System supports for protocol and application adaptation in vertical handoffs

Abstract

In overlay networks, the network characteristics before and after a vertical handoff would be drastically different. Consequently, in this paper, we propose an end-to-end based scheme to support protocol and application adaptation in vertical handoffs. First, we proposed a Vertical-handoff Aware TCP, called VA-TCP. VA-TCP can identify the packet losses caused by vertical handoffs. If segments losses are due to vertical handoffs, VA-TCP only retransmits the missing segments but does not invoke the congestion control procedure. Moreover, VA-TCP dynamically estimates the bandwidth and round-trip time in a new network. Based on the estimated bandwidth and round-trip time, VA-TCP adjusts its parameters to respond to the new network environment. Second, during a vertical handoff, applications also need to be adapted accordingly. Therefore, we design a programming interface that allows applications to be notified upon and adapt to changing network environments. To support our interface, we utilize the signal mechanism to achieve kernel-to-user notification. Nevertheless, signals cannot carry information. Thus, we implement the shared memory mechanism between applications and the kernel to facilitate parameters exchange. Finally, we also provide a handoff-aware CPU scheduler so that tasks that are interested in the vertical-handoff event are given preference over other processes to attain a prompt response for new network conditions. We have implemented a prototype system on the Linux kernel 2.6. From the experimental results, our proposed protocol and application adaptation mechanisms are shown to effectively improve the performance of TCP and applications during vertical handoffs. Copyright (C) 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.