Active Networks

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Where did the concept AN come from?

 Emerged from discussions within the broad DARPA research community in 1994 and 1995 on the future direction of networking systems.

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Why we need AN ?

Since there are several problems with today’s networks:  Difficulty of integrating new technologies and standards into the shared network infrastructure;  Poor performance due to redundant operations at several protocol layers;  Difficulty of accommodating new services in the existing architectural model Network Management 4

What’s the motivation of AN?

 Aims at producing a new open networking platform, flexible and extensible at runtime 1. To accommodate the rapid evolution and deployment of network technologies; 2. To provide the increasingly sophisticated services demanded by user applications.

To ease the deployment of new network services.

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Activenet Principles

AN have some important features:

 API  Dynamic Composition of Network Services  Fine Granularity of Control  Rapid response to network events Network Management 6

AN: Application Programming Interfaces

 In traditional networks: API is fixed and is difficult to modify and customize .

 In AN: to create an extensible/programmable network API by providing a robust programming environment so that: 1) nearly any customized programs can be executed 2) new services can be dynamically created.

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Benefits from AN-API

 Users/third parties can create services to their specific applications by composing services from various building blocks/components .

components  The degree of programmability of AN-API may range from a simple list of fixed-size parameters to a turing-complete Language capable of describing any effective computation.

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Other AN features:



Dynamic Composition of Network Services

Composite network services can take on a variety  of forms, depending on API

Fine Granularity of Control

1. A single pkt can modify the node behavior seen by all pkts arriving at the node 2. A single pkt modifies the behavior seen only by that one pkt.

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Rapid response to network events

AN can rapidly respond to asynchronous network events by co-locating control algorithms with network elements Network Management 9

Activenet Technologies



In-Band Approach: Active Packets

The current passive packets are replaced by active miniature programs that are encapsulated in transmission frame and executed at active node along their path.



Out-of-Band Approach: Open programmable Networks

maintaining the existing packet/cell format, and providing a discrete mechanism that supports the downloading of programs.

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Active Packets: An In-Band Approach



Capsules (MIT)

propose an integrated approach in which active capsules containing data and programs replace the traditional passive network packets IP header Program Fragment Data Payload 

Smart Packets (DARPA-BBN) SP

can carry programs which are executed at each node the packet visits in the network. Their goal is to add programmability to management and diagnostic packets.

A specific language for SP called Sprocket.

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Open Programmable Networks:An Out-of Band Approach

Separating the injection of programs from the processing of messages may be particularly attractive when the selection of programs is made by network administrators and must be carefully controlled.

 Switchware (U. of Pennsylvania)  Switchlets (U. of Cambridge)  Broadband Kernel: X-Bind (U. of Columbia)  Miblets (U. of Toronto) Network Management 12

Activenet Applications



Open signaling ( U. of Southern California) P:

Current signaling protocols like UNI or RSVP only specify the QoS but not how to obtain it.

S:

If signaling is carried out by active programs with universal encoding in signaling messages and accesses a well understood open interface at each router so that it carries out reservations for the endpoints …… Network Management 13

Activenet Applications

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Introduction of New Internet Services (MIT) P:

In traditional networks, it will take a long time to deploy a new services.

S:

ANTS (Active Network Toolkit System) show that the diversity of services facilitated by active networking Network Management 14

ANTS

 Java-based active networking implementation  Runs in user-space within a user-space implementation of IPv6  Three key components: 1.capsules

2.active nodes: provide API for capsule processing routines and execute those routines safely.

3.code distribution mechanism: ensure that capsule processing routines are automatically and dynamically transferred to the active nodes where they are needed. Network Management 15

Challenge and Open Issues

 Minimizing overall packet processing  Ease the management of Active Networks  Build reliable distributed systems for authentication/authorization of using Active Networks resources  Integration of different Active Networks technologies  Security issues  Performance issues  Active networks format and Standards Network Management 16

Third Intermediate Report

 HP OPENVIEW NETWORK NODE MANAGER  I. Stergiou  A. Sgora  Creation of a short manual  Definition of an exercise (around six subjects)  Deadline: 25/06/03 Network Management 17

Fourth Intermediate Report

 Objects-based Management (CORBA)  I. Stergiou  Management based on Active Networks  A. Sgora  Deadline: 25/06/03 Network Management 18

End of Sixth Lecture

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