The Advanced Networking Group (ANG) of Network Computing Services, Inc. (NetworkCS, formerly Minnesota Supercomputer Center, Inc) is exploring, developing and implementing new networkings technologies and solutions that support the creation of large, high-speed, wide-area IP internets such as the Next Generation Internet and Internet2.
Much of the work of the Group is focused on shared, high-speed, wide-area networks that use Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) technology. ATM networks transport data by segmenting packets into 53 byte "cells" which can easily be switched at very high speeds. In many configurations, ATM services provide cost-effective, high-bandwidth, wide-area network solutions. This technology offers the promise of integrating data, video and voice traffic onto a common network, as well as supporting quality of service (QOS) assurances, (such as guaranteeing at least a minimum bandwidth is available or that network delays are less than some maximum). Commercial wide-area ATM services are available at a variety of speeds, including DS-3 (45 Mbps), OC-3c (155 Mbps) and OC-12c (622 Mbps).
The Advanced Networking Group is developing visualization techniques and tools that will help protocol and network designers better understand and optimize the design of wide-area networks that use non-broadcast, multiple access (NBMA) technologies such as ATM, wave-division multiplexing and all-optical networks. These techniques focus on how IP-related flows are mapped onto wide-area NBMA networks.
IP-related flows must be mapped appropriately onto the underlying network facilities to avoid increased cost and reduced availability and performance in wide-area NBMA networks. NBMA network technologies generally require that new protocols be developed to support IP because many NBMA networks:
This project is developing tools that display in real-time IP-related flows in wide-area IP/ATM internets. These tools will enable researchers to examine these flows in networks that use the IETF's Classical IP/ATM model or the ATM Forum's LANE/MPOA protocols. These techniques and the lessons learned by this project will be directly applicable to wide-area networks based on other NBMA technologies, such as high-speed, all-optical networks and other very high-speed, wide-area network technologies.
This work is funded by the Information Technology Office (ITO) of the Defense Advanced Projects Research Agency (DARPA) as part of the Next Generation Internet (NGI) program.
The Advanced Networking Group (ANG) developed the Host ATM Research Platform (HARP) software to provide a production-quality platform for IP/ATM research. HARP implements the IETF Classical IP model (RFC 2225) for using IP over ATM networks. HARP 3, the latest version, includes:
The development of HARP was funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
NetworkCS was a research participant in the MAGIC-II and MAGIC Gigabit Testbed projects. The focus of the MAGIC projects is very high-speed, wide-area IP/ATM networks and applications. This work was funded by the Defense Advanced Projects Research Agency (DARPA) with substantial support from Sprint.
ANG's research work on the MAGIC projects has included:
ANG shares responsibility for engineering, network integration, and operations of the MAGIC testbed. Information about the architecture and operations of the MAGIC testbed is available, including real-time status displays. The proposed architecture for interconnecting MAGIC to other testbeds in a scalable fashion is also detailed.
The National Science Foundation (NSF), as part of the new NSFNET architecture, sponsored several Network Access Points, (NAPs), where network service providers connect and exchange routing information and data. NetworkCS was a subcontractor on Sprint's NAP manager cooperative agreement. ANG's specific interest is the use of ATM within NAPs and the Internet. In July 1994, several ANG members coordinated an ATM NAP workshop in Toronto, which explored a variety of issues, associated with using ATM as a NAP medium.
The Advanced Networking Group has written a number of papers and presentations about ATM, IP/ATM networks and wide-area ATM networks. Some of the more heavily accessed papers include:
"Internet Exchanges: Policy-Driven Evolution," June 1996.
"Protocol Overhead in IP/ATM Networks," August 1994.
"Internetworking with ATM WANs," December 1992.
The NetworkCS Advanced Networking Group includes four highly experienced network software professionals. All have experience developing commercial communications products, have been involved with Internet operations and have been working with ATM networks since 1991. ANG members are active in the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) and often attend North American Network Operators' Group (NANOG) meetings. NetworkCS is an auditing member of The ATM Forum. ANG is comprised of:
Contact Tim Salo (salo@networkcs.com or 612-337-3555) for additional information about the Advanced Networking Group's activities, products and services.
Network Computing Services, Inc. is a privately held company that purchased Minnesota Supercomputer Center, Inc. (MSCI) from Silicon Graphics, Inc. in December 1996. Network Computing Services provides a variety of capabilities for its customers, including shared-computing services on some of the world's most powerful high-performance computer systems available in a commercially accessible network.
http://www.msci.magic.net/
Updated: 2000-11-08