Stochastic analysis of packet-pair probing for network bandwidth estimation

In this paper, we perform a stochastic analysis of the packet-pair technique, which is a widely used method for estimating the network bandwidth in an end-to-end manner. There has been no explicit delay model of the packet-pair technique primarily because the stochastic behavior of a packet pair has not been fully understood. Our analysis is based on a novel insight that the transient analysis of the G/D/1 system can accurately describe the behavior of a packet pair, providing an explicit stochastic model. We first investigate a single-hop case and derive an analytical relationship between the input and the output probing gaps of a packet pair. Using this single-hop model, we provide a multi-hop model under an assumption of a single tight link. Our model shows the following two important features of the packet-pair technique: (i) The difference between the proposed model and the previous fluid model becomes significant when the input probing gap is around the characteristic value. (ii...

• Type: Journal
• Year: 2006
• Where: CN
• Authors: Kyung-Joon Park, Hyuk Lim, Chong-Ho Choi
• Keywords: CN 2006, Model, Packet Pair, Packet-pair Technique