NSF Org:	CNS Division Of Computer and Network Systems
Recipient:	UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Initial Amendment Date:	September 2, 2014
Latest Amendment Date:	September 2, 2014
Award Number:	1423505
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Darleen Fisher CNS  Division Of Computer and Network Systems CSE  Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering
Start Date:	October 1, 2014
End Date:	December 31, 2016 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount:	$500,000.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date:	$500,000.00
Funds Obligated to Date:	FY 2014 = $149,298.00
History of Investigator:	Minlan Yu (Principal Investigator) minlanyu@seas.harvard.edu Ramesh Govindan (Co-Principal Investigator)
Recipient Sponsored Research Office:	University of Southern California 3720 S FLOWER ST FL 3 LOS ANGELES CA  US  90033 (213)740-7762
Sponsor Congressional District:	34
Primary Place of Performance:	University of Southern California 3720 S. Flower St. Los Angeles CA  US  90089-0001
Primary Place of Performance Congressional District:	37
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI):	G88KLJR3KYT5
Parent UEI:
NSF Program(s):	Networking Technology and Syst
Primary Program Source:	01001415DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
Program Reference Code(s):	7923, 9102
Program Element Code(s):	736300
Award Agency Code:	4900
Fund Agency Code:	4900
Assistance Listing Number(s):	47.070

ABSTRACT

Management of today's networks usually requires an army of operators who devote tremendous time and energy. Software-defined networking (SDN) has been shown to be a promising paradigm for simplifying network management. However, management tasks in SDNs require the use of constrained network resources: switch memory and CPU, and the switch-controller network bandwidth. Given these resource constraints, network operators may have to reason about resource usage when initiating network management tasks.

This project seeks to explore the space of resource management for software-defined network management. Specifically, it will examine the design of virtualized resource pools that provide the abstraction of (nearly) infinite resources (memory, CPU and switch), while dynamically adapting to the resource needs of these network management tasks. This approach has the advantage that network operators do not have to reason about resource usage when instantiating network management tasks. The research will yield resource management algorithms, improved resource usage designs, and systems implementations for virtualized resource pools.

Network operators make billion-dollar investments in network infrastructures, but put little thought into visibility and control of these infrastructures. This project can lead to better-managed, more reliable, and more resource-efficient network infrastructures in ISPs, enterprises and clouds. These efforts eventually will have broader societal impact by enabling commercial, social, and scientific advances. The proposal will give underrepresented groups and undergraduates opportunities to participate in research and will likely result in technology transfer to major cloud providers and ISPs.

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