Smart Buffering for seamless handover in Proxy Mobile IPv6

Proxy Mobile IPv6 (PMIPv6) is proposed as a new network‐based mobility protocol and it does not require MN's involving in mobility management. MN can handover relatively faster in PMIPv6 than in Mobile IPv6 (MIPv6) because it actively uses link‐layer attachment information and reduces the movement detection time, and eliminates duplicate address detection procedure. However, the current PMIPv6 cannot prevent packet loss during the handover period. We propose the Smart Buffering scheme for seamlessness in PMIPv6. The Smart Buffering scheme prevents packet loss by proactively buffering packets that will be lost in a current serving mobile access gateway (MAG) by harnessing network‐side information only. It also performs redundant packet elimination and packet reordering to minimize duplicate packet delivery and disruption of connection‐oriented flows. To fetch buffered packets from a previous MAG, a new MAG discovers the previous MAG by using a discovery mechanism without any involvement of an MN. We verified the effectiveness of Smart Buffering via simulation with various parameters. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Smart Buffering scheme is proposed to provide seamless handover in Proxy Mobile IPv6. The Smart Buffering scheme prevents packet loss by proactively buffering packets that will be lost in a current serving MAG by harnessing network‐side information only. It also performs redundant packet elimination and packet reordering to minimize duplicate packet delivery and disruption of connection‐oriented flows.