Title of Paper: Ohio Network Emulator (ONE) Enhancements for Satellite Network Research

Principal Author: James McKim

Abstract: The ONE application is a network emulator that can be run on an off the shelf computer workstation. ONE provides an inexpensive way to perform the kinds of network emulation of interest in space network research. Effects that would be otherwise difficult or impossible to simulate (i.e. communication transit delays as seen by satellites and spacecraft) can be studied in the lab as new protocols are developed.

ONE was initially developed at Ohio University (1) and has since undergone major revision at NASA Glenn Research Center Satellite Network and Architectures branch to enhance the capabilities of ONE pertinent to the space based Internet protocol research.

Of most interest is the variable propagation delay capability. The software currently supports propagation delays as defined by output from Satellite Toolkit (STK) simulation runs. Interfaces to other sources of propagation delay data can easily be added as needed. Tests of the effects of changing propagation delays on the performance of networks can be done. This will facilitate development of strategies to efficiently and reliably handle network environments like those encountered by spacecraft or satellites.

Other capabilities include: Random Early Detection (RED), an active queue management strategy that attempts to improve performance and reduce the average queue length, and Bit Error Rate (BER) simulation (the injection of simulated noise into the data stream). The design is amenable to inclusion of other software controlled effects.

The ONE application is being made available to outside researchers in a open source format. The product will be supported internally, and ideally, benefit from having the wider external distribution.

(1) Mark Allman, Adam Caldwell, Shawn Osterman, "ONE: The Ohio
Network Emulator", Ohio University, 1997.