Adaptive Packet Pre-marker for TCP-based Applications in DiffServ Networks

Abstract

This paper proposes a control mechanism named PPE (Packet Pre-marking Engine) in application layer to assist TCP-based connection flow in maintaining end-to-end throughput in DiffServ networks. The application with PPE built in can adaptively adjust the DSCP (DiffServ CodePoint) of user’s traffic according to the network traffic load to inform the service provider what kind of service is needed. When the network is light-loaded, the user’s requirement can be met and the best service is provided. As the traffic load becomes heavy, the requirement will fail to meet, and the better level of service is used instead. In this paper, we will implement an FTP client program with PPE in a testing DiffServ platform to illustrate the effectiveness of this control mechanism.