Doc.: IEEE 802.11-05/0166r1 Submission March 2005 Ike Nassi & Jorjeta Jetcheva, FiretideSlide 1 The Advantages of Invisibility and Cooperation Notice:

March 2005

Ike Nassi & Jorjeta Jetcheva, Firetide

Slide 1

doc.: IEEE 802.11-05/0166r1

Submission

The Advantages of Invisibility and Cooperation

Notice: This document has been prepared to assist IEEE 802.11. It is offered as a basis for discussion and is not binding on the contributing individual(s) or organization(s). The material in this document is subject to change in form and content after further study. The contributor(s) reserve(s) the right to add, amend or withdraw material contained herein.

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Date: 2005-03-16

Authors:

Name Company Address Phone email

Ike Nassi

Jorjeta Jetcheva

Firetide, Inc.

16795 Lark Ave.Los Gatos, CA 95032

+ 1 408-399-7771

[email protected]

[email protected]

March 2005


Slide 2

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Submission

Motivation• Mesh opens up interesting and challenging problems that we are only

beginning to understand• The standard must provide a flexible platform for

– Development– Innovation– New applications

• Sometimes a mesh looks like a network of nodes, but sometimes a mesh looks like a single node whose internal structure is invisible (i.e., it can be recursive and atomic)

• Innovation can happen as a network, or as a node, or in combination thereof• Mesh network cooperation with other networks is essential

March 2005


Slide 3

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Submission

An Example Mesh Model

• Step 1:Power on

• Step 2:There is no Step 2

March 2005


Slide 4

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Submission

The Invisible Mesh• Inside:

– Auto discovery– Self configuring– Self healing

• Outside:– Looks like a multi-protocol switch

Is this a mesh, or a node, or a switch?

March 2005


Slide 5

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Submission

What Defines a Wireless Mesh Backhaul

• A Mesh is composed of nodes, each of which is a wireless router

• Nodes talk wirelessly to each other, but not to clients of the backhaul

• Additional nodes on a network improve network performance – more aggregate bandwidth can invisibly be made available to clients without any service disruption

• Nodes auto-discover and self configure across the Mesh

• The resulting mesh may have multiple external connections

• Routers gave way to NAT, bridges never did; strong value in isolating address spaces from one another

March 2005


Slide 6

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Submission

Why is Invisibility Necessary?• What is the motivation for “invisibility”?

– Good fences make good neighbors!– Anonymity is a powerful tool for composition

• Allows for seamless integration into existing infrastructures• Allows for specialized meshes for different applications based on a single

standard architecture• Allows for future innovation

March 2005


Slide 7

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Submission

Prototypical Campus Environments

InternetGateway

InternetInternetGateway

Internet

• Start with a mesh, then,

• Extend network coverage to off-campus sites

March 2005


Slide 8

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Submission

Reminder: Multi-Service Broadband Connectivity

• Mesh beyond WiFi– High performance for voice,

video and data services– Seamless Ethernet

connectivity for any access point or device

– Rapid network deployment with low CAPEX and OPEX

– Secure and manageable

video

data

Voice over IP

March 2005


Slide 9

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Submission

Park

Library

CoffeeShop

Local WISP • Deploy multiple HotSpots on the same mesh network to create a unified HotZone

Public Wi-Fi Access HotZones

March 2005


Slide 10

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Submission

Reusable Temporary Networks

OutdoorAccess Point

Internet Gateway

Internet

Laptop

SurveillanceCamera

Access Point

• Venues include special events, conferences, construction sites, etc.,

• Provide Internet access to site offices and trailers

• Mesh nodes are easy to relocate as needed

March 2005


Slide 11

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Submission

Warehousing & Manufacturing

• Inventory management, RFID systems and terminals

• Easily reconfigure for changing warehouse layouts

WI-FI COVERAGE

Internet Gateway

Monitoring Station

Internet

March 2005


Slide 12

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Submission

Network Management: Making The Invisible, Visible

• Management of mesh and individual node settings

• Customization of graphical display and node placement

• Remote management• Radio power controls• Diagnostic tests and tools• Traffic prioritization, VLAN and

security settings

March 2005


Slide 13

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Submission

Interoperability & Cooperation • The pieces must be brought together• Management

- Access Control- Location control- Billing- Services

• Service Providers- Integration of services

• Mobility Improvements- Roaming across networks- Secure roaming

March 2005


Slide 14

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Submission

Mesh Portals: Key to Interoperability & Cooperation

MPMesh X

MP

T-1

MP WiMax

March 2005


Slide 15

doc.: IEEE 802.11-05/0166r1

Submission

Mesh-Wide Settings

Packet Filtering

Packet Filtering

For Example, security:

AES WEP EncryptionWEP Encryption

• Examples:– All data and

management traffic can be encrypted only at the portal

– Packet filtering (MAC address filtering)

– VLANS– QoS

March 2005


Slide 16

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Submission

Summary• There is a powerful advantage to being an “Invisible” Mesh Network – it’s

not just the fence (Mesh Portals) but anonymity as well (Invisibility)

• Interoperability of Heterogeneous Networks is important for unified security, QoS, management, composability, evolution, etc.

• Portals define the boundaries of the Invisible Network and enable cooperation between networks

We need to pay special attention to Mesh Portals.

Documents

Doc.: IEEE 802.11-05/0166r1 Submission March 2005 Ike Nassi & Jorjeta Jetcheva, FiretideSlide 1 The Advantages of Invisibility and Cooperation Notice: