Rita Girão-Silva

A meta-model for multiobjective routing in MPLS networks

MPLS (Multiprotocol Label Switching) enables the utilisation of explicit routes and other advanced routing mechanisms in multiservice packet networks, capable of dealing with multiple and heterogeneous QoS (Quality of Service) parameters. Firstly the paper presents a discussion of conceptual and methodological issues raised by multiobjective routing optimisation models for MPLS networks. The major contribution is the proposal of a multiobjective routing optimisation framework for MPLS networks. The major features of this modelling framework are: the formulation of a three-level hierarchical routing optimisation problem including network and service performance objectives, the inclusion of fairness objectives in the different levels of optimisation and a two-level stochastic representation of the traffic in the network (traffic flow and packet stream levels). A variant of the general model for two classes of traffic flows, QoS traffic and Best Effort traffic, is also presented. Finally a stochastic teletraffic modelling approach, underlying the optimisation model, is fully described.

Hierarchical multiobjective routing in Multiprotocol Label Switching networks with two service classes: a heuristic solution

Modern multiservice network routing functionalities have to deal with multiple, heterogeneous and multifaceted Quality of Service (QoS) requirements. A heuristic approach devised to find “good” solutions to a hierarchical multiobjective alternative routing optimization problem in Multiprotocol Label Switching networks with two service classes (and different types of traffic flows in each class), namely QoS and Best Effort services, formulated within a hierarchical network-wide optimization framework, is presented. This heuristic solution is based on a bi-objective constrained shortest path model and is applied to a test network used in a benchmarking case study. An experimental study based on analytic and discrete event simulation results is presented, allowing for an assessment of the quality of results obtained with this new heuristic solution for various traffic matrices. A dynamic version of the routing method is formulated and its performance with the same case study network is analysed.

A Hierarchical Multiobjective Routing Model for MPLS Networks with Two Service Classes

This work presents a model for multiobjective routing in MPLS networks formulated within a hierarchical network-wide optimization framework, with two classes of services, namely QoS and Best Effort (BE) services. The routing model uses alternative routing and hierarchical optimization with two optimization levels, including fairness objectives. Another feature of the model is the use of an approximate stochastic representation of the traffic flows in the network, based on the concept of effective bandwidth. The theoretical foundations of a heuristic strategy for finding “good” compromise solutions to the very complex bi-level routing optimization problem, based on a conjecture concerning the definition of marginal implied costs for QoS flows and BE flows, will be described. The main features of a first version of this heuristic based on a bi-objective shortest path model and some preliminary results for a benchmark network will also be revealed.

Hierarchical multiobjective routing model in Multiprotocol Label Switching networks with two service classes – a Pareto archive strategy

The article begins by reviewing a two-level hierarchical multicriteria routing model for Multiprotocol Label Switching networks with two service classes (QoS, i.e. with Quality of Service requirements, and Best Effort services) and alternative routing, as well as the foundations of a heuristic resolution approach, previously proposed by the authors. Afterwards a new variant of this heuristic approach, which includes a Pareto archive strategy, is described. In this archive, non-dominated solutions obtained throughout the heuristic are kept. At the end of the main procedure of the heuristic, these solutions are evaluated and a final solution for the routing problem is chosen using a reference point-based approach. The application of this procedure to two test networks will show, with analytic and discrete-event simulation models, that, in certain initial conditions, this approach provides improvements in the final results concerning the top-level objective functions, especially in more ‘difficult’ situations detected through sensitivity analysis.

Multicriteria Analysis in Telecommunication Network Planning and Design: A Survey

The interaction between a complex socio-economic environment and the extremely fast pace of development of new telecommunication technologies and services justifies the interest of multicriteria evaluation in decision making processes associated with several phases of network planning and design. Based on an overview of current and foreseen evolutions in telecommunication network technologies and services we begin by identifying and discussing challenges and issues concerning the use of multicriteria analysis in telecommunication network planning and design problems. Next we present a review of contributions on these areas, with particular emphasis on routing and network design models. We will also outline an agenda of current and future research trends and issues in this application area of multicriteria modelling.

