UNIT-II

MOBILE NETWORK LAYER

OVERVIEW:
• Introduction

• Mobile IP: IP packet delivery, Agent discovery, tunneling and

encapsulation, IPV6-Network layer in the internet- Mobile IP session
initiation protocol.

• mobile ad-hoc network: Routing, Destination Sequence distance

vector, Dynamic source routing

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 2

 INTRODUCTION
 This unit introduces protocols and mechanisms developed for
the network layer to support mobility.
 The most prominent example is Mobile IP, which adds mobility
support to the internet network layer protocol IP.
 While systems like GSM have been designed with mobility in
mind, the internet started at a time when no one had thought of
mobile computers.
 Today’s internet lacks any mechanisms to support users traveling
around the world.

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• A host sends an IP packet with the header containing a destination address
with other fields.

• The destination address not only determines the receiver of the packet, but
physical subnet with the
also the physical subnet of the receiver. network prefix

• For example, the destination address 129.13.42.99

• Routers in the internet now look at the destination addresses of incoming

packets and forward them according to internal look-up tables.

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As long as the receiver can be reached within its physical subnet, it gets the
packets; as soon as it moves outside the subnet, a packet will not reach it.

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Quick ‘solutions’:
Quick solution to this problem would be to assign to the
computer a new, topologically correct IP address.
So moving to a new location would mean assigning a new IP
address.
The problem is that nobody knows about this new address. It is
almost impossible to find a (mobile) host on the internet which has
just changed its address.
One way to solve this issue is to Change routing tables but it is
theoretically possible.

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 6

What is an IP?
• A computer’s return address.
• Each computer on the network has a unique set of numbers (0-255) in
the form of
XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX
• Can be static or dynamic.
• IP addresses enable IP routing algorithms to get packets to the correct
network

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MOBILE IP

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Mobile IP
• Mobile IP was created to allow users to KEEP THE SAME IP ADDRESS while
‘traveling’ to a different network (which may even be on a different wireless
operator),

This means that roaming individuals can continue communication without

breaking their connection.

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 Requirements to Mobile IP
Transparency
• mobile end-systems keep their IP address
• continuation of communication after interruption of link possible
• point of connection to the fixed network can be changed
Compatibility
• support of the same layer 2 protocols as IP
• no changes to current end-systems and routers required
• mobile end-systems can communicate with fixed systems
Security
• authentication of all registration messages
Efficiency and scalability
• only little additional messages to the mobile system required (connection typically via a low
bandwidth radio link)
• world-wide support of a large number of mobile systems in the whole Internet
EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 10
In order to understand MOBILE IP, following entities should be known.
Mobile node (MN):
¤ A mobile node is an end-system or router that can change its point of
attachment to the internet using mobile IP.
¤ The MN keeps its IP address and can continuously communicate with any
other system in the internet.
¤ Mobile nodes are not necessarily small devices such as laptops with
antennas or mobile phones; a router onboard an aircraft can be a powerful
mobile node.
3.
home router router
MN 2. MN
network HA FA
4.
foreign
Internet network

1.
CN router

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 11

Correspondent node (CN):

¤ At least one partner is needed for communication. In the following the CN

represents this partner for the MN.

¤ The CN can be a fixed or mobile node.

3.
home router router
2. MN
network HA FA
4.
foreign
Internet network

1.
CN router

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 12

Home network:
The home network is the subnet the MN belongs to with respect to its IP
address. No mobile IP support is needed within the home network.
Foreign network:
The foreign network is the current subnet the MN visits and which is not the
home network.

3.
home router router
2. MN
network HA FA
4.
foreign
Internet network

1.
CN router

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 13

Foreign agent (FA):
¤ The FA can provide several services to the MN during its visit to the foreign
network. The FA can have the COA, acting as tunnel endpoint and forwarding
packets to the MN.
¤ FAs can also provide security services because they belong to the foreign
network as opposed to the MN which is only visiting.

3.
home router router
2. MN
network HA FA
4.
foreign
Internet network

1.
CN router

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 14

Care-of address (COA): The COA defines the current location of the MN from an IP point of view.
All IP packets sent to the MN are delivered to the COA, not directly to the IP address of the MN.
There are two different possibilities for the location of the COA:
Foreign agent COA: The COA could be located at the FA, i.e., the COA is an IP address of the FA.
The FA is the tunnel end-point and forwards packets to the MN.
Co-located COA: The COA is co-located if the MN temporarily acquired an additional IP address
which acts as COA. Co-located addresses can be acquired using services such as DHCP.
One problem associated with this approach is the need for additional addresses if MNs request a
COA. This is not always a good idea considering the scarcity of IPv4 addresses.

