A linear integer programming approach to analyze P2P media streaming

Recent advancement in peer-to-peer (P2P) technologies has enabled a wide range of new applications. In this paper, we present mixed integer programming (MIP) formulations to analyze multiple interior-disjoint-tree-based and mesh-based P2P media streaming for application level multicast (ALM). Network optimization is the key to simultaneously satisfy a large group (potentially millions) of peers´ needs given limited network resources. The key to our analytical approach is to cast the P2P media streaming problem as a constraint system. We intend to answer the following question: given a source node, a group of intended destination peer nodes with heterogeneous network resources, and an objective function to optimize, what is the best way to distribute information among these peer nodes? To the best of our knowledge, it is the first time that mixed integer programming (MIP) formulations in the framework of multiple interior-disjoint trees and mesh-based P2P streaming are presented to provide analytical insight and better understanding of the P2P streaming problem. Methods to obtain the optimal solutions for the presented formulations are also discussed.