ETSCP: Flexible SDN data plane configuration based on bootstrapping of in-band control channels

Decoupling control and data planes, as proposed by SDN environments, enables the improvement of network programmability not only at the control plane but also in the forwarding mechanisms. In this sense, hardware designs and new protocols can increase the flexibility offered by the whole infrastructure. Despite of many benefits provided by SDN architectures, there still are some points that can be further addressed, such as flexibility and programmability at the data plane level and networking device bootstrapping. Moved by these issues, this paper presents a proposal for a protocol, named ETSCP, to program the elements of a flexible data plane, supported by autonomous initialization of control plane. The elements of ETSCP are presented, as well as a simulation and a validation system built to demonstrate its operation in a local network.