A decent service level
Peter Massam, Eduard Babulak · Communications Engineer · 2003
In today’s dynamically changing networks, can existing technologies maintain service levels across multiple domains? We have been accustomed to accepting less-than-perfect service at a higher-than average cost on our existing mobile networks. With the increased capacity of 3G networks the drive is through the use of meaningful and relevant Service Level Agreements (SLAs). The practicalities of implementation such SLAs across multiple service providers’ networks accessing services from multiple sources are in itself challenging. Tracking performance to dynamically maintain service levels is a Greenfield opportunity. The models put forward in DARPA’s microprograms or active networks betray their roots as being applications-, service- or server-centric, or, in the case of TINA-C, fell short of a complete service architecture focusing only on ATM networks. The three key elements to maintaining service quality are: • Traffic control • End-to-end resource management • Adaptation to a dynamically changing environment The first is defined through traffic shaping and policy management; the second is partly resolved between IntServ and DifServ approached for single domains; few tackle the third and fewer the mobile network implications. The common threads that run through the research work are: • Dynamic network controls at application level • Separate traffic and administration functions • Use of flexible and extensible architecture • A pervasive use of agents for scalability The approach bellow uses existing technologies in a proposed architecture for managing resources dynamically in a mobile data networks.