Optimizing Network Configurations Based on Potential Profit Loss
IP routing protocols, such as OSPF (open shortest path first) or BGP (border gateway protocol), have many configurable parameters (e.g., timers) and interact with each other in complex ways. Network operators may need to explore numerous candidate configuration changes before identifying a choice. In this paper, from the point of view of the economics of the Internet backbone, we propose a potential profit loss metric to evaluate configurations. Then we focus on analyzing the potential profit loss caused by link state changes under different configurations. We give quantitative relations between the potential profit loss and the major influential factors: OSPF timers, BGP timers and failure duration. From the quantitative relations we can see that appropriate configurations can reduce the profit loss much.