Measurement and modeling of burst packet losses in Internet end-to-end communications

Abstract

We have measured the packet loss ratio, its time dependency, and the frequency of burst packet losses in Internet end-to-end communications. To do this, we developed a tool that sends and receives UDP (User Datagram Protocol) packets. Our measurements showed that long burst losses are more likely when the packet loss ratio is high. We then examined two models for calculating the burst packet loss, an independent loss model and a Markov-chain model, to see whether they explain the packet loss characteristics we measured. They did not, so we developed a sine model, in which the packet loss probability depends on the time of day. Theoretical analysis and simulations showed that this model explains the characteristics of the burst packet losses that we measured.