GLOBECOM 2005 Tutorial

Monday, 28 November
Majestic Ballroom G / Level Two / Renaissance Grand Hotel

Title: TU-13   Using the Open Network Laboratory

Duration : Full Day/9:00AM-5:00PM

Instructor : Jonathan Turner, Washington University, USA

Abstract:
The Open Network Laboratory is a resource designed to enable experimental evaluation of advanced networking concepts in a realistic operating environment. The laboratory is built around a set of opensource, extensible, high performance routers, which can be accessed by remote users through a Remote Laboratory Interface (RLI). The RLI allows users to configure the testbed network, run applications and monitor those running applications using built-in data gathering mechanisms. Support for data visualization and real-time remote display is provided. The RLI also allows users to extend, modify or replace the software running in the routers' embedded processors and to similarly extend, modify or replace the routers' packet processing hardware, which is implemented largely using Field Programmable Gate Arrays. The routers included in the testbed are architecturally similar to high performance commercial routers, enabling researchers to evaluate their ideas in a more realistic context than can be provided by PC-based routers. The Open Network Laboratory is designed to provide a setting in which systems researchers can evaluate and refine their ideas and then demonstrate them to those interested in moving their technology into new products and services. This tutorial will teach users how to use the ONL. It will include detailed presentations on the system architecture and principles of operation, as well as live demonstrations. We also plan to give participants an opportunity for hands-on experience with setting up and running experiments themselves. A more detailed description of ONL is attached as an appendix.

Motivation:
The Open Network Lab provides an experimental resource that complements other tools available to the research community, such as simulation, Emulab and PlanetLab. Because ONL uses high performance hardware routers that are subject to modification by users, it provides an alternative that is not available to most networking researchers. It is particularly useful for researchers interested in router extensions and evaluating performance in a high performance environment. We expect the tutorial to be particularly useful for graduate students interested in learning how to use ONL in connection with their research. While users can access and use ONL without attending a live tutorial (an on-line tutorial is under preparation), we feel tutorials like this one can be important for most users, since the ONL systems are complex enough to be somewhat intimidating on first contact.