T5.2 Deployment and Data Collection

Lead: TI

This task has the objective of deploying the mPlane architecture in a complex network scenario, including lab facilities, large testbeds and real field networks, in order to run experiments addressing all the use cases defined in WP1.

The mPlane project will leverage existing measurement systems: some partners of the project have already deployed probes (mostly interestingly passive probes) in field networks or in large testbeds (e.g., PlanetLab) and will be able to collect data (caring about privacy issues) to feed the mPlane distributed database. The selection of these external data source will be mainly addressed by WP2 but WP5 will provide further elements (e.g., privacy issues as defined by T1.3, quality of available data, etc.) useful to take the final decision.

The locations of existing measurement systems and of future mPlane probes will be the basis for the design of the overall deployment scenario. These networks (lab networks, experimental testbeds and operative field networks) will need to be interconnected in order to establish traffic relationships between them. This is necessary to have more measurement vantage points for the same traffic flows, thus helping the Reasoner to make its analysis.

According to the availability of the integrated prototype of the mPlane platform, the activities will be organized in two phases: in a first phase, before the prototype is complete, the existing probes will be identified and the collection of data will start; at the same time, the design and implementation of the overall deployment scenario will start, taking into account all the requirements coming from the use cases defined in WP1; in the second phase, after the completion of the prototype, the physical deployment of the overall solution will take place.

The detailed list of activities will include, in phase 1:

• Identification of external probes (i.e. legacy probes already available), in addition to the mPlane probes developed by WP2, to provide all the metrics required to tackle the use cases
• Data collection from existing probes and from mPlane probes
• Analysis of available lab resources, experimental testbeds and operative field networks to verify if and how they fit in the target deployment design; identification of additional external data sources (e.g., routing information, link loads) needed to feed the reasoner developed by WP4; collection of requirements coming from each use case (e.g., access technologies, user terminals, applications, topology, etc.)
• Design and implementation of the target deployment scenario, on the basis of the previous analysis, by interconnecting existing facilities (labs, testbeds and field networks),

In phase 2:

• Deployment of the integrated prototype in the target scenario and verification of the interconnection with probes and other external data sources
• Data collection from probes and from other external data sources in the target deployment scenario

The activities of T5.2 will start from the beginning of the project, focusing on the analysis, choice and integration of existing probes and measurement systems. Data collected from these probes and from mPlane probes (when available) will be tracked in D51 (M12). At the same time, the design and implementation of the target deployment scenario will begin, with progresses being documented in D53 (M29).

After the final integration of the prototype, the deployment of the overall platform in the target scenario will take place, enabling the assessment and evaluation activities (D56, M36).