A FRAMEWORK FOR A RESPONSIVE NETWORK PROTOCOL FOR INTERNETWORKING ENVIRONMENTS

A responsive network architecture is essential in future open distribu ted systems. In this paper, a framework that provides the foundations for a responsive network architecture for an internetworking environme nt is proposed. It is called the Virtually Separated Link (VSL) model. By incorporating this framework, communication of both data and contr ol information can be completed in bounded time. Consequently, a proto col can initiate a recovery mechanism in bounded time, or allow an app lication to do the same. Its functionalities augment existing resource reservation protocols that support multimedia communication. An overv iew of a real-time network protocol that is based on this framework is also presented.