SHF: Small: Designing Expandable and Cost-Effective Server-Centric Interconnects for Data Centers

在现代数据中心中，数据中心网络的性能起着至关重要的作用。目前，DCN主要分为两类：以交换机为中心的网络和以服务器为中心的网络。在以交换机为中心的网络中，交换机负责各种任务，例如路由和寻址，而服务器仅用于在网络中发送和接收数据包。在以服务器为中心的网络中，像路由这样的计算密集型任务被放在服务器上，服务器不仅充当终端主机，而且还充当彼此的中继节点。以服务器为中心的网络的一个显著优势是可以大幅降低网络硬件成本，因为考虑到大多数复杂的网络任务已转移到计算资源丰富的服务器，廉价的商用交换机就足够了。此外，由于服务器比交换机更具可编程性，以服务器为中心的网络可以加快网络创新的进程。基于在DCNS中部署以服务器为中心的网络的重要性和机遇，本研究系统地研究了构建具有成本效益和性能保证的以服务器为中心的DCNS所面临的基本和挑战问题，其目的是为数据中心设计新颖、可扩展和高性价比的以服务器为中心的互联和相关的路由算法。这项研究探索了数据中心中独特的新颖功能和技术，可与双端口服务器或任意固定数量的NIC端口构建经济高效的互连。更具体地说，研究的重点在于以下紧密耦合的问题：(1)利用当前市场上可用的商用COTS交换机和双端口服务器来构建高性价比的DCN互连；(2)能够充分利用新的互连的高效的单播、广播和组播的路由算法；(3)利用网络虚拟化技术为产业界和学术界的研究提供更灵活的解决方案；(4)使用满足未来服务器趋势的任意数量的NIC端口的服务器来构建高性价比的DCN互连；(5)通过在实际网络原型中对所提出的方案进行广泛的模拟和实施，进行全面的性能评估。提出的研究结合了理论分析、算法设计、网络优化、仿真和原型技术，提供了一个全面的工作解决方案，使高性能的下一代DCNS成为可能。这项研究希望对以服务器为中心的DCNS的基本设计原则产生影响。这项研究的结果有可能在保持低成本的同时提高DCNS的性能，并促进目前托管在数据中心的众多云计算应用。一个项目的目标是培养研究生，并促进女性工科学生的参与。该项目的重要成果将通过会议、期刊和网站访问的方式向研究界传播。

In modern data centers, the performance of data center networks (DCNs) plays a critical role. Currently, DCNs are mainly divided into two categories: switch-centric networks and server-centric networks. In a switch-centric network, switches are responsible for a variety of tasks such as routing and addressing, while servers are only used to send and receive packets in the network. In a server-centric network, the computational intensive tasks like routing are put on the servers, which act not only as end hosts, but also as relay nodes for each other. A significant advantage of server-centric networks is that network hardware cost can be drastically reduced, as inexpensive commodity switches are sufficient given that most complex network tasks have been shifted to servers where computation resources are abundant. Moreover, since servers are much more programmable than switches, server-centric networks can accelerate the process of network innovation. Motivated by the importance and opportunities of deploying server-centric networks in DCNs, this research systematically investigates the fundamental and challenging issues towards building cost-efficient server-centric DCNs with guaranteed performance.The objective of this research is to design novel, extendable and cost-effective server-centric interconnects and associated routing algorithms for data centers. This research explores the unique novel features and techniques in data centers to build cost-efficient interconnects with dual-port servers or any fixed number of NIC ports. More specifically, the research focuses on following closely coupled issues: (1) construct cost-efficient DCN interconnects using commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) switches and dual-port servers that are available in current markets; (2) efficient routing algorithms for unicast, broadcast and multicast that can sufficiently take advantage of the novel interconnects; (3) employ network virtualization technology to offer a more flexible solution to both industry and academic research; (4) construct cost-efficient DCN interconnects using servers with any fixed number of NIC ports that meet the trend of future servers; (5) conduct a comprehensive performance evaluation through extensive simulations and implementation of proposed schemes in a realistic network prototype. The proposed research combines theoretical analysis, algorithm design, network optimization, simulation and prototyping techniques to provide a comprehensive working solution that enables high performance next generation DCNs. This research hopes to impact fundamental design principles of server-centric DCNs. The outcome of this research has the potential to boost the performance of DCNs while keeping the cost low, and facilitate numerous cloud computing applications currently hosted in data centers. A project goal is to train graduate students and promote the participation of female engineering students. The important findings of this project are to be disseminated to the research community by way of conferences, journals and web site access.