Re: Need Help ! (ForCES for my MSc dissertation)

Dear Hormuzd,

If you remember I wanted to do an MSc dissertation on the ForCES topic.

I have finally finsihed up my dissertation. It was an application modelled 
around the concepts of ForCES framework, particularly its correspondonce 
with the networking and the distributed computing field. It was a basic 
implementation of a CE and multiple FEs, working with each other in getting 
network reachability information from one FE, to other FEs, via CE. It was 
an effort for me to learn the aspects of network related programming, 
including the basic concepts of distributed systems.

Now, I need your guidance as to how I can continue with my interest 
regarding the ForCES concept. I have a background and an aptitude of 
networking and I had wanted to explore the traits of network programming. My 
problem area was network QOS and ForCES was my suggested way of solving the 
scarcity of control and data processing power. This was the main theme of my 
dissertation. Although I am not an expert programmer, I am confident that I 
have developed the basic skills required to program in the networking field. 
I wish to work further along the concepts of ForCES framework but do not 
know how.

I would be most grateful to you if you could could help me in this regard.

Thank you,

Abid Ghufran.





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----Original Message Follows----
From: "Khosravi, Hormuzd M" <[email protected]>
To: "Abid Ghufran" <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>
Subject: RE: [FORCES] Need Help ! (ForCES for my MSc dissertation)
Date: Wed, 18 Jan 2006 20:53:41 -0800

Hi Abid,

Pls see my responses inline below...

Regards
Hormuzd

-----Original Message-----
From: Forwarding and Control Element Separation
[mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Abid Ghufran
Sent: Monday, January 16, 2006 2:18 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [FORCES] Need Help ! (ForCES for my MSc dissertation)

Dear All,

I am doing MSc in High Speed Networks and Distributed Systems, from
Oxford
Brookes University UK. For my dissertation I intend to take "something
from
  the" ForCES protocol.

After going through the standard documents on this protocol, I have
found it
very interesting and am therfore thinking of finally deciding for it.
There
is a condition for my dissertation, that it should involve both
networking
and programming related to distributed systems. I have found the ForCES
concept to be covering both of these requirements. But before I finally
decide, I would like some advise from the people on this list.

1) I have found that the protocol concept has a very extensive and a
wide
scope. I shall only be having 3 months for my dissertation. Of all the
elements included in this concept of ForCES protocol, which aspect
should be
mose suitable for my dissertation? In simple words there are many things
involved in the ForCES, which of them should I aim at, for my
dissertation?

[HK] That's a tough one to answer, it would depend on your comfort level
with implementation or simulation, etc. One topic that I would suggest
is evaluation of transport protocols for ForCES control/data channel. I
have personally published 2 papers in conferences on this topic in 2004
and would be happy to give you those references. Currently, the wg is
tending towards using TCP for the control channel and DCCP for the data
channel. This is a very good theoretical combination; it would be good
to get some experimental nos on this as well.
Other topics would include simulation of different LFBs on the FE,
simulations to test scalability of ForCES protocol, etc

2) Can I consider this protocol as similar to an out-of-band signalling
model for coordination between the CE, FE and LFBs?
[HK] yes, that's one of thinking about it

3) I feel that this concept will see prevalent usage in the networking
field. What do you think?
[HK] I Agree

4) Are there any vendors thinking or planning to incorporate this
concept?
[HK] Yes, some of them are active on this mailing list...no specific
product announcements yet that I know of, so I wont take names.

5) What kind of language platform/functionality would be deemed suitable
for
the implementation of this protocol?
[HK] I would say start of with a Linux based PC

6) Is it possilbe to study/analyze the protocol by simulating it? Which
of
its aspect could be simulated?
[HK] The LFB behavior on the FE could be simulated. Also the TML
behavior could be simulated as well

I shall be most grateful if you could help me in this regard.

Thank you very much,

Abid Ghufran.