3rd International ICST Conference on Testbeds and Research Infrastructures for the Development of Networks and Communities (TridentCom)

Research Article

A splitting infrastructure for load balancing and security in an MPLS network

  • @INPROCEEDINGS{10.1109/TRIDENTCOM.2007.4444681,
        author={Stefano Avallone and Vittorio Manetti and Marina Mariano and Simon Pietro Romano},
        title={A splitting infrastructure for load balancing and security in an MPLS network},
        proceedings={3rd International ICST Conference on Testbeds and Research Infrastructures for the Development of Networks and Communities (TridentCom)},
        publisher={IEEE},
        proceedings_a={TRIDENTCOM},
        year={2008},
        month={2},
        keywords={},
        doi={10.1109/TRIDENTCOM.2007.4444681}
    }
    
  • Stefano Avallone
    Vittorio Manetti
    Marina Mariano
    Simon Pietro Romano
    Year: 2008
    A splitting infrastructure for load balancing and security in an MPLS network
    TRIDENTCOM
    IEEE
    DOI: 10.1109/TRIDENTCOM.2007.4444681
Stefano Avallone1,*, Vittorio Manetti1,*, Marina Mariano1,*, Simon Pietro Romano1,*
  • 1: COMICS Lab, Dipartimento di Informatica e Sistemistica, Universita di Napoli Federico II, Via Claudio 21, 80125 Napoli, Italy
*Contact email: stavallo@unina.it, vittorio.manetti@unina.it, mac.mariano@gmail.com, spromano@unina.it

Abstract

Several multi-path routing algorithms have been recently proposed to achieve load balancing and increase security. However, the functionalities required to split traffic flows over multiple paths have not been standardized yet. Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) offers a suitable environment to implement multi-path routing algorithms, as multiple parallel Label Switched Paths (LSPs) may be established to carry each a portion of a traffic flow. This paper focuses on a traffic splitting mechanism designed for MPLS networks. We propose a set of new operations to be performed by the edge routers and illustrate them with reference to a popular open source implementation of the MPLS stack. We implemented the new operations and give a demonstration of their functionality using an experimental testbed.