Performance Analysis of IPv6 Transition Mechanisms over MPLS

 Exhaustion of current version of Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) addresses initiated development of next-generation Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6). IPv6 is acknowledged to provide more address space, better address design, and greater security; however, IPv6 and IPv4 are not fully compatible. For the two protocols to coexist, various IPv6 transition mechanisms have been developed. This research will analyze a series of IPv6 transition mechanisms over the Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) backbone using a simulation tool (OPNET) and will evaluate and compare their performances. The analysis will include comparing the end-to-end delay, jitter, and throughput performance metrics using tunneling mechanisms, specifically Manual Tunnel, Generic Routing Encapsulation (GRE) Tunnel, Automatic IPv4-Compatible Tunnel, and 6to4 Tunnel between Customer Edge (CE)-to-CE routers and between Provider Edge (PE)-to-PE routers. The results are then compared against 6PE, Native IPv6, and Dual Stack, all using the MPLS backbone. The traffic generated for this comparison are database access, email, File Transfer, File Print, Telnet, Video Conferencing over IP, Voice over IP, Web Browsing, and Remote Login. A statistical analysis is performed to compare the performance metrics of these mechanisms to evaluate any statistically-significant differences among them. The main objective of this research is to rank the aforementioned IPv6 transition mechanism and identify the superior mechanism(s) that offer lowest delay, lowest jitter, and highest throughput

Analysis of BGP4 Peering Establishment Time on IPv6 Connection over 6PE and 6VPE

Nowadays, because of the exhaustion of IPv4 address space, IPv6 is increasingly being used on enterprise networks. Usually, an enterprise uses an MPLS network from a Service Provider to interconnect their IPv4 network sites. Although MPLS Service Providers mostly built their MPLS backbone based on IPv4, their MPLS backbone have the capability to transport IPv6 traffic of their customers. Two methods can be used by the MPLS Service Provider to connect its customer IPv6 network, which is 6PE (IPv6 Provider Edge Routers) and 6VPE (IPv6 VPN Provider Edge Router). Enterprises generally use a BGP routing protocol to interconnect their networks, and they need to use the best method that suits their requirement from their MPLS Service Provider to transport their IPv6 traffic (including the BGP protocol). The MPLS Service Providers need to consider the advantages and disadvantages of both methods. This paper illustrates the analysis of BGP4 (current BGP version) IPv6 peering establishment time over 6PE and 6VPE methods. The MPLS Service Providers can use the analysis results of this study to determine the suited method to interconnect its customers' IPv6 networks

Performance Enhancement of Quality of Service of IP Mobility for Real-Time Traffic

Future Internet traffic will be huge both for real time and non-real time traffic in an IP mobility environment due to proliferation of mobile nodes. MIPv4 is one of IETF defined IP mobility protocols but with QoS issues like end-to-end delay due to triangular routing, jitter and throughput. OPNET Modeler 14.5 was used in this research to simulate MIPv4 based WiMax network combining MPLS and Diffserv to improve upon the service quality of the network. The end-to-end delay for 20 mobile nodes (MN) was reduced considerably to less than 0.09 second for VoIP traffic and 0.7 second for video conferencing. Jitter was virtually eliminated and good improvement on service throughput. With this improvement in MIPv4 network performance, it can be integrated with MIPv6 network for better future Internet service delivery

A Survey on the Contributions of Software-Defined Networking to Traffic Engineering

Since the appearance of OpenFlow back in 2008, software-defined networking (SDN) has gained momentum. Although there are some discrepancies between the standards developing organizations working with SDN about what SDN is and how it is defined, they all outline traffic engineering (TE) as a key application. One of the most common objectives of TE is the congestion minimization, where techniques such as traffic splitting among multiple paths or advanced reservation systems are used. In such a scenario, this manuscript surveys the role of a comprehensive list of SDN protocols in TE solutions, in order to assess how these protocols can benefit TE. The SDN protocols have been categorized using the SDN architecture proposed by the open networking foundation, which differentiates among data-controller plane interfaces, application-controller plane interfaces, and management interfaces, in order to state how the interface type in which they operate influences TE. In addition, the impact of the SDN protocols on TE has been evaluated by comparing them with the path computation element (PCE)-based architecture. The PCE-based architecture has been selected to measure the impact of SDN on TE because it is the most novel TE architecture until the date, and because it already defines a set of metrics to measure the performance of TE solutions. We conclude that using the three types of interfaces simultaneously will result in more powerful and enhanced TE solutions, since they benefit TE in complementary ways.European Commission through the Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme (GN4) under Grant 691567 Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness under the Secure Deployment of Services Over SDN and NFV-based Networks Project S&NSEC under Grant TEC2013-47960-C4-3-

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

End user privacy and policy-based networking

Are privacy concerns over end user surveillance by network operators such as AT&T and Verizon, and by “edge providers” such as Google and Amazon, being dangerously overshadowed by the predominant emphasis on government surveillance? Quite possibly so, Professor Paterson concludes, after reviewing currently-used packet analysis technologies and their advertised capabilities. Paterson concludes that the problem faced by privacy and public interest advocates is that no one has a truly comprehensive grasp of how widely network operators have deployed such tools, what information is collected, or how it is put to use. Paterson asserts that the potential risks call for additional vigorous research in this area

The internet: A global telecommunications solution?

The provision and support of new distributed multimedia services are of prime concern for telecommunications operators and suppliers. Clearly, the potential of the latest Internet protocols to contribute communications components is of considerable interest to them. In this article we first review some of the new types of application and their requirements, and identify the need to support applications that have strict QoS requirements, the so-called critical applications. We review two proposals for enhancing the Internet service architecture. In addition to the integrated services work of the IETF, we look at the more recent proposals for differentiated services in the Internet. We then individually review recent protocol developments proposed to improve the Internet, and to support real-time and multimedia communications. These are IPv6 (the new version of the Internet Protocol), Resource reSerVation Protocol, and Multiprotocol Label Switching, respectively. In each case, we attempt to provide critical reviews in order to assess their suitability for this purpose. Finally, we indicate what the basis of the future infrastructure might be in order to support the full variety of application requirements

Mobile-IP ad-hoc network MPLS-based with QoS support.

The support for Quality of Service (QoS) is the main focus of this thesis. Major issues and challenges for Mobile-IP Ad-Hoc Networks (MANETs) to support QoS in a multi-layer manner are considered discussed and investigated through simulation setups. Different parameters contributing to the subjective measures of QoS have been considered and consequently, appropriate testbeds were formed to measure these parameters and compare them to other schemes to check for superiority. These parameters are: Maximum Round-Trip Delay (MRTD), Minimum Bandwidth Guaranteed (MBG), Bit Error Rate (BER), Packet Loss Ratio (PER), End-To-End Delay (ETED), and Packet Drop Ratio (PDR) to name a few. For network simulations, NS-II (Network Simulator Version II) and OPNET simulation software systems were used.Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Paper copy at Leddy Library: Theses & Major Papers - Basement, West Bldg. / Call Number: Thesis2005 .A355. Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 44-03, page: 1444. Thesis (M.Sc.)--University of Windsor (Canada), 2005

Integrating Voice over IP Solution in IPv6 and IPv4 Networks to Increase Employee Productivity: A Case Study of Cameroon Telecommunications (Camtel), North-West

Telecommunications organizations have to follow the rapid innovation of technology if they want to face challenges raised by competition. The challenge to respond to the huge market demand of updated products and services from customers requires that the organization‘s working environment be equipped with tools and communication facilities that contribute to ameliorating productivity. Cameroon Telecommunications (Camtel) is facing a digital telephony and Internet Protocol strategic management challenge. Successful implementation cannot be achieved if the employees are still depending on the ageing public switched telephone network (PSTN) as their primary communication system, despite the frequent loss of dial tone experience in a day which can last up to a week, with serious repercussions on business activities and revenues. This study is designed to provide a solution to the telecommunications challenge. The fundamental question is how to integrate a digital telephony system that will provide telephony services in the existing IPv4 data network while prioritizing IPv6 traffic forwarding. This study proposes and implements solutions that integrate a Voice over IP solution with IPv6 as an alternative communication system that relies on the existing IPv4 data network. VoIP is deemed as one of the driving forces behind the adoption of IPv6. The purpose is to offer to workers an option that will free them from the poor Quality of Service (QoS) of their existing PSTN based solution, hopefully enhancing the overall productivity. This paper follows two research methodologies: Qualitative Research in Applied Situations and Engineering design process. The first part of this study reports the results of the evaluation of how much such a solution can enhance workers’ productivity. As it is important to provide an environment where IPv4 and IPv6 networks and applications/devices can interoperate in the context of VoIP; the second part describes practically a simulation environment where various configurations of network entities are done following a Dual-Stack transition approach. Document and records were used to gather information related to the structure, operations, and topological update of the Camtel’s existing IP data network. The findings demonstrated that VoIP can be an effective communication solution for Camtel and its implementation with IPv6 will be preferable. However, for this to be efficient there must be a provision of sufficient bandwidth and usage of types of equipment and transmission mediums that minimizes processing and propagation delays. Findings also reveal that better productivity will be achieved if workers are fully trained for the exploitation. This research article tries to highlight, discuss a required transition roadmap and extend the local knowledge and practice on IPv6. Future expansion of this research work will consist of deploying Dual-Stack VoIP in the remaining 9 regional offices for full integration in the corporate communication system of Camtel