Tut7: Quality of Service in Information Networks

Room: Guillaumet 1

Presenter:

Augusto Casaca, INESC, Lisbon, Portugal

Abstract

The tutorial aims to introduce the problems concerned with the provision of end-to-end quality of service (QoS) in information networks, to describe the existing solutions for that provision and to present the state-of-the art of the existing research.
Information networks transport, in an integrated way, different types of traffic, from classical data traffic, which has flexible QoS requirements, to real-time interactive traffic, which requires QoS guarantees. Most of the solutions for the transport of information in this type of networks assume that the networks are based on IP, which traditionally provides a best-effort service. To understand the new models for IP networks, capable of improving the best-effort delivery mechanism, it is necessary to analyse in detail how data packets are processed in the network routers and the complexity associated with the different schemes implemented in the routers.

End-to-end network quality of service depends not only on the router capabilities but also on the general structure of the network. Two models have been defined to improve the quality of service of IP networks. They are known as the Integrated Services (IntServ) model and the Differentiated Services (DiffServ) model. Studies have also been done to join the two models in the so-called IntServ over DiffServ architecture. In parallel with the development of the above mentioned models, IETF has also worked in a new solution called Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS). MPLS is a protocol which is appropriate for traffic engineering and is also the best solution to run IP over ATM networks.

More recently, the problem of IP QoS provision was also highlighted in the architecture of third generation wireless networks, which aim to have IP to support the end-to-end transfer of information in the future.

The tutorial has the following structure:

1. Quality of Service fundamentals
2. Resource allocation mechanisms in IP networks
3. The IP Integrated Services (IntServ) model
4. The IP Differentiated Services (DiffServ) model
5. IntServ operation over DiffServ networks
6. Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS)
7. Traffic engineering with MPLS
8. The MPLS support of DiffServ networks
9. Support of real-time applications in IP networks
10. The case of third generation wireless networks
11. Current research issues. 

Presenter

Augusto Casaca graduated in Electrical Engineering at the Instituto Superior Técnico, Lisboa, Portugal. He got the M.Sc. degree in Digital Electronics at UMIST, Manchester, UK and the Ph.D. in Computer Science at the University of Manchester, Manchester, UK. Presently he is Full Professor at the Instituto Superior Técnico and Leader of the Research Group on "Network Architecture" at INESC - Lisboa. He has been involved in many research, development and consulting activities in the area of Communication Systems since 1985 and has participated in several RACE, ACTS and IST projects in the area of Broadband Communications and Networking. He has actively participated on standardization activities at ITU-T and ETSI, has published several scientific papers in journals and conferences, and has chaired and co-chaired five conferences on Broadband Communications and Internetworking. He was Chairman of IFIP Technical Committee 6 (Communication Systems) from 1998 to 2003. He is presently involved in the Euro-NGI Network of Excellence supported by the 6th Framework Program, in which his research interests are linked to the provision of quality of service in information networks.