS extrem-extrem sense fissures. Aquesta arquitectura es valida sobre un testbed de proves multi-domini que utilitza el mecanisme DiffServ de QoS i suporta IPv6.L'arquitectura definida en les NGN permet gestionar la QoS tant a nivell 3 (IP) com a nivell 2 (Ethernet, WiFi, etc.) de forma que permet gestionar també xarxes PLC. Aquesta tesi proposa una aproximació teòrica per aplicar aquesta arquitectura de control, mitjançant un QoS Broker, a les noves xarxes PLC que s'estan acabant d'estandarditzar, i discuteix les possibilitats d'aplicació sobre les futures xarxes de comunicació de les Smart Grids.Finalment, s'integra en el QoS Broker un mòdul per gestionar l'enginyeria del tràfic optimitzant els dominis mitjançant tècniques de intel·ligència artificial. La validació en simulacions i sobre un testbed amb routers Cisco demostra que els algorismes genètics híbrids són una opció eficaç en aquest camp.En general, les observacions i avenços assolits en aquesta tesi contribueixen a augmentar la comprensió del funcionament de la QoS en les NGN i a preparar aquests sistemes per afrontar problemes del món real de gran complexitat.A medida que Internet y las redes IP se han ido integrando dentro de la sociedad y las corporaciones, han ido creciendo las expectativas de nuevos servicios convergentes así como las expectativas de calidad en las comunicaciones. Las Next Generation Networks (NGN) dan respuesta a las nuevas necesidades y representan el nuevo paradigma de Internet a partir de la convergencia IP. Uno de los aspectos menos desarrollados de las NGN es el control de la Calidad del Servicio (QoS), especialmente crítico en las comunicaciones multimedia a través de redes heterogéneas y/o de diferentes operadores. Además, las NGN incorporan nativamente el protocolo IPv6 que, a pesar de las deficiencias y agotamiento de direcciones IPv4, aún no ha tenido el impulso definitivo.Esta tesis está enfocada desde un punto de vista práctico. Así pues, con tal de poder hacer investigación sobre redes de prueba (o testbeds) que suporten IPv6 con garantías de funcionamiento, se hace un estudio en profundidad del protocolo IPv6, de su grado de implementación y de los tests de conformancia e interoperabilidad existentes que evalúan la calidad de estas implementaciones. A continuación se evalua la calidad de cinco sistemas operativos que soportan IPv6 mediante un test de conformancia y se implementa el testbed IPv6 básico, a partir del cual se realizará la investigación, con la implementación que ofrece más garantías.El QoS Broker es la aportación principal de esta tesis: un marco integrado que incluye un sistema automatitzado para gestionar el control de la QoS a través de sistemas multi-dominio/multi-operador siguiendo las recomendaciones de las NGN. El sistema automatiza los mecanismos asociados a la configuración de la QoS dentro de un mismo dominio (sistema autónomo) mediante la gestión basada en políticas de QoS y automatiza la negociación dinámica de QoS entre QoS brokers de diferentes dominios, de forma que permite garantizar QoS extremo-extremo sin fisuras. Esta arquitectura se valida sobre un testbed de pruebas multi-dominio que utiliza el mecanismo DiffServ de QoS y soporta IPv6. La arquitectura definida en las NGN permite gestionar la QoS tanto a nivel 3 (IP) o como a nivel 2 (Ethernet, WiFi, etc.) de forma que permite gestionar también redes PLC. Esta tesis propone una aproximación teórica para aplicar esta arquitectura de control, mediante un QoS Broker, a las noves redes PLC que se están acabando de estandardizar, y discute las posibilidades de aplicación sobre las futuras redes de comunicación de las Smart Grids.Finalmente, se integra en el QoS Broker un módulo para gestionar la ingeniería del tráfico optimizando los dominios mediante técnicas de inteligencia artificial. La validación en simulaciones y sobre un testbed con routers Cisco demuestra que los algoritmos genéticos híbridos son una opción eficaz en este campo.En general, las observaciones y avances i avances alcanzados en esta tesis contribuyen a augmentar la comprensión del funcionamiento de la QoS en las NGN y en preparar estos sistemas para afrontar problemas del mundo real de gran complejidad.The steady growth of Internet along with the IP networks and their integration into society and corporations has brought with it increased expectations of new converged services as well as greater demands on quality in communications. The Next Generation Networks (NGNs) respond to these new needs and represent the new Internet paradigm from the IP convergence. One of the least developed aspects in the NGNs is the Quality of Service (QoS) control, which is especially critical in the multimedia communication through heterogeneous networks and/or different operators. Furthermore, the NGNs natively incorporate the IPv6 protocol which, despite its shortcomings and the depletion of IPv4 addresses has not been boosted yet.This thesis has been developed with a practical focus. Therefore, with the aim of carrying out research over testbeds supporting the IPv6 with performance guarantees, an in-depth study of the IPv6 protocol development has been conducted and its degree of implementation and the existing conformance and interoperability tests that evaluate these implementations have been studied. Next, the quality of five implementations has been evaluated through a conformance test and the basic IPv6 testbed has been implemented, from which the research will be carried out. The QoS Broker is the main contribution to this thesis: an integrated framework including an automated system for QoS control management through multi-domain/multi-operator systems according to NGN recommendations. The system automates the mechanisms associated to the QoS configuration inside the same domain (autonomous system) through policy-based management and automates the QoS dynamic negotiation between peer QoS Brokers belonging to different domains, so it allows the guarantee of seamless end-to-end QoS. This architecture is validated over a multi-domain testbed which uses the QoS DiffServ mechanism and supports IPv6.The architecture defined in the NGN allows QoS management at level 3 (IP) as well as at level 2 (e.g. Ethernet, WiFi) so it also facilitates the management of PLC networks. Through the use of a QoS Broker, this thesis proposes a theoretical approach for applying this control architecture to the newly standardized PLC networks, and discusses the possibilities of applying it over the future communication networks of the Smart Grids.Finally, a module for managing traffic engineering which optimizes the network domains through artificial intelligence techniques is integrated in the QoS Broker. The validations by simulations and over a Cisco router testbed demonstrate that hybrid genetic algorithms are an effective option in this area.Overall, the advances and key insights provided in this thesis help advance our understanding of QoS functioning in the NGNs and prepare these systems to face increasingly complex problems, which abound in current industrial and scientific applications

