Traffic engineering[edit]
Compared to network engineering, which adds resources such as links, routers and switches into the network, traffic engineering targets changing traffic paths on the existing network to alleviate traffic congestion or accommodate more traffic demand.
This technology is critical when the cost of network expansion is prohibitively high and network load is not optimally balanced. The first part provides financial motivation for traffic engineering while the second part grants the possibility of deploying this technology.
Survivability[edit]
Network survivability enables the network to maintain maximum network connectivity and quality of service under failure conditions. It has been one of the critical requirements in network planning and design. It involves design requirements on topology, protocol, bandwidth allocation, etc.. Topology requirement can be maintaining a minimum two-connected network against any failure of a single link or node. Protocol requirements include using dynamic routing protocol to reroute traffic against network dynamics during the transition of network dimensioning or equipment failures. Bandwidth allocation requirements pro-actively allocate extra bandwidth to avoid traffic loss under failure conditions. This topic has been actively studied in conferences, such as the International Workshop on Design of Reliable Communication Networks.[3]
Tools[edit]
There are a wide variety of tools available for network planning and design depending on the technologies being used. These include
• Network Configuration Tool
• OPNET
• NetSim
• Alcatel lucent 1390 for optical networks
• EDX Wireless Network Planning Tool