A design and implementation of active network socket programming

Abstract

The concept of programmable nodes and active networks introduces programmability into communication networks. Code and data can be sent and modified on their ways to destinations. Recently, various research groups have designed and implemented their own execution platforms for active networks. Each design has its own benefits and drawbacks. Hence, there exist interoperability problems among them. Therefore in this paper, we introduce a concept that is similar to the socket programming for writing network programs. A set of simple interfaces, the Active Network Socket Programming (ANSP), for programming active applications is established. The resulting active applications will be able to work on top of all other execution environments in future. The ANSP offers a concept that is similar to ‘write once, run everywhere.’ It is an open programming model that active applications can work on all execution environments. It solves the heterogeneity within the active networks. This is especially useful when active applications need to access all regions within a heterogeneous network to deploy special service at critical points or to monitor the performance of the entire networks. Instead of introducing a new platform, our approach provides a thin, transparent layer on top of existing environments that can be easily installed for all active applications.