Historical data learning based dynamic LSP routing for overlay IP/MPLS over WDM networks

• We study dynamic label switched path routing in overlay IP/MPLS over WDM networks.
• We utilize historical data of lightpath setup costs in deciding IP-layer routing.
• A new dynamic LSP routing method named Existing Link First algorithm is proposed.
• Simulation results verify the good performance of the proposed algorithm.
• Effects of a few other factors have also been evaluated.

Overlay IP/MPLS over WDM network is a promising network architecture starting to gain wide deployments recently. A desirable feature of such a network is to achieve efficient routing with limited information exchanges between the IP/MPLS and the WDM layers. This paper studies dynamic label switched path (LSP) routing in the overlay IP/MPLS over WDM networks. To enhance network performance while maintaining its simplicity, we propose to learn from the historical data of lightpath setup costs maintained by the IP-layer integrated service provider (ISP) when making routing decisions. Using a novel historical data learning scheme for logical link cost estimation, we develop a new dynamic LSP routing method named Existing Link First (ELF) algorithm. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm significantly outperforms the existing ones under different traffic loads, with either limited or unlimited numbers of optical ports. Effects of the number of candidate routes, add/drop ratio and the amount of historical data are also evaluated.