The information in the network has been increasing, and it is dominated by a few heavy users. This imbalance is an insignificant problem if there is an abundance of network resources. Unfortunately, the available resources are not infinite. Thus we have to develop a future network architecture that considers resource starvation. We present Value-Centric Networking (VCN) which is based on Information Value. The main purpose of VCN is to maximize Information Value in the network, and thus support the entire society. We implement the VCN architecture concept in the form of a proxy server and confirmed that VCN operation forwarded the high information value streams passing through the proxy server faster than ordinary FIFO operation. In addition, we discuss the controversial issues of VCN, value definition and feasibility.

To make communication a comfortable experience for users, we have developed a middleware called communication service concierge (CSC). This is a network middleware for distributed environments, and it consists of communication resource management (CRM) and communication logic management (CLM). Communication service concierge realizes comfortable communications by combining CRM and CLM. Communication logic management provides a framework to directly operate communication data. Communication resource management provides a framework on which downloadable software components can be executed on distributed platforms, and plays a primary role in controlling CSC's communication. Using Java, we implemented CRM on OSGi service platforms, which provide dynamic executions of the software components locally. In other words, CRM provides a distributed agent computing feature for OSGi. In this paper we describe the roles and implementations of CRM1 especially for security functions, as well as describing how CRM's software components work cooperatively.

In today's Internet, which includes diverse and complex network technologies and services, it is difficult to achieve 'comfortable communication' that satisfies network users from the viewpoint of aspects such as communication usability, availability, quality and safety. To alleviate these problems and make communication a comfortable experience for users, we have developed a middleware named communication service concierge (CSC). CSC focuses on communication dataflow and coordinates various resources affecting the behavior of the flow, such as network applications, protocols, network devices and computing equipment. These elements can be scattered throughout the end-to-end communication link of the dataflow. CSC provides a distributed communication control framework, which improves user satisfaction on the basis of agent computing using configurable and downloadable software components. The paper briefly describes the design concept and basic architecture of CSC, as well as two prototype applications for it that are associated with home networking and mobile computing. These are the most effective ways in which CSC helps users to achieve more comfortable communication.

Future IP networks will be multi-service-class networks that provide multiple levels of quality of services (QoS). The network service provider (NSP) must manage network resources and multiple protocol label switching can be used to control logical path allocation. This paper proposes a scheme that maximizes NSP profit by controlling the service-list and path-allocation under the constraint of available network resources. We introduce a model in which the users' class choice from among the multiple classes is influenced not by the price and QoS of one class, but the prices and QoS levels of all classes, the service-list. To model the users' class choice, we adopt discrete choice analysis. We propose a functional framework that consists of user choice model function, original demand forecast function, and service-list and path-allocation determination function. We evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed method using a multiple service-class example.

The network service providers (NSP) of the future Internet Protocol (IP) network will provide network transport services with multiple quality of service (QoS) levels by using QoS technologies such as integrated services (IntServ) and differentiated services (DiffServ). We call this network the multi-service-network. It seems obvious that each class can be offered with a different price according to the network resources consumed. In the multi-service-network, the following factors are correlated: the service-list showing the prices and QoS details of all classes; users' behavior in terms of service choice; total required network resources; ISP profit. For example, when a user has some communication need, the price and QoS of each service influences the user's service selection. His choice impacts not only the network resources required to provide the service but also the profit of the NSP. We propose a framework for the multi-service-network that maximizes the profit of the NSP through the control of the service-list.

We argue that a management platform for the future Internet has to be inherently distributed and programmable. This motivates us to introduce a new management architecture, named the active distributed management (ADM) architecture, which exploits the active network and mobile agent paradigms and provides the properties of distributed control and programmability inside the network. We realize the ADM architecture as a management middleware composed of several layers. In order to facilitate the development of efficient and correct programs, these layers include patterns for distributed algorithms that are typical for management applications and a set of building blocks for constructing management programs. First results of an ADM prototype system are presented.

The Internet was not originally designed to prevent malicious users from securing more resources than other users. Although the best effort service offered by the Internet is quite well known, realizing fair availability in the best effort service is becoming necessary. Accordingly, this paper proposes the maximal network that realizes fair availability. This new concept has two points (1) all users are guided to use some form of (adequate) rate control by the incentives of the proposed maximal network (2) the fair availability between rate controlled users is provided. As guidance, the proposed network penalizes users who refuse to use rate control. Using a distributed algorithm to realize max-min distribution, the proposed network offers fair availability. Its implementation is described and its feasibility is evaluated by computer simulations. It is shown that fair availability can be realized. Lastly, the concept of multi-class best effort service is proposed and simulations show that this service is possible in the maximal network.

This paper proposes an implementation scheme for the self-healing function in ATM networks and assesses its performance. First, our proposed ATM self-healing scheme is described. This scheme realizes more rapid restoration of failed virtual paths than other self-healing algorithms, supports the node failure case, and minimizes the spare resources required. Next, an implementation scheme is proposed. We propose that the self-healing function be implemented as a software process, and that OAM cells are utilized for fast message transmission. Next, results of a prototype system that we implemented on an ATM cross-connect system are discussed. The fundamental characteristics of restoration performance are measured using an experimental network. Based on these results, an NE processing system analysis and computer simulation for estimating the characteristics as applied to a real-scale network are discussed. Finally, a management scheme for self-healing is proposed based on the TMN concept.

The paper presents a new ATM transport network technique that realizes the direct virtual path configuration by using path bandwidth control and the virtual path group concept. Direct virtual paths link local switches directly and enable channel set up processing to be eliminated from transit nodes. However, this configuration, which employs no toll switches, suffers from several problems such as reduced utilization of virtual path bandwidth and increased difficulty of localized network management based on network segmentation. The authors introduce virtual path bandwidth control and the virtual path group concept into ATM transport networks to realize the direct virtual path configuration in a very efficient manner. Virtual path bandwidth control enables the optimum balance between switching and transmission systems to be struck. Virtual path groups make it possible to provide a localized network management capability in a way similar to that available in a conventional network.>

This paper proposes self-healing network techniques suitable for ATM networks in order to realize a high-reliablity B-ISDN. First, the characteristics of the virtual paths (VP) and their influence on failure restoration are discussed. A high-speed restoration technique which exploits the benefits of the VP is then proposed and described. The technique simplifies the message transmission processes and reduces the number of generated messages by using preassigned backup virtual paths. Next, the scheme used to design the backup VP routes and spare resource distribution for each link is proposed in order to create a network that applies the proposed restoration scheme. Next, self-reconstruction techniques of backup virtual paths are proposed for the realization of a reversionless restoration cycle. Finally, the feasibility of the distributed control operation is discussed.>