Performance evaluation of MANET and DTN routing protocols

Unstructured mobile networks (UMNs) are mobile networks in which there is little or no pre-installed infrastructure (access points, antennas), and as such message forwarding is performed among the mobile nodes or within the wireless infrastructure. Routing in those networks occurs either using MANET approaches, where nodes build and end-to-end path among source and destination, or DTN routing, where nodes exchange cached messages whenever they enter in radio range with one another. One open question in the field, however, is when to use each of the approaches. Most UMN deployments lie on a gray zone, where it is hard to determine the most suitable protocol. This paper presents a performance evaluation of both approaches, in an attempt to identify when to employ each protocol.