| dc.description.abstract | With the continuous development of computer networking, a flexible network architecture
will likely have to adapt to the recent growth of Internet-based systems, such as Cloud-based
systems, the Internet of Things (IoT), and the Fifth-Generation (5G) cellular networks. Software-
Defined Networking (SDN) is a new paradigm that simplifies the organization of data
communications, facilitates the evolution of computer networking, and paves the way to absorb
the potential requirements of future network changes. SDN aims to decouple the control function
from the end network devices (i.e., routers) and provide an external centralized entity for all the
network's control activities. However, currently the SDN's control capabilities are limited to the
performance of a single controller. Our research aims to provide potential solutions addressing
SDN's control limitations. To improve network performance, we introduce several models to
address the interaction between the SDN controller and the network switches. The core
contribution of this research includes the introduction of assistant switches, edge controllers, and
self-routing traffic flows. The goal of the introduced models is to alleviate the controller's burden
and improve its processing efficiency. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed
techniques, we implement a simulated SDN-based network using Mininet and the NOX network
software platform with one controller connected to 10-32 switches that carry and route traffic flows
among multiple end-hosts. The results of the simulation studies show a significant improvement
in performance, including more than a 30% decrease in the amount of data transmitted by the SDN
controller, up to 45% decrease in bandwidth usage, and up to 29% decrease in controller response
time. The proposed methods can be extended to explore and develop more methods of
collaboration to address some of the major issues associated with the centralized controlling
architecture. | |
