A Hybrid Framework for Network Processor System Analysis

This paper introduces a modeling framework for network processing systems. The framework is composed of independent application, system and traffic models which describe router functionality, system resources/organization and packet traffic, respectively. The framework uses the Click Modular router to describe functionality. Click modules are mapped onto an object-based description of the system hardware and are profiled to determine maximum packet flow through the system and aggregate resource utilization for a given traffic model. This paper presents several modeling examples of uniprocessor and multiprocessor systems executing IPv4 routing and IPSec VPN encryption/decryption. Model-based performance estimates are compared to the measured performance of the real systems being modeled; the estimates are found to be accurate within 10%. The framework emphasizes ease of use, and permits a quick system analysis of existing or novel applications.