VBNet: A VLC Enabled Hybrid Data Center Network

Visible Light Communication (VLC) has the potential to provide dense and fast connectivity at low cost. In this paper, we propose a novel VLC-enabled hybrid data center network VBNet. It extends the design of wireless data center networks further into three aspects: (1) full wireless: server level is completely wireless; (2) easy to deploy: no need to change the existing infrastructure in the data center; (3) plug-and-play: no additional centralized control operations. VLC link reduces the path length of communication between servers and improves network performance. The unicast and multicast routing of VBNet are also given. Using VLC links can avoid hierarchical switches and cables and reduce hardware investment and maintenance costs.