Performance Evaluation of a Metro WDM Slotted Ring Network with SAN Extension

摘要

Storage area networks (SANs) are becoming an important part of optical MANs (metropolitan area networks). Growing storage and business-continuity needs; high bandwidth, low latency requirements for SANs; storage infrastructure consolidation; and post-9/11 regulatory issues are among the several driving factors to push this trend. We, in this paper, consider a SAN extension of a WDM (wavelength division multiplexing) ring network for MANs, and evaluate its performance using both simulation and analytical model. The network is based on one fixed transmitter and multiple fixed receivers. Beginning with an introduction and the context of this work, we describe the network and node architecture, discuss the simulator, give the analytical model, and characterize the network traffic. Subsequently, using Poisson and self-similar traffic, we present and discuss performance of the ring network for individual nodes in terms of queuing delay, throughput and packet loss probability, highlighting the asymmetric traffic effects of adding a SAN node to the network.