A comparative analysis of simulators for the Cloud to Fog continuum

The Cloud to Fog continuum is a very dense and complex scenario. At the core level (Cloud) resources are vast, whilst they become scarce at the Edge (Fog). This complexity leads to the need of simulation tools in order to evaluate the performance of novel mechanisms that hardly can be tested in real scenarios. Thus, simulation represents a solution for early stage evaluation before moving to real-world (and more expensive and complex) testbeds. However, selecting the appropriate simulation tool can be complex in itself. This paper presents a conceptual review on six Cloud/Fog Simulation tools, describing their main characteristics and what they allow to experiment. A practical overview of the most representative Cloud/Fog simulators is presented, reporting about their resource consumption and execution time. The aim of this survey is to enlighten other researchers in the selection of the appropriate Cloud/Fog simulation tool for their goals and to know what they can expect from said tools.