Internet traffic modelling: from superposition to scaling

• Published in: IET networks 2014-03, Vol.3 (1), p.30-40
• Main Authors: Arfeen, Muhammad Asad, Pawlikowski, Krzysztof, Willig, Andreas, McNickle, Don
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: active traffic mixture; Backbone; bandwidth provisioning; Computer networks; cumulative input process; cumulative input traffic process; Devices; Dynamic structural analysis; flow component; Internet; Internet traffic modelling; network dimensioning; network performance; Networks; nonasymptotic framework; packet component; Pareto distribution; Pareto renewal process superposition; point process; point process superposition; queueing theory; queuing; renewal theory‐based approximate point process models; router device; scaling dynamics; scaling phenomenon; second‐order scaling; service provider tiers; session component; Special Issue: Teletraffic Engineering in Communication Systems; statistical analysis; statistical properties; structural components; switch device; telecommunication devices; telecommunication network routing; telecommunication traffic; traffic data; Traffic engineering; Traffic flow; traffic superposition; Weibull distribution; Weibull renewal process superposition
• ISSN: 2047-4954; 2047-4962; 2047-4962
• DOI: 10.1049/iet-net.2013.0148

Internet traffic at various tiers of service providers is essentially a superposition or active mixture of traffic from various sources. Statistical properties of this superposition and a resulting phenomenon of scaling are important for network performance (queuing), traffic engineering (routing) and network dimensioning (bandwidth provisioning). In this article, the authors study the process of superposition and scaling jointly in a non-asymptotic framework so as to better understand the point process nature of cumulative input traffic process arriving at telecommunication devices (e.g., switches, routers). The authors further assess the scaling dynamics of the structural components (packets, flows and sessions) of the cumulative input process and their relation with superposition of point processes. Classical and new results are discussed with their applicability in access and core networks. The authors propose that renewal theory-based approximate point process models, that is, Pareto renewal process superposition and Weibull renewal process superposition can model the similar second-order scaling, as observed in traffic data of access and backbone core networks, respectively.