Peter Dely

OpenFlow for Wireless Mesh Networks

everal protocols for routing and forwarding in Wireless Mesh Networks (WMN) have been proposed, such as AODV, OLSR or B.A.T.M.A.N. However, providing support for e.g. flow-based routing where flows of one source take different paths through the network is hard to implement in a unified way using traditional routing protocols. OpenFlow is an emerging technology which makes network elements such as routers or switches programmable via a standardized interface. By using virtualization and flow-based routing, OpenFlow enables a rapid deployment of novel packet forwarding and routing algorithms, focusing on fixed networks. We propose an architecture that integrates OpenFlow with WMNs and provides such flow-based routing and forwarding capabilities. To demonstrate the feasibility of our OpenFlow based approach, we have implemented a simple solution to solve the problem of client mobility in a WMN which handles the fast migration of client addresses (e.g. IP addresses) between Mesh Access Points and the interaction with re-routing without the need for tunneling. Measurements from a real mesh testbed (KAUMesh) demonstrate the feasibility of our approach based on the evaluation of forwarding performance, control traffic and rule activation time.

CloudMAC — An OpenFlow based architecture for 802.11 MAC layer processing in the cloud

IEEE 802.11 WLANs are a very important technology to provide high speed wireless Internet access. Especially at airports, university campuses or in city centers, WLAN coverage is becoming ubiquitous leading to a deployment of hundreds or thousands of Access Points (AP). Managing and configuring such large WLAN deployments is a challenge. Current WLAN management protocols such as CAPWAP are hard to extend with new functionality. In this paper, we present CloudMAC, a novel architecture for enterprise or carrier grade WLAN systems. By partially offloading the MAC layer processing to virtual machines provided by cloud services and by integrating our architecture with OpenFlow, a software defined networking approach, we achieve a new level of flexibility and reconfigurability. In Cloud-MAC APs just forward MAC frames between virtual APs and IEEE 802.11 stations. The processing of MAC layer frames as well as the creation of management frames is handled at the virtual APs while the binding between the virtual APs and the physical APs is managed using OpenFlow. The testbed evaluation shows that CloudMAC achieves similar performance as normal WLANs, but allows novel services to be implemented easily in high level programming languages. The paper presents a case study which shows that dynamically switching off APs to save energy can be performed seamlessly with CloudMAC, while a traditional WLAN architecture causes large interruptions for users.

CloudMAC: torwards software defined WLANs

Traditional enterprise WLAN management systems are hard to extend and require powerful access points (APs). In this paper we introduce and evaluate CloudMAC, an architecture for enterprise WLANs in which MAC frames are generated and processed on virtual APs hosted in a datacenter. The APs only need to forward MAC frames. The APs and the servers are connected via an OpenFlow-enabled network, which allows to control where and how MAC frames are transmitted.

Capacity Increase for Voice over IP Traffic through Packet Aggregation in Wireless Multihop Mesh Networks

Recently, voice over IP (VoIP) has become an important service for the future internet. However, for ubiquitous wireless VoIP services, greater coverage will be necessary as promised by the advent of e.g. 802.11 WLAN based wireless meshed networks. Unfortunately, the transmission of small (voice) packets imposes high overhead which leads to low capacity for VoIP over 802.11 based multihop meshed networks. In this work, we present a novel packet aggregation mechanism that significantly enhances capacity of VoIP in wireless meshed networks while still maintaining satisfactory voice quality. Extensive experiments using network simulation ns-2 confirm that our packet aggregation algorithm can lead to a significantly increase in the number of supported concurrent VoIP flows over a variety of different hop numbers while reducing the MAC layer contention.

VoIP Service Performance Optimization in Pre-IEEE 802.11S Wireless Mesh Networks

802.11-based wireless mesh networks are seen as a means for providing last mile connections to next generation networks. Due to the low deployment cost and the mature technology used, they are scalable, easy to implement and robust. With an increasing coverage of wireless networks, VoIP becomes a cheaper alternative for traditional and cellular telephony. In this paper, we carry out a feasibility study of VoIP in a dual radio mesh environment. Heading towards 802.11s, we present the design of a mesh testbed and methodology for performing the measurements. Additionally, we address the problem that small voice packets introduce a high overhead leading to a low voice capacity of 802.11 based mesh networks. In order to alleviate this problem and increase the voice capacity, a novel packet aggregation mechanism is presented and evaluated using the ns-2 simulator.

