Traffic Management and Quality of Service

Description

In this course, students will learn the basic tools for planning and design of modern packet-switched networks with quality of service (QoS). More specifically, the following aspects are studied: basic concepts and parameters that define QoS, architectures and mechanisms to provide QoS, fundamentals of discrete-event computer simulation, performance analysis of QoS through bounds and approximations. This course has an important practical component and the theoretical concepts will be extensively applied in laboratory exercises and study cases.

Keywords

Quality of Service, packet-switched network, traffic management, packet multiplexing, traffic models, computer simulations, bounds and approximations.

Recommended knowledge

Basics of computer networking, probability and Java programming

Evaluation

Assessment will be based on in-class application exercises and reports of the lab sessions. Exceptionally, student who cannot attend classes regularly have the possibility to take a final exam.

Learning Units

• 1. Introduction to quality of service (QoS) in packet-switched networks
  • 1.1. Basics of packet-switched networks
  • 1.2. Quality of service definition
  • 1.3. Generic mechanisms for quality of service provision in packet-switched networks
  • 1.4. Overview of quality of service technologies for the Internet
• 2. Bounds and approximations
  • 2.1. Introduction
  • 2.2. Discrete-time traffic models
  • 2.3. Analysis of multiplexing with marginal buffering.
  • 2.4. Analysis of multiplexing with arbitrary buffering.
• 3. Discrete event simulation
  • 3.1. Basics of discrete event simulation
  • 3.2. Elements of a discrete event simulator
  • 3.3. Random number generation
  • 3.4. Data analysis
• 4. Laboratory sessions
  • 4.1. Operation of a simple discrete event simulator
  • 4.2. Simulation and data analysis of an M/D/1/K
  • 4.3. Simulation study of ON-OFF voice sources multiplexing with marginal buffering

José Ramón Vidal Catalá Vicent Plà Bosca