Download Mobile Application Acceleration Using Always-On Overlays

Mobile Application Acceleration using
Always On Overlay
Sarit Mukherjee ([email protected])
(with Girish Chandranmenon, Fang Hao, Scott Miller, Mark Smith)
Bell Labs, Alcatel-Lucent
All Rights Reserved © Alcatel-Lucent 2007
Mobile Content & Applications Market
Service Providers desire to maximize revenue per bit on shared wireless data channels
Service
Plan Cost
Assumed
Data Size
Cost per Byte
(microocents)
Unlimited Data
$60 per month
20 Mbytes
300 mcent/byte
SMS
$4.99 for 400 msgs
64 kbytes
7800 mcent/byte
Ringtone
$1.49 per download
30 kbytes
5000 mcent/byte
Mobile Experience is different from PC/Wireline world

Limited devices: screen, processing, battery, input methods

Shared/Limited Bandwidth over wireless channels
 Constantly improving however always lags by PC/Wireline by factor of 10 (or better)
Different User Expectation on types of services accessed through mobile

Compelling on-the-go applications with instant/low latency access (Always On experience)

Community-based interactive apps (gets benefits of viral marketing)

Simple, easy-to-use, user experience – access with few clicks
 Direct porting of PC/wireline world applications does not guarantee success
 Subscriber willingness to pay is affected by several factors: Network performance, user interface,
application/content access time, quality/relevance of application/content
Mobile Applications/Content Success Must Target the Mobile Market
With Technology that Addresses the Uniqueness of Wireless Service Delivery
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Mobile Application Delivery: Current Issues
Independent Application-specific silos
Gaming Vendor#1
Gaming Vendor #2
Video
Presence
Presence
Presence
Profile
Profile
Profile
Lobby
Lobby
Group Mgmt
Service Provider
Network used as
bit-pipe
Presence
Application/Content Provider Issues
• Complicated Software for user
management, scalability, community
enablement, standard protocols &
message passing with support elements
• Not easy to control introduction of new
content to users – many players in the
chain, manual intro
Profile
Group Mgmt
Many Client
Applications
Individually
Downloaded
Mobile Users
End-User Issues
• Non-uniform user experience for different services
• Multiple Logins
• Complicated menus and multi-level navigation
• Long service setup and content delivery delays
• No personalization – one portal for all
3
Service Provider Issues
• High capex/opex to deploy and manage vertical
application infrastructure silos that duplicate
many functions
• Difficult to introduce new services and advertise
to subscribers
• Frequent and unoptimized over-the-air message
exchanges
• Network used largely as dumb pipe
• Managing & Scaling large numbers of diverse
servers & 3rd Party Content/Application Providers
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Addressing the Problems
Solution: Overlay network of “Always On Gateways” offering common
middleware for many applications
Bring part of application logic closer to user
 Cache key information closer to user:



