WFO: Cloud-Edge Cooperative Data Offloading Strategy Akin to Water Flow

Abstract

The exponential growth of video data in networks has led to video flow occupying a significant proportion of network traffic, causing congestion and poor service quality. To address this issue, it is crucial to quickly offload data and ensure high-quality service for users, especially in the context of cloud-edge collaboration. We propose a strategy for collaborative data offloading between cloud and edge computing, analogous to water flow (WFO). When users simultaneously access the same data from the same data source, WFO can serve more users within the limited bandwidth of the cloud while maintaining the quality of service. WFO creates a water flow-like data link between nodes to enable data offloading, using multiple nodes in collaboration to offload data for a single node. Experimental results show that compared with typical methods, such as fair-queue and first-come-first-served, WFO can significantly reduce the data offloading delay, guarantee service quality, and effectively reduce network congestion. Moreover, the number of service nodes can be as numerous as possible.