Network Layer: Computer Networks

Class textbook:

Data Plane Computer Networking: A Top-Down Approach (8th

ed.)
J.F. Kurose, K.W. Ross
Pearson, 2020
 Overview of Network Layer
 What’s Inside a Router?
 The Internet Protocol: IPv4, Addressing, NAT IPv6
 Generalized Forwarding and SDN
 Middleboxes
• middlebox functions
• evolution, architectural principles of the Internet
 Summary
Middleboxes
Middlebox (RFC 3234)

“any intermediary box performing functions apart

from normal, standard functions of an IP router on
the data path between a source host and
destination host”
Middleboxes everywhere!
Firewalls, IDS: corporate,
institutional, service providers,
national or global ISP ISPs
NAT: home,
cellular,
institutional
Load balancers:
corporate, service
provider, data center,
mobile nets
Application-
specific: service datacenter
network

providers,
institutional, Caches: service
CDN enterprise
provider, mobile, CDNs
network
Middleboxes
 initially: proprietary (closed) hardware solutions
 move towards “whitebox” hardware implementing open API
 move away from proprietary hardware solutions
 programmable local actions via match+action
 move towards innovation/differentiation in software
 SDN: (logically) centralized control and configuration management
often in private/public cloud
 network functions virtualization (NFV): programmable services over
white box networking, computation, storage
The IP hourglass

HTTP SMTP RTP …

QUIC DASH
Internet’s “thin waist”: many protocols
 one network layer TCP UDP in physical, link,
protocol: IP
 must be implemented IP transport, and
by every (billions) of application
Ethernet PPP …
Internet-connected PDCP WiFi Bluetooth layers
devices
copper radio fiber
The IP hourglass, at middle age

HTTP SMTP RTP …

QUIC DASH

Internet’s middle age TCP UDP

“love handles”? caching N
 middleboxes, NAT IP FV
Firewalls
operating inside the
Ethernet PPP …
network PDCP WiFi Bluetooth

copper radio fiber

Architectural Principles of the Internet
RFC 1958
“Many members of the Internet community would argue that there is no architecture, but only a tradition,
which was not written down for the first 25 years (or at least not by the IAB). However, in very general terms,
the goal is connectivity, the tool is the Internet
the community believes that

Protocol, and the intelligence is end to end rather than hidden in the
network.”

Three cornerstone beliefs:

 simple connectivity
 IP protocol: that narrow waist
 intelligence, complexity at network edge
The end-end argument
 some network functionality (e.g., reliable data transfer, congestion)
can be implemented in network, or at network edge

application end-end implementation of reliable data transfer application

transport transport
network network
data link data link
physical physical

application
application
transport
transport
network hop-by-hop (in-network) implementation of reliable data transfer network
data link
data link
physical network
physical
network network network network network link
link link link link link physical
physical physical physical physical physical
The end-end argument
 some network functionality (e.g., reliable data transfer, congestion)
can be implemented in network, or at network edge

“The function in question can completely and correctly be implemented only

with the knowledge and help of the application standing at the end points of the
communication system. Therefore, providing that questioned function as a
feature of the communication system itself is not possible. (Sometimes an
incomplete version of the function provided by the communication system may
be useful as a performance enhancement.)

We call this line of reasoning against low-level function implementation the “end-
to-end argument.”
Saltzer, Reed, Clark 1981
 Where’s the intelligence?

20th century phone net: Internet (pre-2005) Internet (post-2005)

• intelligence/computing at • intelligence, computing at • programmable network devices
network switches edge • intelligence, computing, massive
application-level infrastructure at edge