Application-driven network management with ProtoRINA

Traditional network management is tied to the TCP/IP architecture, thus it inherits its many limitations, e.g., static management and one-size-fits-all structure. Additionally there is no unified framework for application management, and service (application) providers have to rely on their own ad-hoc mechanisms to manage their application services. The Recursive InterNetwork Architecture (RINA) is our solution to achieve better network management. RINA provides a unified framework for application-driven network management along with built-in mechanisms (including registration, authentication, enrollment, addressing, etc.), and it allows the dynamic formation of secure communication containers for service providers in support of various requirements. In this paper, we focus on how application-driven network management can be achieved over the GENI testbed using ProtoRINA, a user-space prototype of RINA. We demonstrate how video can be efficiently multicast to many clients on demand by dynamically creating a delivery tree. Under RINA, multicast can be enabled through a secure communication container that is dynamically formed to support video transport either through application proxies or via relay IPC processes. Experimental results over the GENI testbed show that application-driven network management enabled by ProtoRINA can achieve better network and application performance.National Science Foundation (NSF grant CNS-0963974)

Multi-layer virtual transport network management

Nowadays there is an increasing need for a general paradigm which can simplify network management and further enable network innovations. Software Defined Networking (SDN) is an efficient way to make the network programmable and reduce management complexity, however it is plagued with limitations inherited from the legacy Internet (TCP/IP) architecture. In this paper, in response to limitations of current Software Defined Networking (SDN) management solutions, we propose a recursive approach to enterprise network management, where network management is done through managing various Virtual Transport Networks (VTNs) over different scopes (i.e., regions of operation). Different from the traditional virtual network model which mainly focuses on routing/tunneling, our VTN provides communication service with explicit Quality-of-Service (QoS) support for applications via transport flows, and it involves all mechanisms (e.g., addressing, routing, error and flow control, resource allocation) needed to support such transport flows. Based on this approach, we design and implement a management architecture, which recurses the same VTN-based management mechanism for enterprise network management. Our experimental results show that our management architecture achieves better performance.National Science Foundation awards: CNS-0963974 and CNS-1346688

Multi-layer virtual transport network design and management

Nowadays there is an increasing need for a general paradigm that can simplify network management and further enable network innovations. Software Defined Networking (SDN) is an efficient way to make the network programmable and reduce management complexity, however it is plagued with limitations inherited from the legacy Internet (TCP/IP) architecture. On the other hand, service overlay networks and virtual networks are widely used to overcome deficiencies of the Internet. However, most overlay/virtual networks are single-layered and lack dynamic scope management. Furthermore, how to solve the joint problem of designing and mapping the overlay/virtual network requests for better application and network performance remains an understudied area. In this thesis, in response to limitations of current SDN management solutions and of the traditional single-layer overlay/virtual network design, we propose a recursive approach to enterprise network management, where network management is done through managing various Virtual Transport Networks (VTNs) over different scopes (i.e., regions of operation). Different from the traditional overlay/virtual network model which mainly focuses on routing/tunneling, our VTN approach provides communication service with explicit Quality-of-Service (QoS) support for applications via transport flows, i.e., it involves all mechanisms (e.g., addressing, routing, error and flow control, resource allocation) needed to meet application requirements. Our approach inherently provides a multi-layer solution for overlay/virtual network design. The contributions of this thesis are threefold: (1) we propose a novel VTN-based management approach to enterprise network management; (2) we develop a framework for multi-layer VTN design and instantiate it to meet specific application and network goals; and (3) we design and prototype a VTN-based management architecture. Our simulation and experimental results demonstrate the flexibility of our VTN-based management approach and its performance advantages

Development and standardization of an embedded Linux based triple-play IP settop box

Thesis (Master)--Izmir Institute of Technology, Electronics and Communication Engineering, Izmir, 2007Includes bibliographical references (leaves: 46-48)Text in English; Abstract: Turkish and Englishix, 57 leavesWith the recent enhancements to the delivery of IP services and of the video codecs such as h.264, transmission of television through IP-based communication systems has been a viable option. An IP settop box (IPSTB) constructs a bridge between a television set and a broadband IP network such as DSL, cable modem, powerline or wireless broadband. IPSTB brings new challenges for the system designers, especially in the areas of inherently organized home networking systems, protocols, and architectures. Future IPSTB products are candidate to converge the information and entertainment technologies. This thesis suggests newly developed device and service discovery methods for the design of an IPSTB software structure that is compatible with the Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) audio video (AV) device descriptions. At the design process, it suggests optimized communication schemes between the servers that are in the control of service providers, and the consumer IPSTBs. As a newly developed technology, since there is not any standardization for most parts of the overall IPTV system, this thesis takes proven mechanisms as basis and adapts them to the overall design that consists of the hardware drivers, middleware, and the additional programs which helps the middleware to handle the external components of the system connected via USB or serial interfaces. Being an innovative idea, we have used a control system called Virtual Bus Manager so as to communicate between the aforementioned system components. Some system components such as web browser is based on the X Windows architecture, so cross compiling the X system for the embedded platform has also been a challenge for the feasibility of the final design. Being the second part of the Triple-Play system, Voice over IP application has also been included and based on the compilation of open source software for the corresponding embedded system. Finally, the web browser itself has been based on the popular Gecko web-core that is derived from Firefox

