Prediction-based dual-weight switch migration scheme for SDN load balancing

Abstract

Software-defined networking (SDN) is considered one of the most promising development modes of the future Internet because of advantages such as programmability and centralized administration. A single centralized controller may cause reliability and scalability issues. Although multiple controllers can solve a single centralized controller′s scalability and reliability problems, a flexible mechanism to balance the load is needed. Traffic loads between controllers can easily lead to unbalanced load distribution between them. For multiple distributed controllers, a prediction-based SDN load balancing dual-weight switch migration scheme is proposed. The scheme considers the past traffic load as historical data to predict the future traffic load. Through predictive technology, we know the time when the controller is overloaded, so that the switch migration operation can be carried out in advance. We also propose a triggered load information algorithm to solve the additional processing and communication overhead of the control plane required for periodic active load information between distributed controllers. Considering the information from the past, the proposed scheme suggests that the management of specific switches be migrated between the controllers. We consider the historical load and future load of the switches and propose a switch migration algorithm with dual-weight, it reduces the frequency of switch migration. Experiments have proved that this scheme can quickly balance the load between controllers and reduce the number of switch migrations.