Computer Networks

Lecture 03
The network core
 mesh of interconnected routers mobile network
national or global ISP
 packet-switching: hosts break
application-layer messages into packets
• network forwards packets from one
router to the next, across links on local or
path from source to destination regional ISP

home network content

provider
network datacenter
network

enterprise
network

Introduction: 1-2
 Two key network-core functions

routing algorithm Routing:

 global action:
Forwarding: local forwarding table
header value output link determine source-
 aka “switching” 0100
0101
3
2 destination paths
 local action: 0111
1001
2
1 taken by packets
move arriving  routing algorithms
packets from
1
router’s input link
to appropriate 3 2
router output link 011
1

destination address in arriving

packet’s header
Introduction: 1-3
routing

Introduction: 1-4
 forwarding
forwarding

Introduction: 1-5
Internet structure: a “network of networks”
mobile network
 hosts connect to Internet via access national or global ISP
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
 access ISPs in turn must be
interconnected
• so that any two hosts (anywhere!) local or
regional ISP
can send packets to each other
 resulting network of networks is home network content
provider
very complex network datacenter
network

• evolution driven by economics, enterprise

national policies network

Let’s take a stepwise approach to describe current Internet structure Introduction: 1-6
Internet structure: a “network of networks”
Question: given millions of access ISPs, how to connect them together?

access
… access
net
access
net …
net
access
access net
net
access
access net
net
…

…
access access
net net

access
net
access
net

access
net
access
… net
access access …
net access net
net

Introduction: 1-7
Internet structure: a “network of networks”
Question: given millions of access ISPs, how to connect them together?

access
… access
net
access
net …
net
access
access
net
… … net

access
access net
net

connecting each access ISP to

…

…
each other directly doesn’t scale:

…
O(N2) connections.
access access
…

net net

access
net
access
net

access
net
access
… access
… … net
access
net access net
net

Introduction: 1-8
Internet structure: a “network of networks”
Option: connect each access ISP to one global transit ISP?
Customer and provider ISPs have economic agreement.

access
… access
net
access
net …
net
access
access net
net
access
access net
net
…

…
global
access
net
ISP access
net

access
net
access
net

access
net
access
… net
access access …
net access net
net

Introduction: 1-9
Internet structure: a “network of networks”
But if one global ISP is viable business, there will be competitors ….

access
… access
net
access
net …
net
access
access net
net
access
access net
net
ISP A
…

…
access
net ISP B access
net

access
net
ISP C
access
net

access
net
access
… net
access access …
net access net
net

Introduction: 1-10
Internet structure: a “network of networks”
But if one global ISP is viable business, there will be competitors …. who will
want to be connected
Internet exchange point
access
… access
net
access
net …
net
access
access net
net
IXP access
access net
net
ISP A
…

…
access
net
IXP ISP B access
net

access
net
ISP C
access
net

access
net
peering link
access
… net
access access …
net access net
net

Introduction: 1-11
Internet structure: a “network of networks”
… and regional networks may arise to connect access nets to ISPs

access
… access
net
access
net …
net
access
access net
net
IXP access
access net
net
ISP A
…

…
access
net
IXP ISP B access
net

access
net
ISP C
access
net

access
net
regional ISP access
… net
access access …
net access net
net

Introduction: 1-12
Internet structure: a “network of networks”
… and content provider networks (e.g., Google, Microsoft, Akamai) may
run their own network, to bring services, content close to end users
… access
… access
net
access
net

net
access
access net
net
IXP access
access net
net
ISP A
…

…
Content provider network
access
net
IXP ISP B access
net

access
net
ISP C
access
net

access
net
regional ISP access
… net
access access …
net access net
net

Introduction: 1-13
 Internet structure: a “network of networks”

Tier 1 ISP Tier 1 ISP Google

IXP IXP IXP
Regional ISP Regional ISP

access access access access access access access access

ISP ISP ISP ISP ISP ISP ISP ISP

At “center”: small # of well-connected large networks

 “tier-1” commercial ISPs (e.g., Level 3, Sprint, AT&T, NTT), national & international coverage
 content provider networks (e.g., Google, Facebook): private network that connects its
data centers to Internet, often bypassing tier-1, regional ISPs
Introduction: 1-14
Introduction: 1-15
How do packet delay and loss occur?
 packets queue in router buffers, waiting for turn for transmission
 queue length grows when arrival rate to link (temporarily) exceeds output link
capacity
 packet loss occurs when memory to hold queued packets fills up
packet being transmitted (transmission delay)

