Internet design using parametric indices

Internetworking standards have enabled designers of internets to use devices from multiple vendors. In the design of an internet, two of the major technical problems revolve around the optimum selection of links between nodes and the location of the root of the tree which spans the configuration. The tree and its root form a heirachy of branches which link all nodes in an internet such that no loop paths exist between nodes. This paper describes how an Internet Descriptor can be used to assess effects on performance and reliability of the location of the root and configuration of the tree in an internet. In the two design examples, internet trees are examined in terms of their compactness. Internet throughput, end-to-end transmission time, configuration balancing and cost are all directly related to the degree of compactness of the tree, as is shown.