Active Network Support for Multicast Applications

Abstract

This article analyzes the necessity and feasibility of designing a protocol for active networks that supports multicasting a plications with different characteristics in elements required by multicast applications, and from this study a network service description is given. The advantages of providing this service over active networks are studied. The service description is then used as the set of requirements for the design of the RMANP protocol, which is capable of providin the service over active network technology. Then a prototype implementation OF RMANP over the Active Node Transport System (ANTS) is presented, and some data for the evaluation of its performance is provided. Finally, the main conclusions are that active networks provide flexible support for the development of new network services, but further improvements in runtime efficiency are required.