B
packets in buffers (queueing delay)
free (available) buffers: arriving packets
dropped (loss) if no free buffers
Introduction: 1-16
Packet delay: four sources
transmission
A propagation

B
nodal
processing queueing

dnodal = dproc + dqueue + dtrans + dprop

dproc: nodal processing dqueue: queueing delay

 check bit errors  time waiting at output link for
 determine output link transmission
 typically < microsecs  depends on congestion level of
router
Introduction: 1-17
Packet delay: four sources
transmission
A propagation

B
nodal
processing queueing

dnodal = dproc + dqueue + dtrans + dprop

dtrans: transmission delay: dprop: propagation delay:
 L: packet length (bits)  d: length of physical link
 R: link transmission rate (bps)  s: propagation speed (~2x108 m/sec)
 dtrans = L/R  dprop = d/s
dtrans and dprop
very different Introduction: 1-18
Packet queueing delay (revisited)
 a: average packet arrival rate

average queueing delay

 L: packet length (bits)
 R: link bandwidth (bit transmission rate)

L .a arrival rate of bits “traffic

:
R service rate of bits intensity” traffic intensity = La/R 1

 La/R ~ 0: avg. queueing delay small La/R ~ 0

 La/R -> 1: avg. queueing delay large

 La/R > 1: more “work” arriving is
more than can be serviced - average
delay infinite!
La/R -> 1
Introduction: 1-19
Packet loss
 queue (aka buffer) preceding link in buffer has finite capacity
 packet arriving to full queue dropped (aka lost)
 lost packet may be retransmitted by previous node, by source end
system, or not at all
buffer
(waiting area) packet being transmitted
A

B
packet arriving to
full buffer is lost

* Check out the Java applet for an interactive animation (on publisher’s website) of queuing and loss
Introduction: 1-20
 Throughput
 throughput: rate (bits/time unit) at which bits are being sent from
sender to receiver
• instantaneous: rate at given point in time
• average: rate over longer period of time

link
pipecapacity
that can carry linkthat
pipe capacity
can carry
serverserver,
sends with
bits Rsfluid at rate
bits/sec Rfluid
c
at rate
bits/sec
(fluid)
fileinto
of Fpipe
bits (Rs bits/sec) (Rc bits/sec)
to send to client
Introduction: 1-21
Throughput
Rs < Rc What is average end-end throughput?

Rs bits/sec Rc bits/sec

Rs > Rc What is average end-end throughput?

Rs bits/sec Rc bits/sec

bottleneck link
link on end-end path that constrains end-end throughput
Introduction: 1-22
Throughput: network scenario
 per-connection end-end
Rs throughput:
Rs Rs min(Rc,Rs,R/10)
 in practice: Rc or Rs is
R
often bottleneck
Rc Rc
Rc
* Check out the online interactive exercises for more
examples: http://gaia.cs.umass.edu/kurose_ross/

10 connections (fairly) share

backbone bottleneck link R bits/sec
Introduction: 1-23
Example 1 (review question 18)
 (1) How long does it take a packet of length 1000 bytes to propagate
over a link of distance 2500km, propagation speed 2.5x108 m/s, and
transmission rate 2 Mbps?
 (2) More generally, how long does it take a packet of length L to
propagate over a link of distance d, propagation speed s, and
transmission rate R bps?
 (3) Dose this delay depend on packet length?
 (4) Does this delay depend on transmission rate

Introduction: 1-24
Solution to Example 1
1. How long does it take a packet of length 1000 bytes to
propagate over a link of distance 2500km, propagation speed
2.5x108 m/s, and transmission rate 2 Mbps?
Ans: (2500*10^3)/(2.5*10^8)=0.01s = 10ms
2. More generally, how long does it take a packet of length L
to propagate over a link of distance d, propagation speed s,
and transmission rate R bps? Ans: d/s
3. Dose this delay depend on packet length? No
4. Does this delay depend on transmission rate? No

Introduction: 1-25
Example 2 (R19)
 Suppose Host A wants to send a large file to Host B. The path from
Host A to Host B has three links, of rate R1=500kbps, R2=2Mbps, and
R3=1Mbps. a. Assuming no other traffic in the network,
 a. what is the throughput for the file transfer?
 b. Suppose the file is 4 million bytes. Dividing the file size by the
throughput, roughly how long will it take to transfer the file to Host
B?
 c. Repeat (a) and (b), but now with R2 reduce to 100kpbs.

Introduction: 1-26
Introduction: 1-27