3.
home router router
2. MN
network HA FA
4.
foreign
Internet network

1.
CN router

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 15

Home agent (HA):
¤ The HA provides several services for the MN and is located in the home
network.
¤ The tunnel for packets toward the MN starts at the HA. The HA maintains a
location registry

3.
home router router
2. MN
network HA FA
4.
foreign
Internet network

1.
CN router

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IP PACKET DELIVERY

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 17

Data transfer to the mobile system
HA
2
MN

home network 3 receiver

Internet
FA foreign
network

1. Sender sends to the IP address of MN,

HA intercepts packet (proxy ARP)
1 2. HA tunnels packet to COA, here FA,
CN
by encapsulation
3. FA forwards the packet
sender to the MN

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 18

Data transfer from the mobile system

HA
1 MN

home network sender

Internet
FA foreign
network

1. Sender sends to the IP address

of the receiver as usual,
CN
FA works as default router

receiver

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AGENT DISCOVERY

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Problems:

1. One initial problem of an MN after moving is how to find a foreign agent.

2. How does the MN discover that it has moved?

For this purpose mobile IP describes two methods:

¤ Agent advertisement
¤ Agent solicitation

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TUNNELING AND ENCAPSULATION

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 22

¤ A tunnel establishes a virtual pipe for data packets between a tunnel entry
and a tunnel endpoint. Packets entering a tunnel are forwarded inside the
tunnel and leave the tunnel unchanged.
¤ Tunneling, i.e., sending a packet through a tunnel, is achieved by using
encapsulation.
¤ Encapsulation is the mechanism of taking a packet consisting of packet
header and data and putting it into the data part of a new packet.
¤ The reverse operation, taking a packet out of the data part of another
packet, is called decapsulation.
¤ Encapsulation and decapsulation are the operations typically performed
when a packet is transferred from a higher protocol layer to a lower layer or
from a lower to a higher layer respectively.

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 23

¤ The HA takes the original packet with the MN as destination, puts it into the
data part of a new packet and sets the new IP header in such a way that the
packet is routed to the COA.

¤ The new header is also called the outer header. Additionally, there is an
inner header which can be identical to the original header as this is the case
original IP header original data
for IP-in-IP encapsulation
new IP header new data

outer header inner header original data

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IPv6 Mobile-IP

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While mobile IP was originally designed for IP version 4, IP version 6 makes life
much easier. Several mechanisms that had to be specified separately for
mobility support come free in IPv6.
1. No special mechanisms as add-ons are needed for securing mobile IP
registration. Every IPv6 node masters address autoconfiguration – the
mechanisms for acquiring a COA are already built in.
2. Neighbor discovery as a mechanism mandatory for every node is also
included in the specification; special foreign agents are no longer needed
to advertise services.
Combining the features of autoconfiguration and neighbor discovery means
that every mobile node is able to create or obtain a topologically correct
address for the current point of attachment.

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 26

¤ Every IPv6 node can send binding updates to another node, so the MN can
send its current COA directly to the CN and HA. These mechanisms are an
integral part of IPv6.

¤ The FA is not needed any more. A CN only has to be able to process binding
updates, i.e., to create or to update an entry in the routing cache.

¤ However, IPv6 does not solve any firewall or privacy problems. Additional
mechanisms on higher layers are needed for this.

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 27

¤ No "foreign agent“ routers

¤ Route optimization is a fundamental part of the protocol

¤ Mobile IPv6 route optimization can operate securely even without pre-arranged security
associations

¤ Route optimization coexists efficiently with routers that perform "ingress filtering"

¤ The movement detection mechanism in Mobile IPv6 provides bidirectional confirmation

of a mobile node's ability to communicate with its default router in its current location

¤ Most packets sent to a mobile node while away from home in Mobile IPv6 are sent using
an IPv6 routing header rather than IP encapsulation

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 28

Dynamic host configuration protocol

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 29

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 30
 INFRASTRUCTURE AND AD-HOC NETWORKS
Many WLANs of today need an infrastructure network. Infrastructure networks not only

provide access to other networks, but also include forwarding functions, medium access

control etc.

In these infrastructure-based wireless networks, communication typically takes place only

between the wireless nodes and the access point , but not directly between the wireless nodes.
Infrastructure-based wireless networks
 The access point does not just control medium access, but also acts as a bridge to other wireless or wired networks.

 Several wireless networks may form one logical wireless network, so the access points together with the fixed network in

between can connect several wireless networks to form a larger network beyond actual radio coverage. Design of

infrastructure-based wireless networks is simpler.

 This structure is reminiscent of switched Ethernet or other star-based networks, where a central element (e.g., a switch)

controls network flow.

