On Modeling Clustering Indexes of BT-Like Systems

In this paper, we explore the "clustering" phenomenon in BT-like systems. A high clustering implies peers have a high tendency to exchange information with peers of the similar bandwidth type. We first show the clustering does exist in BT-like systems. Although high clustering is desirable for file sharing application, it may not be appropriate for multimedia streaming applications. We provide analytical models to calculate the clustering index and illustrate how one can control the clustering index for different P2P applications.