Modeling and distributed simulation of a broadband-ISDN network

A distributed approach to communication network simulation using a network of workstations configured as a loosely coupled parallel processor to model and simulate the broadband integrated services digital network (B-ISDN) is proposed. In a loosely coupled parallel processor system, a number of concurrently executable processors communicate asynchronously using explicit messages over high-speed links. Since this architecture is similar to that of B-ISDN networks, it constitutes a realistic testbed for their modeling and simulation. The authors describe an implementation of this approach on 50 Sun workstations at Brown University. Performance results, based on representative B-ISDN networks and realistic traffic models, indicate that the distributed approach is efficient and accurate.<>