GPTE: Efficient Graph Partitioning-based Traffic Engineering in Hybrid SDN/IP Networks

Due to the lack of a centralized global view on the Traditional IP network, it may cause load imbalance or network congestion. Because of the high economical costs and technical conditions of the migration to full SDN, network operators prefer partial deployment of SDN-enabled devices in the IP network. An efficient graph partitioning-based TE (GPTE) in hybrid SDN/IP networks is proposed by considering the network topology, in which legacy devices and SDN-enabled devices co-exist. Firstly, GPTE models the partial SDN deployment as a Network Partitioning Problem solved by transforming the original network into its dual, which make the representation applicable to partitioning. Afterwards, GPTE formulates the TE as an Integer Linear Programming (ILP) by considering hybrid SDN/IP routing mechanism. Finally, through intensive experiments under different topologies, GPTE can achieve a significant improvements in terms of load balancing performance and can provide better TE capabilities.