Fair optimization of mesh-connected WLAN hotspots

In Wireless mesh networks mesh access points MAPs forward traffic wirelessly towards users or Internet gateways. A user device usually connects to the MAP with the strongest signal, as such MAP should guarantee the best quality of service. However, this connection policy may lead to: i unfairness towards users that are distant from gateways; ii uneven distribution of users to MAPs; and iii inefficient use of network paths. We present a new model and solution approach to the problem of assigning users to MAPs and routing the data within the mesh network with the objective of providing max-min fair throughput. The problem is formulated as a mixed-integer linear programming problem MILP. Because of the inherent complexity of the problem, real size instances cannot be solved to optimality within the time limits for online optimization. Therefore, we propose an original heuristic solution algorithm for the resulting MILP. Both numerical comparisons and network simulations demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed heuristic. For random networks, the heuristic achieves 98% of the optimal solution. Network simulations show that in medium-sized networks, the number of users with at least 1Mbit/s minimum end-to-end rate increases by 550% when compared with the classical signal-strength based association. Copyright

Qos-aware channel scheduling for multi-radio/multi-channel wireless mesh networks

In non-static multi-radio/multi-channel wireless mesh networks architectures such as Net-X, mesh nodes need to switch channels in order to communicate with different neighbors. Present channel schedulers do not consider the requirements of real time traffic such as voice over IP. Thus the resulting quality is low. We propose a novel channel scheduler for the Net-X platform that takes into account packet priorities. We evaluate the algorithm on the KAUMesh testbed. Our algorithm outperforms the standard round-robin scheduler both in terms of average delay and jitter.

FUZPAG: A fuzzy-controlled packet aggregation scheme for wireless mesh networks

Wireless mesh networks (WMNs) are wireless multi-hop backhaul networks in which mesh routers relay traffic on behalf of clients or other routers. Due to large MAC layer overhead, applications such as Voice over IP, which send many small packets, show poor performance in WMNs. Packet aggregation increases the capacity of IEEE 802.11-based WMNs by aggregating small packets into larger ones and thereby reducing overhead. In order to have enough packets to aggregate, packets need to be delayed and buffered. Current aggregation mechanisms use fixed buffer delays or do not take into account the delay characteristics of the saturated IEEE 802.11 MAC layer. In this work, we present FUZPAG, a novel packet aggregation architecture for IEEE 802.11-based wireless mesh networks. It uses fuzzy control to determine the optimum aggregation buffer delay under the current channel utilization. By cooperation among neighboring nodes FUZPAG distributes the buffer delay in a fair way. We implemented and evaluated the system in a wireless mesh testbed. For different network topologies we show that FUZPAG outperforms standard aggregation in terms of end-to-end latency under a wide range of traffic patterns.

Optimization of WLAN associations considering handover costs

In wireless local area network (WLAN) hotspots the coverage areas of access points (APs) often overlap considerably. Current state of the art optimization models find the optimal AP for each user station by balancing the load across the network. Recent studies have shown that in typical commercial WLAN hotspots the median connection duration is short. In such dynamic network settings the mentioned optimization models might cause many handovers between APs to accommodate for user arrivals or mobility. We introduce a new mixed integer linear optimization problem that allows to optimize handovers but takes into account the costs of handovers such as signaling and communication interruption. Using our model and extensive numeric simulations we show that disregarding the handover costs leads to low performance. Based on this insight we design a new optimization scheme that uses estimates of future station arrivals and mobility patterns. We show that our scheme outperforms current optimization mechanisms and is robust against estimation errors.

Practical considerations for channel assignment in wireless mesh networks

In multi-radio wireless mesh networks (WMNs) several radios can operate within one node simultaneously on different channels. Due to frequency selective fading and varying output powers of WLAN cards the received signal strength on channels in the U-NII band can differ by several dB. Furthermore, power leakage from neighboring channels in the frequency spectrum can cause adjacent channel interference (ACI). Using a IEEE 802.11a testbed, we experimentally evaluate the achievable throughput of a multi-radio mesh network in a string topology under the impact of ACI and channel heterogeneity. Our results show that for low PHY rates the channel separation is a good indicator for throughput. However, for high PHY rates the propagation properties of a specific channel also need to be considered. Based on the results we provide recommendations for designing channel assignment algorithms for IEEE 802.11-based WMNs.