Integration of a network aware traffic generation device into a computer network emulation platform

Flexible, open source network emulation tools can provide network researchers with significant benefits regarding network behaviour and performance. The evaluation of these networks can benefit greatly from the integration of realistic, network aware traffic into the network emulation platform. Traffic generators are often systems that replay captured traffic packet-by-packet or generate traffic according to a specified model or preconfigured sequence. Many of these traffic generators can be easily integrated into emulation platforms, but are not responsive to network behaviour and performance as it does not adapt to current network conditions and will blindly transmit data with minimal understanding of the network and its protocols (Botta, Dainotti & Pescapè, 2010). Network aware traffic generation systems communicate to the network using various protocols before traffic generation starts, enabling the generation of realistic, network aware traffic. In this paper we describe the integration of the Common Open Research Emulator (CORE), a network emulation platform, with a network aware traffic generation system, namely BreakingPoint. The integration is possible with the implementation of CORE in FreeBSD, using the Netgraph system. This solution allows real-time bidirectional communication between the virtualised nodes in the emulation platform and the external traffic generation system. This successful integration enables researchers to assess and analyse networks with the existence of realistic, network aware traffic.