Implementing energy-aware algorithms in backbone networks: A transient analysis

In this work we study the impact of energy-aware routing algorithms on IP backbone networks, focusing on the routing protocol transients due to network reconfiguration. We first propose the Green Partial Exportation (GPE) algorithm, which is fully compatible with the OSPF protocol and targets the reduction of the number of changed paths in the network; we also realize a green software router by integrating GPE in the Quagga routing suite. Then we define an experimental methodology to evaluate the effects of a green routing strategy on the network behavior, in terms of delay increase and packet loss. Finally, we evaluate our solution on an emulated testbed from a national telecom operator. Our results show a maximum increment of 320 ms for the RTT and a packet loss of 1.45% during the network transients. Moreover, GPE can be safely applied in the network with a time granularity of less than one minute.