An efficient method for simulating token ring or token bus access protocols

A technique is presented which considerably reduces the simulation effort when high-level protocols are considered or the number of network stations is large. The technique requires partitioning the network into sets of primary and background stations. The primary stations are represented in a detailed fashion while the background stations are modeled with a background algorithm which stochastically estimates the amount of time the background stations hold the token. The background algorithm is shown to be quite accurate and more efficient than conventional discrete-event simulation techniques.<>