Using transparent WDM metro rings to provide an out-of-band control network for OpenFlow in MAN

Abstract

OpenFlow is a protocol that enables networks to evolve and change flexibly, by giving a remote controller the capability of modifying the behavior of network devices. In an OpenFlow network, each device needs to maintain a dedicated and separated connection with a remote controller. All these connections can be described as the OpenFlow control network, that is the data network which transports control plane information, and can be deployed together with the data infrastructure plane (in-band) or separated (out-of-band), with advantages and disadvantages in both cases. The control network is a critical subsystem since the communication with the controller must be reliable and ideally should be protected against failures. This paper proposes a novel ring architecture to efficiently transport both the data plane and an out-of-band control network.