B.

Deepesh Rao
222010320001
CASE STUDY OF VARIOUS WIRELESS
NETWORK SIMULATION TOOLS

Introduction:-
Wireless network simulation tools are essential tools for designing, optimizing, and
troubleshooting wireless networks. They allow network engineers to evaluate the performance of
different network designs under a variety of conditions, without having to deploy the network in
the real world. There are many different wireless network simulation tools available, each with
its own strengths and weaknesses.
In this case study, we will compare and contrast six of the most popular wireless network
simulation tools: NS-3, OPNET, OMNeT++, J-Sim, QualNet.

Objectives:-
The primary objectives of this case study are to:
● Understand the key features and capabilities of various wireless network simulation tools.
● Evaluate the suitability of different simulation tools for specific network scenarios.
● Demonstrate the application of simulation tools in analyzing and optimizing wireless
network performance.

Wireless Simulation Tools:-

1. NS-3 is a free and open-source wireless network simulation tool. It is a popular choice for
research and academic use, and is known for its accuracy and scalability. NS-3 can
simulate a wide range of wireless network protocols and technologies, including Wi-Fi,
LTE, and 5G.
2. OMNeT++ is another free and open-source wireless network simulation tool. It is known
for its flexibility and modularity, which makes it easy to develop custom simulation
models. OMNeT++ can simulate a wide range of wireless network protocols and
technologies, including Wi-Fi, LTE, and 5G.
 3. OPNET is a commercial wireless network simulation tool. It is known for its ease of use
and its extensive library of pre-built simulation models. OPNET can simulate a wide
range of wireless network protocols and technologies, including Wi-Fi, LTE, and 5G.
4. J-Sim is a Japanese-developed wireless network simulation tool. It is known for its
accuracy and its ability to simulate large and complex networks. J-Sim is particularly
well-suited for simulating Wi-Fi networks.
5. QualNet is another commercial wireless network simulation tool. It is known for its
powerful visualization features and its ability to simulate large and complex networks.
QualNet can simulate a wide range of wireless network protocols and technologies,
including Wi-Fi, LTE, and 5G.

Case Study Results:-

● NS-3:
NS-3 is an open source, discrete-event computer simulator which is built using
C++ and Python with scripting capabilities. This software can be used to develop
simulation models working in real-time, allowing interconnection with the real
world and enable real world protocols to be used within the NS-3. It provides models
on how packet data networks work and perform and provides users to perform
simulation experiments to test the networks. NS-3 core supports both IP and non-IP based
networks. The major focus, however, is on wireless fidelity in (Wi-Fi), WiMAX, and
LTE physical layer simulations. NS-3 has a set of libraries which can be combined
together with external software libraries. It is primarily used on Linux systems and
supports for Cygwin, Free BSD (for Windows) is in development. Some of the
features of NS-3 include scalability- packets can have a virtual zero byte, for which
memory is not allotted. There are node optional features, where one can choose the
models and allocate or unallocated memory to the nodes in the network model. Another
is Cross-layer features which include packet tags and tracing facility. There are various
simulation experiments that have been carried on to test the LTE network, its
performance, and to enhance the same remodeling has been also carried out and tested on
NS-3.
● OPNET:
 OPNET is a large and powerful software simulation tool. It is mainly used for the
simulation of fixed heterogeneous networks. It uses the fixed set of industry standard
protocols for its underlying network environment. The original application of Opnet
was for military purposes but gradually it started gaining popularity in industry and
educational world. Simulation used nowadays has two variants, one for commercial
usage and the other licensed version which is available for research and educational
purposes. Opnet is an event-based simulation tool that is able to operate at the
packet level. It has a huge library of commercially available networks, hardware and
protocol. It is developed to simulate fixed commercial networks and its main
disadvantage is that it does not allow users to form new networks or protocols, also
lacks the network libraries of the recently discovered advanced wireless technologies.
Despite these disadvantages Opnet is still popular in the market because of its
accurate radio transmission pipeline modelling and its high user interface that
provides almost accurate measures of losses at each stage and also provides a rich user
experience and ease of usage.

● OMNeT++:
OMNET++ is modular discrete event based extensible simulation library and
framework which is based on C++ and is for designing both wired and wireless
networks. OMNET++ provides architecture for models which are coded in C++ and
these can be combined to make bigger models with larger components using high
level language. Like J-Sim, it has a component-based, modular and extensible
architecture. Thus, its structure shares many properties with J-Sim’s. The basic entity in
OMNeT++ is a module. Modules can be composed of submodules or they can be atomic.
Only atomic modules capture the actual behavior. Modules communicate with each other
via messages through gates. Gates are linked to each other using connections. A
connection can be associated with a propagation delay, error rate and data rate. Unlike
J-Sim’s ports, gates in OMNeT++ support only one-to-one communication. Regarding
simulation of wireless ad hoc networks, OMNeT++ relies on external extensions. The
two most prominent ones are the INET Framework (IF) and the Mobility Framework
(MF).
● J-Sim:
J-Sim (formerly JavaSim) is a network simulator written in Java. It is built according to
the component-based software paradigm. In J-Sim terminology, this is called autonomous
component architecture (ACA). Everything in JSim is a component: a node, a link, a
protocol. Each component can be atomic or composed of other components. Connection
between components is done through ports. Actually, there are three possible ways to
connect ports: one-toone, one-to-many, and many-to-many. On a more abstract level,
J-Sim distinguishes two layers. The lower layer Core Service Layer (CSL) comprises
every OSI layer from network to physical, the higher layer comprises the remaining OSI
layers. For wireless network simulations, J-Sim offers the Wireless Extension. Here,
several components and their relationships are defined and extend the general CSL.
● QualNet:
QualNet Network Simulator is a powerful tool for designing, analyzing, and optimizing
communication networks. It can model a variety of heterogeneous networks (wired,
wireless, under-water, satellite, etc.) with thousands of nodes exchanging different types
of traffic. It uses a network digital twin to digitally represent the entire network, the
various protocol layers, radios, antennas, and devices. QualNet employs state of the art
Parallel Discrete Event Simulation (PDES) algorithms designed to leverage multi-core
and parallel processors to dramatically increase the event processing rate and hence
simulation execution speeds to run high-fidelity simulations of large networks at faster
than real-time speeds. QualNet provides an intuitive, drag-and-drop interface to create
network scenarios using pre-configured models of devices, link-types, and applications. It
also provides several utilities to easily replicate "as is" networks and application traffic in
QualNet. QualNet supports a large number of high-fidelity models for network devices,
protocols from all layers of the protocol stack, applications, terrains, propagation models,
and mobility models.
Conclusion:-
The case study highlights the importance of selecting the appropriate wireless network
simulation tool based on the specific requirements of the network scenario. NS-3 offers a
powerful and flexible open-source platform for detailed network modeling, while OPNET and
QualNet provide user-friendly interfaces and comprehensive libraries of network models.
J-sim provides advanced support for 5g and OMNeT++ has easy-to-use interface.
In conclusion, wireless network simulation tools play a vital role in designing, analyzing, and
optimizing wireless networks. By carefully selecting the right tool and conducting thorough
simulations, network engineers and researchers can gain valuable insights into network
performance and make informed decisions to enhance network efficiency and user experience.