BitTorrent Traffic Localization via Operator-Related Information

Applications based on peer-to-peer systems are oblivious to the underlying Internet topology. Chaotic connections between peers generate a large amount of traffic crossing carriers' borders, causing growth of operators' costs and have negative influence on performance (increased download time). In this paper, Yukka method is proposed to improve performance by localizing traffic on the basis of the operator and autonomous system related information. YukkaPlugin, an implementation of the Yukka method in one of the BitTorrent clients, uses for illustration RIPE NCC database responses mapping each IP address within Europe into an ISP network and country. The YukkaPlugin favors peers which are localized in an area close to a user. Applying the Yukka method results in shorter completion times achieved by an end-user.