A variety of applications in the nascent field of cloud computing and in other fields requires stable, low-delay network connectivity together with capabilities of co-scheduling network and server resources. As a result, several network providers have recently started to deploy scheduled dynamic circuit services (SDCS). Under such services, a network provider allows its customers to place scheduling requests for a fixed-rate circuit lasting for a fixed duration, for either earliest possible usage or scheduled usage at a desired point of time in the future.

While carrying significant potential impact, SDCS currently provide little support for dynamic routing and scheduling of circuits across different administrative domains. This lack of adequate support for inter-domain routing represents a major hurdle to the full-scale deployment of SDCS. The main objective of this project is to tackle this challenge by devising distributed solutions supporting scheduled dynamic circuit services across domains. The project consists of two inter-related thrusts: (i) theory, which focuses on the problem of devising distributed routing algorithms for SDCS that provably converge and provide performance guarantees on user-performance metrics; and (ii) protocol design and implementation, which focuses on the design, development, and real network prototyping of a new inter-domain routing protocol for SDCS, referred to as the scheduled circuit routing protocol (SCRP).

Broader Impact: Successful completion of this project promises to impact a wide array of high-throughput and real-time applications belonging to medical, scientific and commercial domains, and facilitate the creation of a new ecosystem for communication networks. The project is further striving for high impact through collaborations with international academic and industrial partners, and network operators. Students at all levels will be engaged in real network experiments and in the development of innovative applications enabled by SDCS, such as haptic-based communication.

Agency
National Science Foundation (NSF)
Institute
Division of Computer and Network Systems (CNS)
Type
Standard Grant (Standard)
Application #
1117160
Program Officer
Darleen L. Fisher
Project Start
Project End
Budget Start
2011-08-01
Budget End
2016-07-31
Support Year
Fiscal Year
2011
Total Cost
$264,000
Indirect Cost
Name
Boston University
Department
Type
DUNS #
City
Boston
State
MA
Country
United States
Zip Code
02215