Abstract
Network operators can benefit in terms of flexibility,
cost, and vendor-independence when adopting the Software
Defined Networking (SDN) paradigm. In many scenarios, the
SDN controller orders the installation of new flow table entries
in the switches it manages. Since such operations are handled
in the slow path of the switches, the corresponding processing
times constitute an important performance indicator for switches.
This work focuses on a comparison of two mechanisms for
evaluating the performance of OpenFlow switches with respect to
the processing time of FlowMod messages. These mechanisms are
characterized by different degrees of accuracy, cost, complexity,
and the capability of performing measurements at run time.
The first mechanism is based on the Spirent C1 dedicated
testing platform, while the other uses a software module for
the OpenDaylight controller. We assess their capabilities with
respect to the abovementioned characteristics and quantify their
accuracy by means of wiretaps that provide a ground truth
regarding the measured processing times. By using three different
switches in the experiments, it is possible to distinguish between
hardware specific side-effects and general phenomena.
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