Middleware for managing a large, heterogeneous programmable network

The links between BTexact Technologies and the Department of Computing Science at University College London are becomingincreasingly beneficial for the development of the middleware area for the management of programmable networks. This paperdescribes the work that has been done to date, and outlines the plans for future research

SDN management layer: design requirements and future direction

Computer networks are becoming more and more complex and difficult to manage. The research community has been expending a lot of efforts to come up with a general management paradigm that is able to hide the details of the physical infrastructure and enable flexible network management. Software Defined Networking (SDN) is such a paradigm that simplifies network management and enables network innovations. In this survey paper, by reviewing existing SDN management layers (platforms), we identify the general common management architecture for SDN networks, and further identify the design requirements of the management layer that is at the core of the architecture. We also point out open issues and weaknesses of existing SDN management layers. We conclude with a promising future direction for improving the SDN management layer.This work is supported in part by the National Science Foundation (NSF grant CNS-0963974)

End-user traffic policing for QoS assurance in polyservice RINA networks

Looking at the ever-increasing amount of heterogeneous distributed applications supported on current data transport networks, it seems evident that best-effort packet delivery falls short to supply their actual needs. Multiple approaches to Quality of Service (QoS) differentiation have been proposed over the years, but their usage has always been hindered by the rigidness of the TCP/IP-based Internet model, which does not even allow for applications to express their QoS needs to the underlying network. In this context, the Recursive InterNetwork Architecture (RINA) has appeared as a clean-slate network architecture aiming to replace the current Internet based on TCP/IP. RINA provides a well-defined QoS support across layers, with standard means for layers to inform of the different QoS guarantees that they can support. Besides, applications and other processes can express their flow requirements, including different QoS-related measures, like delay and jitter, drop probability or average traffic usage. Greedy end-users, however, tend to request the highest quality for their flows, forcing providers to apply intelligent data rate limitation procedures at the edge of their networks. In this work, we propose a new rate limiting policy that, instead of enforcing limits on a per QoS class basis, imposes limits on several independent QoS dimensions. This offers a flexible traffic control to RINA network providers, while enabling end-users freely managing their leased resources. The performance of the proposed policy is assessed in an experimental RINA network test-bed and its performance compared against other policies, either RINA-specific or adopted from TCP/IP. Results show that the proposed policy achieves an effective traffic control for high QoS traffic classes, while also letting lower QoS classes to take profit of the capacity initially reserved for the former ones when available.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Deep Space Network information system architecture study

The purpose of this article is to describe an architecture for the Deep Space Network (DSN) information system in the years 2000-2010 and to provide guidelines for its evolution during the 1990s. The study scope is defined to be from the front-end areas at the antennas to the end users (spacecraft teams, principal investigators, archival storage systems, and non-NASA partners). The architectural vision provides guidance for major DSN implementation efforts during the next decade. A strong motivation for the study is an expected dramatic improvement in information-systems technologies, such as the following: computer processing, automation technology (including knowledge-based systems), networking and data transport, software and hardware engineering, and human-interface technology. The proposed Ground Information System has the following major features: unified architecture from the front-end area to the end user; open-systems standards to achieve interoperability; DSN production of level 0 data; delivery of level 0 data from the Deep Space Communications Complex, if desired; dedicated telemetry processors for each receiver; security against unauthorized access and errors; and highly automated monitor and control

Reflections on Active Networking

Interactions among telecommunications networks, computers, and other peripheral devices have been of interest since the earliest distributed computing systems. A key architectural question is the location (and nature) of programmability. One perspective, that examined in this paper, is that network elements should be as programmable as possible, in order to build the most flexible distributed computing systems. This paper presents my personal view of the history of programmable networking over the last two decades, and in the spirit of vox audita perit, littera scripta manet , includes an account of how what is now called Active Networking came into being. It demonstrates the deep roots Active Networking has in the programming languages, networking and operating systems communities, and shows how interdisciplinary approaches can have impacts greater than the sums of their parts. Lessons are drawn both from the broader research agenda, and the specific goals pursued in the SwitchWare project. I close by speculating on possible futures for Active Networking

SwitchWare: Accelerating Network Evolution (White Paper)

