Traffic measurement based bandwidth dimensioning of broadband networks

Capability to optimally allocate network resources such as bandwidth is the key to the economical viability of modern telecommunication networks. Requirements such as adaptive updating of bandwidth allocations to track dynamic load variations, and preferential treatment for some services at the expense of others, based on economic considerations, however, add to the complexity of the task. We propose, herein, the framework of the ITE (integrated traffic engineering) system that caters to these requirements. Based on the current global network state, ITE projects the future network state and determines optimal bandwidth partitioning among the competing services that maximizes network revenue while maintaining prescribed QoS (quality of service) in broadband networks. Functionality of ITE within the network management infrastructure is discussed herein. The emphasis, however, is on highlighting the mathematical model, used in ITE, to analyze various bandwidth access policies, and evaluate the performance of the services in the presence of these policies. This performance evaluation derives the engineering methods that are subsequently used to plan these networks.