MODELING AND SIMULATING FLOW PROPAGATION IN DYNAMIC BANDWIDTH SYSTEMS

In a network that includes static bandwidth and dynamic bandwidth links, traffic flow at the OSI network layer is simulated at a traffic-flow level at interfaces to fixed bandwidth links, and simulated at a discrete-packet level at interfaces to dynamic bandwidth links. The resultant discrete-packet reception events at the receiving interface(s) of the dynamic bandwidth link are processed to determine the effective bandwidth/throughput of the link, as well as the allocation of this bandwidth among the individual flows through the link. The discrete-packet level receptions are used to reconstruct the parameters of the traffic flow at the network layer of the receiving interface, and this determined traffic flow is simulated accordingly at the next link, depending upon whether the next link is a static or dynamic bandwidth link.