We propose the development of a set of software technologies ( SwitchWare ) which will enable rapid development and deployment of new network services. The key insight is that by making the basic network service selectable on a per user (or even per packet) basis, the need for formal standardization is eliminated. Additionally, by making the basic network service programmable, the deployment times, today constrained by capital funding limitations, are tremendously reduced (to the order of software distribution times). Finally, by constructing an advanced, robust programming environment, even the service development time can be reduced. A SwitchWare switch consists of input and output ports controlled by a software-programmable element; programs are contained in sequences of messages sent to the SwitchWare switch\u27s input ports, which interpret the messages as programs. We call these Switchlets . This accelerates the pace of network evolution, as evolving user needs can be immediately reflected in the network infrastructure. Immediate reconfigurability enhances the adaptability of the network infrastructure in the face of unexpected situations. We call a network built from SwitchWare switches an active network

Scalable topological forwarding and routing policies in RINA-enabled programmable data centers

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Leon Gaixas S, Perelló J, Careglio D, Grasa E, López DR, Aranda PA. Scalable topological forwarding and routing policies in RINA-enabled programmable data centers. Trans Emerging Tel Tech. 2017;28:e3256, DOI 10.1002/ett.3256, which has been published in final form at DOI: 10.1002/ett.3256. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-ArchivingGiven the current expansion of cloud computing, the expected advent of the Internet of Things, and the requirements of future fifth-generation network infrastructures, significantly larger pools of computational and storage resources will soon be required. This emphasizes the need for more scalable data centers that are capable of providing such an amount of resources in a cost-effective way. A quick look into today's commercial data centers shows that they tend to rely on variations of well-defined leaf-spine/Clos data center network (DCN) topologies, offering low latency, ultrahigh bisectional bandwidth, and enhanced reliability against concurrent failures. However, DCNs are typically restricted by the use of the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) suite, thus suffering limited routing scalability. In this work, we study the benefits that replacing TCP/IP with the recursive internetwork architecture (RINA) can bring into commercial DCNs, focusing on forwarding and routing scalability. We quantitatively evaluate the benefits that RINA solutions can yield against those based on TCP/IP and highlight how, by deploying RINA, topological routing solutions can improve even more the efficiency of the network. To this goal, we propose a rule-and-exception forwarding policy tailored to the characteristics of several DCN variants, enabling fast forwarding decisions with merely neighbors' information. Upon failures, few exceptions are necessary, whose computation can also profit from the known topology. Extensive numerical results show that the proposed policy requirements depend mainly on the number of neighbors and concurrent failures in the DCN rather than its size, dramatically reducing the amount of forwarding and routing information stored at DCN nodes.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Client server computing and cooperative processing

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/aicpa_guides/1387/thumbnail.jp

Active networking : one view of the past, present, and future

All distributed computing systems face the architectural question of the location (and nature) of programmability in the telecommunications networks, computers, and other peripheral devices comprising them. The perspective of this paper is that network elements should be as programmable as possible, to enable the most flexible distributed computing systems. There has been a persistent confluence among operating systems, programming languages, networking and distributed systems. We demonstrate how these interactions led to what is called active networking , and in the spirit of vox audita perit, littera scripta manet (the spoken word perishes, but the written word remains), include an account of how it was made to happen. Lessons are drawn both from the broader research agenda, and the specific goals pursued in the SwitchWare project. We speculate on likely futures for active networking

Korištenje i prednosti Profinet komunikacijskog protokola u industriji

In complex industrial production processes it is necessary to introduce automation system with special consideration to process supervision. High number of automation devices in system will require great resources in quantity and speed of data transfer. The protocols such as Profibus or similar obviously will not satisfy all demands of these production processes since the high number of devices are used. The possibilities of combining standard methods of communication with industrial protocols are available by introducing the devices for supervision and eventually process management placed outside the industrial plant, such as engineers or plant manager offices, etc. One of the most popular such protocols are Profinet which uses Ethernet standard for industrial purposes, and is described in this paper.U složenim industrijskim procesima proizvodnje potrebno je ugraditi sustav automatizacije sa posebnim naglaskom na nadzor procesa. Veliki broj uređaja u automatizacijskom sustavu traži velike resurse u količini i brzini protoka podataka unutar sustava. Ukoliko se radi o velikom broju uređaja protokoli kao što su Profibus i slični očito ne mogu zadovoljiti sve potrebe takvog pogona. Uvođenje uređaja za nadzor i eventualno upravljanje pogonom u prostore koji nisu nužno vezani za samu proizvodnju, kao što su uredi inženjera, voditelja pogona, i slično, otvara se mogućnost kombinacije standardnih metoda komunikacije sa industrijskim protokolima. Jedan od najprihvaćenijih je Profinet koji koristi Ethernet standard u industrijske svrhe, i opisan je u ovom radu