AirNet: The edge-fabric model as a virtual control plane

Abstract

While there are many motivations to virtualize networks, easing their management is probably one of the most important reasons. However, the choice of the network abstraction model that will be used to abstract the physical infrastructure represents a major challenge, given that this choice will have a significant impact on what an administrator can see and do. In this article, we present a new domain specific language, called AirNet, to design and control virtual networks. The central feature of this language is to rely on a new network abstraction model that offers a clear separation between simple transport functions and advanced network services. These services are classified into three main categories: static control functions, dynamic control functions and data functions. In addition, we developed a hypervisor that supports the AirNet language and handles, in particular, the virtual-to-physical mapping.