Nuevos conmutadores de red para redes integradas con SDN

Abstract

The technological revolution in which we are immersed tends to create new paradigms that are totally or partially inconsistent with previous models or architectures, as implied, for example, the birth of SDN networks. Specifically, SDN technology oers a centralised network model with a logical device, the controller, which is responsible for managing and maintaining the network. The aforementioned model is incompatible with the previous network paradigm, a distributed network model that relies on the cooperation of devices for network management. Precisely, centralized network management allows a dynamic and scalable deployment of high-level services that stimulate the fast-growth of SDN networks. For these reasons, the SDN concept is on the rise and is the basis on which new generation networks (5G and 6G) are built. This Ph.D. leverages the multipath challenge to solve challenges still present in SDN networks, such as the lack of standardisation in SDN In-Band network model, or the computational load reduction in the controller. To solve them, a new concept is included, the hybrid-SDN network, in which the controller delegates some functions to network switches to work in a distributed way. Moreover, both challenges introduce network exploration techniques to generate useful topological information to find multiple paths, instead of using link-state protocols to exchange such topological information among neighbors. Finally, the previous knowledge of hybrid-SDN networks is taken into account to create a new versatile multipath search algorithm, that is applicable both to communication networks and to other non-network-related disciplines.