Choice of allocation granularity in multipath source routing schemes

Multipath source routing schemes can be distinguished by their choice of allocation granularity. The schemes proposed in the literature advocate a per-connection allocation wherein all the packets of a connection are constrained to follow the same path. The authors believe that a smaller allocation granularity permits a finer control to be exerted and would result in improved performance, especially in the presence of bursty traffic sources. A simple two-node network is used to compare the performance of both allocation schemes. An analytical model is developed to compute the resequencing delay distribution for the per-packet allocation. It is observed that as the burstiness of the arrival process increases, the per-packet allocation is able to accommodate bursts in a more graceful fashion, resulting in better performance. The per-packet allocation also permits a more equitable distribution of network resources than the per-connection.<>