Failure recovery techniques over an MPLS network using OPNET

Abstract

Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) is an emerging technology which is the initial step for the forthcoming generation of communication. It uses Labels in order to identify the packets unlike the conventional IP Routing Mechanism which uses the routing table at each router to route the packet. MPLS uses the techniques of FRR with the help of RSVP/CR-LDP to overcome the link and/or node failures in the network. On the other hand there are certain limitations/drawbacks of using the above mechanisms for Failure Detection and Recovery which are multiple protocols such as RSVP/CR-LDP over OSPF/IS-IS and complex algorithms to generate backup paths since each router works individually in order to create a backup tunnel. So to overcome the listed limitations, this paper discusses a new technique for MPLS Networks which is Source Routing \cite{48}. Source Routing is the technique in which the source plays the role of directing the packet to the destination and no other router plays the role of routing the packet in the network. Using the OPNET Modeler 17.5 tool for implementing source routing when there is a network failure is performed and the results are compared by implementing RSVP/CR-LDP over the same failed network. The comparative results show that the network performance is best in the case of Source Routing implementation as compared to the RSVP and CR-LDP signaling over the MPLS Networks.