Buffer sizing theory for bursty TCP flows

Abstract

In a router serving many TCP flows, queues will build up from time to time. The manner in which queues build up depends on the buffer space available and on the burstiness of the TCP traffic. Conversely, the traffic generated by a TCP flow depends on the congestion it sees at queues along its route. In order to decide how big buffers should be, we need to understand the interaction between these effects. This paper reviews the buffer-sizing theory in G. Raina and D. Wischik (2005) and extends it to cope with bursty TCP traffic. This enables us to explain an observation about TCP pacing made in A. Aggarwal et al. (2000)