Mininet Topology: Mirror of the Optical Switch Fabric

Abstract

Software Defined Networks (SDN) is a new approach to change the conventional networking and is being researched in the various networking domains. To test and prototype SDN based concepts, a lightweight and closer to reality option is Mininet emulator. Mininet emulates SDN behavior by creating a virtual network of elements using Network Namespaces on a single Linux kernel machine. In this work, we have developed a Mininet topology that emulates the structure of a WDM Switch. The topology mirrors the paths that can be used by the wavelengths in a WDM switch fabric. The SDN controller can find a path for communication between hosts through this network. We simulated our Mininet topology, which mirrors an architecture for three wavelengths. The Ping command results show that only a set of hosts can be reached out by a particular host; which is the requirement of a WDM switch, and this verifies that Mininet topology is mapping a WDM switch.