Detour: a Case for Informed Internet Routing and Transport

Abstract

Despite its obvious success, robustness, and scalability, the Internet suffers from a number of end-to-end performance and availability problems. In this paper, we attempt to quantify the Internet's inefficiencies and then we argue that Internet behavior can be improved by spreading intelligent routers at key access and interchange points to actively manage traffic. Our Detour prototype aims to demonstrate practical benefits to end users, without penalizing non-Detour users, by aggregating traffic information across connections and using more efficient routes to improve Internet performance. 1 Introduction By any metric, the Internet has scaled remarkably; from 4 nodes in 1969 to an estimated 25 million hosts and 100 million users today. This reflects a sustained growth rate over three decades of roughly 80% per year, all while providing nearly continuous service. As a system, the Internet's growth has been matched only by the major infrastructure projects of the early 1900's: the ele...