Protocols for a self-healing network

Modern warfighting places a premium on mobile, fault-tolerant, real-time communication; however, existing network protocols such as TCP/IP were designed for fixed-base applications and make little provision for fault tolerance or transmission of time-critical data. The protocols for a self-healing network (PSHN) were designed to support tactical data networks while maintaining compatibility with commercial computing and network equipment. The objective of PSHN was to design a suite of network protocols that would support communication with mobile entities efficiently, provide fault tolerance, transport data in support of real-time applications, and maintain compatibility with existing network protocols. A study was conducted to determine if these objectives could be met. The study produced a design of the PSHN, and critical components of the PSHN design were validated by simulation. It was found that the required mobility, fault tolerance, and transport features could be implemented while retaining compatibility with TCP/IP by extending current standard protocols, in particular OSPF routing, TCP transport, and DHCP support for mobility