Tradable Service Level Agreements to Manage Network Resources for Streaming Internet Services

In recent years, supply and demand of streaming applications via the Internet (e.g., video-on-demand, live TV coverage, video conferencing) have increased. The idea behind streaming Internet services is to avoid a time-consuming download, and instead, make the user view streaming content in real-time without delay. However, today’s Internet traffic is routed on a best effort basis without any support for guaranteed service provisioning. Missing traffic prioritization mechanisms to guarantee Quality of Service (QoS) and, additionally, the fact that traffic passes several Internet Service Providers (ISP) during transmission is very disadvantageous for the performance of streaming Internet services. Therefore, a solution is presented to enhance existing protocols with QoS mechanisms. Service Level Agreements (SLA) and Operational Level Agreements (OLA) between service providers and service customers are proposed to enforce service guarantees on an economic base and they serve ISPs and Content Service Providers (CSP) to efficiently manage network resources. The concatenation of such contractual agreements between ISPs enables end-to-end-based service provisioning with QoS assurance. A contracting protocol is introduced to control the settlement of contracts and user demands. With the help of service brokers, SLAs could even be traded in a marketplace established for efficient use of limited resources

EMERGE - ESnet/MREN Regional Science Grid Experimental NGI Testbed

This document is the final report on the EMERGE Science Grid testbed research project from the perspective of the International Center for Advanced Internet Research (iCAIR) at Northwestern University, which was a subcontractor to this UIC project. This report is a compilation of information gathered from a variety of materials related to this project produced by multiple EMERGE participants, especially those at Electronic Visualization Lab (EVL) at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), Argonne National Lab and iCAIR. The EMERGE Science Grid project was managed by Tom DeFanti, PI from EVL at UIC

