Routing Optimization Under an SDN Architecture for 802.11 MANETs

The adoption of the Software Defined Networking (SDN) paradigm is experiencing rapid growth, extending beyond typical datacenter networks to encompass 5G and IoT deployments. This expansion is primarily driven by the inherent flexibility offered by SDN in terms of network management and control. Mobile Ad-Hoc Networks (MANETs) have not yet fully embraced the advantages of the SDN approach due to their specific requirements arising from the dynamic nature of mobility and the unpredictable conditions of the wireless medium. The progress of adoption has been impeded by technical obstacles and the inherent conflict between the centralized nature of SDN and the decentralized approach of conventional MANET protocols. This paper introduces our implementation of a comprehensive SDN scheme that aims to address the divide between different networking approaches by integrating the advantages of both worlds. Our prototype has the capability to integrate with 802.11 Ad-Hoc networks. It provides several important features: a) fault tolerance for the SDN controller, which involves recovering from failures by electing a new controller, b) dynamic network topology discovery, and c) the ability to deploy globally optimal routing policies, based on the Multicommodity Flow Problem (MCFP), and following a cross-layer approach that utilizes the 802.11 MAC layer statistics. The applicability and performance benefits of our framework were assessed through the evaluation of our proposed scheme in contrast to a traditional MANET routing protocol.