A Distance-Heuristic Tree Building Approach in Application Layer Multicast

In the application layer multicast (ALM), clustering nearby nodes can effectively improve the multicast performance. However, it is difficult for the ALM solution to quickly and accurately position the newcomer, because group members have no direct knowledge of underlying network topology. Additionally, ALM delivery trees with different performances are built when group members join the group in different join sequences. To alleviate the above problems, this paper proposes a distance-heuristic tree building protocol (called DHTB). DHTB uses our proposed distance-constrained cluster model and close-member-first-receive (CF) rule. In the model, most nearby nodes are grouped into some distance-constrained clusters, with little cluster organization and maintenance overhead. The CF rule arranges or rearranges the locations of group members according to related distances, and effectively positions the newcomer with the help of on-demand landmarks. Both the distance-constrained cluster model and CF rule are distance-heuristic. Therefore DHTB can alleviate the join sequence problem, and build the ALM tree with desirable performance

Building Internet caching systems for streaming media delivery

The proxy has been widely and successfully used to cache the static Web objects fetched by a client so that the subsequent clients requesting the same Web objects can be served directly from the proxy instead of other sources faraway, thus reducing the server\u27s load, the network traffic and the client response time. However, with the dramatic increase of streaming media objects emerging on the Internet, the existing proxy cannot efficiently deliver them due to their large sizes and client real time requirements.;In this dissertation, we design, implement, and evaluate cost-effective and high performance proxy-based Internet caching systems for streaming media delivery. Addressing the conflicting performance objectives for streaming media delivery, we first propose an efficient segment-based streaming media proxy system model. This model has guided us to design a practical streaming proxy, called Hyper-Proxy, aiming at delivering the streaming media data to clients with minimum playback jitter and a small startup latency, while achieving high caching performance. Second, we have implemented Hyper-Proxy by leveraging the existing Internet infrastructure. Hyper-Proxy enables the streaming service on the common Web servers. The evaluation of Hyper-Proxy on the global Internet environment and the local network environment shows it can provide satisfying streaming performance to clients while maintaining a good cache performance. Finally, to further improve the streaming delivery efficiency, we propose a group of the Shared Running Buffers (SRB) based proxy caching techniques to effectively utilize proxy\u27s memory. SRB algorithms can significantly reduce the media server/proxy\u27s load and network traffic and relieve the bottlenecks of the disk bandwidth and the network bandwidth.;The contributions of this dissertation are threefold: (1) we have studied several critical performance trade-offs and provided insights into Internet media content caching and delivery. Our understanding further leads us to establish an effective streaming system optimization model; (2) we have designed and evaluated several efficient algorithms to support Internet streaming content delivery, including segment caching, segment prefetching, and memory locality exploitation for streaming; (3) having addressed several system challenges, we have successfully implemented a real streaming proxy system and deployed it in a large industrial enterprise

Walkabout : an asynchronous messaging architecture for mobile devices

Modern mobile devices are prolific producers and consumers of digital data, and wireless networking capabilities enable them to transfer their data over the Internet while moving. Applications running on these devices may perform transfers to upload data for backup or distribution, or to download new content on demand. Unfortunately, the limited connectivity that mobile devices experience can make these transfers slow and impractical as the amount of data increases. This thesis argues that asynchronous messaging supported by local proxies can improve the transfer capabilities of mobile devices, making it practical for them to participate in large Internet transfers. The design of the Walkabout architecture follows this approach: proxies form store-and-forward overlay networks to deliver messages asynchronously across the Internet on behalf of devices. A mobile device uploads a message to a local proxy at rapid speed, and the overlay delivers it to one or more destination devices, caching the message until each one is able to retrieve it from a local proxy. A device is able to partially upload or download a message whenever it has network connectivity, and can resume this transfer at any proxy if interrupted through disconnection. Simulation results show that Walkabout provides better throughput for mobile devices than is possible under existing methods, for a range of movement patterns. Upload and end-to-end to transfer speeds are always high when the device sending the message is mobile. In the basic Walkabout model, a message sent to a mobile device that is repeatedly moving between a small selection of connection points experiences high download and end-to-end transfer speeds, but these speeds fall as the number of connection points grows. Pre-emptive message delivery extensions improve this situation, making fast end-to-end transfers and device downloads possible under any pattern of movement. This thesis describes the design and evaluation of Walkabout, with both practical implementation and extensive simulation under real-world scenarios