A Virtual Internet

Virtual Internets (VIs) are emerging as a useful tool for managing shared testbed infrastructure, as well as supporting emerging protocols and systems in an extension of the Internet architecture. This talk presents the principles of our Virtual Internet Architecture, and examines its impact on the architecture of end systems, routers, and protocols. The talk also summarizes related research exploring the capabilities of VIs and augmenting systems capabilities to support VIs. This includes: the X-Bone system for automated VI deployment and management; the DynaBone system for fault-tolerance and performance via multi-layer virtualization; the NetFS system for providing compartmentalized configuration of network resources; and the DataRouter system for supporting application-directed peer networks via a network-layer string rewriting mechanism. We discuss efforts underway to deploy a persistent, global X-Bone for collaborative network experiments, and steps that take a VI into a new Communicating System for the future.

This talk will also very briefly note some concurrent effots, including an all-optical IP router and LAN, high-performance zero-configuration security, encapsulating bridges, and "smart-start" TCP.