NeTS-NR: Generalizing the Network Layer

University Of Kentucky Research Foundation, Lexington KY

Investigators

Abstract

This research project aims to develop an integrated network layer capable of supporting unicast, multicast, and publish-subscribe services on a given topol-ogy using a single mechanism. Such a service would subsume many of the special-purpose approaches (e.g. overlays) currently being proposed and used, and would support novel applications and mobility in a more direct, unified way. The approach is based on the use of predicates carried in packets to iden-tify packet destinations. In other words, the network defines a set of predicates over end systems; each packet carries a predicate from this set, suitably en-coded, and the job of the network is to deliver the packet (on a best-effort basis) to all end systems that satisfy its destination predicate (and to as few others as possible). The major challenge is to design the enrollment, routing, and for-warding algorithms of the service in such a way that the system can scale up to support networks much larger than the current Internet. The goal is to achieve this with overall performance, administrative, and operational overhead compa-rable to or better than existing approaches. This research project will explore the fundamental relationships and tradeoffs among topology, forwarding effi-ciency, and predicate language. It will develop predicate structures that strike a suitable balance between expressive power and efficiency. Finally, the project will design, analyze and evaluate efficient routing and forwarding algorithms and protocols based on those predicate structures. Results of the research have the potential to enable new networks capable of supporting a greater variety of application services while avoiding problems with wide-area routing administra-tion that hamper the current system.