Quality Of Service Enhancement In Ip Based Networks Using Diffserv

Tez (Yüksek Lisans) -- İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi, Fen Bilimleri Enstitüsü, 2003Thesis (M.Sc.) -- İstanbul Technical University, Institute of Science and Technology, 2003Bu çalışmada, Diffserv mimarisi ile internet üzerinde servis kalitesi sağlama tartışılmıştır. Son on yılda IP tabanlı internette servis kalitesi sağlanamıyordu. İnternette bugün sağlanabilen tek servis ‘Best Effort (BE)’ adı verilen servistir. Yani, ağ, herhangi bir paketi hedefine ulaştırırken mümkün olan en verimli yolu kullanır ancak herhangi bir garanti ya da kaynak ayırımı yapmaz. Başka bir deyişle, trafik mümkün olduğu kadar hızlı ve herhangi bir zaman sınırı ya da miktar açısından garanti verilmeden işlenir. İnternetin ticari bir yapıya bürünmesiyle ‘Servis Kalitesi’ sağlanma ihtiyacı daha da artmıştır. Bu ihtiyaç farklı mimarilerin doğmasına yol açmıştır: IntServ ve DiffServ olmak üzere.Tez çalışmasında DiffServ mimarisi problem ve avantajlarıyla ele alınmıştır. Son bölümde ise NS2 ağ simulasyon yazılımı kullanılarak DiffServ implementasyonları yapılmış sonuçları karşılaştırmalı olarak verilmiştir.In this study improving Quality of Service (QoS) on the Internet with DiffServ architecture is discussed. Within the past decade, it is certainly not support for Quality of Service (QoS) over the IP-based ubiquitous Internet. The Internet as it stands today only support one service class called -Best-Effort (BE) Service. The network would make an earnest attempt to deliver packets to their destinations but with no guarantees and/or special resources allocated for any of the packets. With another words, traffic is processed as quickly as possible but there is no guarantee as to timeliness or actual delivery or even how much can be delivered (i.e. throughput). With the rapid transformation of the Internet into a commercial infrastructure, demands for Quality of Service (QoS) have rapidly developed. This need was resulted to different architectures: IntServ and DiffServ. In the study some DiffServ implementations are discussed with their problems and gains. At the last section with using NS2 simulation programming language some DiffServ implementations are given with the compared results.Yüksek LisansM.Sc

Advanced Signaling Support for IP-based Networks

This work develops a set of advanced signaling concepts for IP-based networks. It proposes a design for secure and authentic signaling and provides QoS signaling support for mobile users. Furthermore, this work develops methods which allow for scalable QoS signaling by realizing QoS-based group communication mechanisms and through aggregation of resource reservations

Simulation and analysis of network traffic for efficient and reliable information transfer

With the growing commercial importance of the Internet and the development of new real-time, connection-oriented services like IP-telephony and electronic commerce resilience is becoming a key issue in the design of TP-based networks. Two emerging technologies, which can accomplish the task of efficient information transfer, are Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) and Differentiated Services. A main benefit of MPLS is the ability to introduce traffic-engineering concepts due to its connection-oriented characteristic. With MPLS it is possible to assign different paths for packets through the network. Differentiated services divides traffic into different classes and treat them differently, especially when there is a shortage of network resources. In this thesis, a framework was proposed to integrate the above two technologies and its performance in providing load balancing and improving QoS was evaluated. Simulation and analysis of this framework demonstrated that the combination of MPLS and Differentiated services is a powerful tool for QoS provisioning in IP networks

A Simulation study of traffic conditioner performance

A traffic conditioner is an element of the Differentiated Services architecture. This architecture is used to regulate quality of service in computer networks. Five traffic conditioners were selected for the study. These include the token bucket marker and four conditioners described in RFCs. The contribution of this dissertation is two-fold. Firstly, it presents process algebra models of the five identified traffic conditioners. These models provide succinct descriptions of the conditioners thereby highlighting essential features. The models are, however, not intended for model checking purposes, but rather serve as a convenient pedagogical device. The second and main contribution of the dissertation is a simulation study to investigate the relative performance of the five traffic conditioners across a range of simulated scenarios in which traffic patterns and subscription levels are varied in a fixed network topology. Two performance measures—TargetRatio and GreenRatio—are defined, justified, and used to compare the traffic conditioners. The GreenRatio measure was found to be more discriminating than the TargetRatio measure. A variant of the GreenRatio measure was used to further illuminate the differences between conditioners. The simulation results suggest that the performance of the conditioners are sensitive to parameter values such as token bucket size and that bursty traffic patterns are particularly sensitive to these parameters. Under such bursty conditions, these parameters should be chosen with care.Dissertation (MSc (Computer Science))--University of Pretoria, 2007.Computer Scienceunrestricte