PARALLEL SIMULATION OF ATM NETWORKS: CASE STUDY AND LESSONS LEARNED

This paper summarizes our experiences in developing and usi ng a cell-level ATM network sim- ulator called ATM-TN. The ATM-TN simulator was developed as part of TeleSim, a collaborative research project aimed at developing high performance para llel simulation tools for the design and analysis of broadband ATM networks. The ATM-TN simulator pr ovides the fundamental platform for ongoing research in two areas: parallel simulation perform ance (e.g., optimistic synchronization, partitioning, dynamic load balancing) and ATM network perf ormance (e.g., traffic modeling, ATM switch design, ABR traffic control). Our experiences with the simulator to date have been largely positive. On the parallel simulation front, we have found that ATM network simulation is a promisi ng application domain for parallel simulation techniques, though there are significant techni cal challenges to overcome regarding event granularity, simulation partitioning, scheduling, and lo ad balancing. On the network performance front, we have found that detailed cell-level traffic sourcemodels, validated against empirical measurements, are invaluable inputs to ATM simulation expe riments, such as those studying the statistical multiplexing behaviour of traffic in high speed networks.