On Reducing the Degree of Long-range Dependent Network Traffic Using the CoLoRaDe Algorithm

Long-range dependence characteristics have been observed in many natural or physical phenomena. In particular, a significant impact on data network performance has been shown in several papers. Congested Internet situations, where TCP/IP buffers start to fill, show long-range dependent (LRD) self-similar chaotic behaviour. The exponential growth of the number of servers, as well as the number of users, causes the performance of the Internet to be problematic since the LRD traffic has a significant impact on the buffer requirements. The Internet is a large-scale, wide-area network for which the importance of measurement and analysis of traffic is vital. The intensity of the long-range dependence (LRD) of communications network traffic can be measured using the Hurst parameter. A variety of techniques (such as R/S analysis, aggregated variance-time analysis, periodogram analysis, Whittle estimator, Higuchi’s method, Wavelet-based estimator, absolute moment method, etc.) exist for estimating Hurst exponent but the accuracy of the estimation is still a complicated and controversial issue. Earlier research [1] introduced a novel estimator called the Hurst Exponent from the Autocorrelation Function (HEAF) and it was shown why lag 2 in HEAF (i.e. HEAF (2)) is considered when estimating LRD of network traffic. HEAF estimates H by a process which is simple, quick and reliable. In this research we extend these concepts by introducing a novel algorithm for controlling the long-range dependence of network traffic, named CoLoRaDe which is shown to reduce the LRD of packet sequences at the router buffer.