Improving Network Availability—A Design Perspective

The availability of the resources in communication networks is critical, due to the impact that possible disruptions of communication services may have in the society. Therefore, providing adequate levels of availability for every demand in a network is of paramount importance. In this work, we focus on the topological structure of a network to select a set of links that provide a high availability path to be used by the different end-to-end demands. This set of links constitutes a high availability structure (the spine) and is used as the working path for each demand. The backup path for each demand is edge-disjoint with the corresponding working path. This path pair provides end-to-end protection for critical service demands in the network. An exact formulation of the problem is presented and solved for small instances of networks. A heuristic resolution approach with centrality measures is also put forward, with an experimental study comparing the exact and the approximate results.

Minimization of the network availability upgrade cost with geodiverse routing for disaster resilience

Abstract Telecommunication networks are a critical infrastructure of our society. Wide area backbone communication networks are based on optical networks, where each fiber has a very large capacity. These networks must offer high end-to-end availability and a high resilience to large-scale disasters. Routing with geodiversity can mitigate the impact of disasters but will result in longer paths, making it difficult to achieve the availability levels required by critical services. In this paper, we consider a given core optical network such that the current availability and the cost of upgrading it to a higher value are known for each network link (or edge). Then, the problem of selecting a set of edges to be upgraded at a minimum cost, while guaranteeing desired values of end-to-end availability and geodiversity, is considered and formulated as an arc based integer non-linear programming model. The non-linear constraints of the model are approximated and linearized, resulting in a new ILP based heuristic. A filtering procedure is proposed for decreasing (if possible) the cost and the number of upgraded edges of the solutions obtained by previously proposed greedy heuristics and also by the ILP based heuristic. The relative performance of the heuristics is evaluated using different geodiverse distances and end-to-end availability values in two reference core optical networks.

A network-wide exact optimization approach for multiobjective routing with path protection in multiservice multiprotocol label switching networks

ABSTRACT A multiobjective routing model for multiprotocol label switching networks with multiple service types and path protection is presented in this article. The routing problem is formulated as a biobjective integer program, where the considered objectives are formulated according to a network-wide optimization approach, i.e. the objective functions of the route optimization problem depend explicitly on all traffic flows in the network. A disjoint path pair is considered for each traffic trunk, which guarantees protection to the associated connection. A link-path formulation is proposed for the problem, in which a set of possible pairs of paths is devised in advance for each traffic trunk. An exact method (based on the classical constraint method for solving multiobjective problems) is developed for solving the formulated problem. An extensive experimental study, with results on network performance measures in various randomly generated networks, is also presented and discussed.

Minimizing the network availability upgrade cost with geodiversity guarantees

As telecommunication networks are a critical infrastructure of our society, they must evolve to provide high end-to-end availability and high resilience to large-scale disasters. Path protection mechanisms can improve end-to-end availability but, in general, might not be enough to reach the availability required by critical services. Moreover, adding geodiversity to the routing paths (i.e., selecting path pairs with higher geographical distance between them) enhances the network disaster resilience but also makes it more challenging to reach a high end-to-end availability as the resulting paths tend to be longer. So, for a network where each link is characterized by its current availability and by the cost of upgrading its availability to a new value, this paper proposes some strategies aiming to determine a set of links to be upgraded at a minimum cost ensuring a desired level of availability and geodiversity. The problem is defined as an integer non-linear programming model, a solving algorithm based on different greedy strategies is proposed and the relative performance of the different strategies is evaluated on a set of problem instances.

Maximally node and SRLG-disjoint path pair of min-sum cost in GMPLS networks: a lexicographic approach

Path protection is a fast and capacity-efficient approach for increasing the availability of end-to-end connections. However, sometimes it is not possible to obtain a fully disjoint path pair. In this case, it may be admissible to consider a path pair which is as disjoint as possible, and thus provide the best (in a certain sense) level of the single-fault protection that can be ensured using this type of approach. A shared risk link group (SRLG) is a group of links which have a common risk of failure. Two new heuristics for solving the min-sum maximally node and SRLG-disjoint path pair are presented. The relative performance of the new heuristics and also of two other previously proposed heuristics is evaluated using four different networks. Results, regarding accuracy and execution time of the studied heuristics, show that one of the new proposed algorithms can be a good compromise for use in the Generalized Multi-protocol Label Switching control plane.