A Performance Model of MPLS Multipath Routing with Failures and Repairs of the LSPs

Efficient operation of multipath routing is considered as one of the most important aspects for the success of MPLS traffic engineering. Multipath routing has an advantage over the traffic routing based on single shortest paths because single path routing may lead to unbalanced traffic situations and degraded QoS (Quality of Service). This paper proposes a novel analytical queueing model for the performance evaluation of multipath routing in MPLS networks. This paper applies an extension of a generalized Markovian queue, called the HetSigma queue, to model the operation of ingress nodes and derives the performance measures. That extended queue is essentially the MM ∑K k=1 CPPk/GE/c/L queue with heterogeneous servers, and with server-breakdowns and repairs according to an appropriate repair strategy. A case study is done numerically using the developed model. The model-validation is accomplished by comparing the numerical results of the model with those of the simulation of the system. The model is fast with good accuracy, hence useful to network designers in an number of aspects. P13/1