Orbit Evaluation

A prototype Click-based router that also runs a name resolution daemon (gnrsd) is being evaluated on the ORBIT testbed, and is also available for any ORBIT experimenter to try out. A base disk image containing the router and gnrs daemon is available on ORBIT's image repository and can be installed on any ORBIT node using ​OMF tools. Once loaded, experimentation details including topology, process control and any other customization can be managed through OMF. Further, the prototype binaries on this image have been instrumented to monitor and report liveness and relevant statistics to a central repository using ORBIT Measurement Library (​OML).

The following sections will describe details of the disk image with the prototype binaries, and sample scripts for experimentation:

Image Details

The current image in use: mf-proto-trial2

The image holds the MobilityFirst prototype code base in /usr/local/mobilityfirst, and if possible updates the local copy to the latest stable SVN version at node boot time. It also compiles and installs user-level Click (v2.0) after including the elements from the prototype's code base. Similary, the name resolution daemon is compiled and installed under /usr/local/mobilityfirst/bin and can be controlled via the pre-installed init.d script called 'gnrs'.

Sample OMF scripts for ORBIT

Evaluation on GENI

​GENI, an NSF-funded proposal for a global environment for network innovation, is a multi-group collaborative effort to realize an at-scale experimental network infrastructure that is rich (i.e., with wired and wireless resources, commercial and experimental platforms) and allows for deep programmability.

​ProtoGENI is the prototype implementation and deployment of GENI. ProtoGENI is also the control framework for a number of GENI resources currently deployed on the national backbone and at several participating campuses. It is worth noting, however, that there are several GENI deployments that use other control frameworks and experimentation across ProtoGENI and these deployments is currently set up via personnel coordination/manual configuration.

The following links provide the basic information to learn about ProtoGENI and to get started with experimentation:

• ​ProtoGENI Tutorial with basics on
  • Creating an account with one of the Clearing houses (e.g., Utah Emulab or BBN)
  • Setting up certificate (with managers) and key-based (with individual hosts) authentication and authorization
  • Steps and test scripts for finding and reserving resources on ProtoGENI

• Quering and Reserving Resources can be done using either of following:
  • ​Flack: a graphical map interface. ​Flack Manual
  • ​Omni: a command line tool for reserving resources across control frameworks
  • ​ProtoGENI Test Scripts that can be used as starting point to get familiar with ProtoGENI interfaces and to ensure account is set up right