User Profile Data
Application Data
Proactively obtain state information
User
 Common Application Building Blocks
 Zero sign-on authentication
 Reduces delay, improves scalability, saves
air-link resources
Combination of Techniques used in AoG
–
–
–
–
–
–
Network resident client agent that acts on behalf of user
Cached information for execution at network edge
Improved User Experience with dynamically generated shortcut
and “one-click” UI screens
Self-management & load balancing w/ P2P networking
Hooks into underlying network for optimized application
experience
Optimized community services provides a uniform platform for
use by different services and users
4
3G Network
Application Servers
AoG
AoG
AoG
Content delivery and application
execution within network & endpoints
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Overlay Network of
Identical AoG nodes
Push-to-Game without Always-On Overlay Network
User
1 Sets up a session with game server (for each game)
2 Authenticates with game server (for each game)
3 Enters a game lobby in game server (for each game)
4 Joins a chat session (for each game)
5 Uses game specific interaction for communication
User
5
3G Network
Game Server
1 Authenticates user
2 Provides lobby and chat services
3 Maintains user account and billing, presence
information and buddy lists
4 Executes game play interaction with user
5 Saves post-game play info: ranking, stats,
billing
Game
Servers
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Push-to-Game with Always-On Overlay Network:
 Removing Interactions & Complexity from Game Server/Vendor
 Adding Value into the Service Provider’s Network
User
1  Sets up a session with game server (for each game)
2  Authenticates with game server (for each game)
3  Enters a game lobby in game server (for each game)
4  Joins a chat session (for each game)
5 Uses game specific interaction for communication
User
3G Network
AoG (User Agent)
Downloads and caches user’s profile
Dynamically generates Gaming Shortcut screen
- Cached buddy presence info
- Past game play history
- Service Provider advertised games
6
Game
Servers
AoG
AoG
User Initialization & Client
Sets up a single always-on
session with AoG
Authenticates once with AoG
Common Gaming Launchpad
Game Server
1 Authenticates user
2 Provides lobby and chat services
3 Maintains user account and billing, presence
information and buddy lists
4 Executes game play interaction with user
5 Saves post-game play info: ranking, stats,
billing
User Agent
Community
Services
AoG
AoG = Always-on Gateway
AoG (Community Services)
Maintains presence information for buddy-based game play
Gaming “Lobby” for anonymous game play
Lobby uses local matching first then expands to other AoGs
Attribute-based pairing of players
Interfaces to game server for session start/stop
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With vs. Without Application Acceleration:
Gaming Test Result
Test Results for Same Game & Same Game Server accessed
through UMTS with and without Always-On Overlay
End-User
Interaction
Time to
Connect
Without
Always-On
Overlay
With
Always-On
Overlay
Benefit of
Always-On
Overlay
Project Driver
8 clicks +
login
1 click
85%+
“One Click to
Connect”
35 sec.
10 sec.
60%+
“Instant
Connectivity”
* Measured in number of clicks to get players aligned and the game at the start point
** Measured time up to the game’s start point
7
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Experimental Test-bed using Public 3G Network
Same LAN
Same cell
Wireless
Service
Provider
Network
AoG
Game
Server
Game
Server
Internet
Corporate LAN
outside firewall
Internet
Tasks
Public Network
Setting up experimental test-bed
Easy
Different functionality tests
Over public network w/GPRS
Construction of overlay network with P2P techniques
On the same LAN (Not Useful)
Placement of User Agent close to the user (e.g. at GGSN)
Not possible
Distribution of cells and traffic from different geographic regions
Cannot be controlled
Large user population for gaming, match making and other tests
Difficult
Introduction of new game (or other application) services
Easy
Controlled experimentation
Not possible
Experimentation with different wireless technologies
Difficult
8
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Experimental Test-bed using Private 3G Network
Same cell
Private 3G
Wireless
Network
AoG
AoG
Internet
AoG
Game
Server
Corporate LAN
inside firewall
Game
Server
Tasks
Private Network
Setting up experimental test-bed
Some Effort
Different functionality tests
Over private network w/UMTS
Construction of overlay network with P2P techniques
Within intranet (Some use)
Placement of User Agent close to the user (e.g. at GGSN)
Needs software modification
Distribution of cells and traffic from different geographic regions
Difficult to set up
Large user population for gaming, match making and other tests
Difficult
Introduction of new game (or other application) services
Easy
Controlled experimentation
To some extent
Experimentation with different wireless technologies
Possible
9
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Possible Experimental Test-bed using Slice on GENI
AoG
Game
Server
Game
Server
AoG
AoG
Game
Server
10
AoG
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AoG
Comparison of Different Test-beds
Tasks
Public Network
Private Network
Slice on GENI
Setting up experimental test-bed
Easy
Some effort
Substantial effort (one time)
Different functionality tests
With GPRS
With UMTS
With 3G, WiMAX, other
Construction of overlay network
with P2P techniques
On the same
LAN (Not useful)
Within intranet
(Some use)
Multiple PEC slivers interconnected over backbone
Placement of User Agent close to
the user (e.g. at GGSN)
Not possible
Needs software
modification
Sliver in PEN; OpenBSR
architecture can be used
Distribution of cells and traffic
from different geographic regions
Cannot be
controlled
Difficult to set
up
Multiple wide-area wireless
subnets
Large user population for gaming,
match making and other tests
Difficult
Difficult
Introduce as a free service for
user download and use
Introduction of new services
Easy
Easy
Creation of new PEC sliver
Controlled experimentation
Not possible
To some extent
Possible
Experimentation with different
wireless technologies
Difficult
Possible
Possible (with PWN?)
11
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