Performance Modeling of the Wireless Internet

Kritzinger, PS and PP Pileggi (2007) Performance Modeling of the Wireless Internet. In Proceedings Wireless Rural and Emergancy Communication Conference 2007, Rome, Italy.

Abstract

IEEE 802.11 (or WiFi) networks are now well-established as the primary solution for delivering broadband services to metropolitan areas and rural communities. Furthermore, such networks are both easy to implement and efficient at providing communications in support of rural fire-fighting and similar emergency services. Moreover, in the developing world wireless networks can be rapidly deployed in rural areas, providing access to the Internet from public kiosks for educational and entertainment purposes. Part of the growing solution are Wireless Mesh networks, where peers communicate with each another and connect through a back haul network to the Internet. The back haul network, which connects to the Internet, can be one of a number of competing technologies, such as the increasingly popular 802.16 standard. Such a wireless network architecture is also referred to as the Wireless Internet. As these networks become increasingly more complex, modeling to evaluate the expected QoS plays a crucial role in the design process. In this paper we advocate a hierarchy of models which build upon an analytic multi-class queueing network model. Furthermore, we show the results of comparing an analytic model with simulations of the associated network, using inter-arrival time and packet distributions of measured Internet traffic.