 Typical cellular phone networks are infrastructure-based networks for a wide area . Also satellite-based cellular phones

have an infrastructure – the satellites

 Ad-hoc wireless networks, however, do not need any infrastructure to work. Each node can communicate directly with

other nodes, so no access point controlling medium access is necessary.

 Nodes within an ad-hoc network can only communicate if they can reach each other physically, i.e., if they are within

each others radio range or if other nodes can forward the message.

 In ad-hoc networks, the complexity of each node is higher because every node has to implement medium access

mechanisms

ad-hoc wireless networks

EXAMPLE:

IEEE 802.11 and HiperLAN2 are typically infrastructure-based networks, which additionally support ad-hoc

networking. Bluetooth is a typical wireless ad-hoc network.

 MANET
Mobile Ad hoc Network

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 36

 Mobile Ad Hoc Networks (MANET)
• Host movement frequent
• Topology change frequent

B
A A
B

• No cellular infrastructure. Multi-hop wireless links.

• Data must be routed via intermediate nodes.
Why Ad Hoc Networks ?
• Setting up of fixed access points and backbone infrastructure is not
always viable
• Infrastructure may not be present in a disaster area or war zone
• Infrastructure may not be practical for short-range radios; Bluetooth (range ~
10m)

• Ad hoc networks:
• Do not need backbone infrastructure support
• Are easy to deploy
• Useful when infrastructure is absent, destroyed or impractical
Characteristics of Ad Hoc Networks

• Dynamic topologies: Network topology may change dynamically as the

nodes are free to move.
• Bandwidth-constrained, variable capacity links: Realized throughput of
wireless communication is less than the radio’s maximum transmission
rate. Collision occurs frequently.
• Energy-constrained operation: Some nodes in the ad hoc network may
rely on batteries or other exhaustible means for their energy.
• Limited physical security: More prone to physical security threats than
fixed cable networks.

39
 Three Main Issues in Ants’ Life
Route Discovery:
• searching for the places with food

Packet Forwarding:
• delivering foods back home

Route Maintenance:
• when foods move to new place

tseng:40
 Proactive vs. Reactive Routing
 Proactive Routing Protocol:
 continuously evaluate the routes
 attempt to maintain consistent, up-to-date routing information
 when a route is needed, one may be ready immediately
 when the network topology changes
 the protocol responds by propagating updates throughout the network to maintain a consistent view
 Reactive Routing Protocol:
 on-demand
 Ex: DSR, AODV

tseng:41
Ad hoc routing protocols
AD-HOC MOBILE ROUTING
PROTOCOLS

TABLE DRIVEN/ ON-DEMAND-DRIVEN

PROACTIVE REACTIVE

DSDV HYBRID DSR

AODV

ZRP

tseng:42
 Routing in MANETS - Goals
• Provide the maximum possible reliability - use alternative routes if an intermediate node
fails.
• Choose a route with the least cost metric.
• Give the nodes the best possible response time and throughput.
• Route computation must be distributed. Centralized routing in a dynamic network is
usually very expensive.
• Every node must have quick access to routes on demand.
• Each node must be only concerned about the routes to its destination.
• Broadcasts should be avoided (highly unreliable)
• It is desirable to have a backup route when the primary route has become stale.

43
• While in wireless networks with infrastructure support a base station always
reaches all mobile nodes, this is not always the case in an ad-hoc network.

• A destination node might be out of range of a source node transmitting

packets.

• Routing is needed to find a path between source and destination and to

forward the packets appropriately.

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 44

Routing examples for an ad-hoc network

N1 N1
N2 N3
N3 N2

N4 N4
N5 N5

time = t1 good link time = t2

weak link
some fundamental differences between wired networks and ad-hoc wireless
networks related to routing
¤ Asymmetric links
¤ Redundant links
¤ Interference
¤ Dynamic topology

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 46

Asymmetric links
No information about the reverse link operation.

A A A

B B B

Asymmetric links

N1 N2

many routing algorithms for wired networks rely on a symmetric scenario.

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Redundant links
Additional link to support during failure
Wired networks
N1 N2

Ad-hoc networks
N3

N1 N2 N5

N4

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 48

Destination sequence distance vector

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 49

• Destination sequence distance vector (DSDV) routing is an enhancement to
distance vector routing for ad-hoc networks.

• Distance vector routing is used as routing information protocol (RIP) in wired

networks. It performs extremely poorly with certain network changes due to the
count-to-infinity problem.

• Each node exchanges its neighbor table periodically with its neighbors. Changes
at one node in the network propagate slowly through the network.

• The strategies to avoid this problem which are used in fixed networks do not help
in the case of wireless ad-hoc networks, due to the rapidly changing topology.
EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 50
DSDV now adds two things to the distance vector algorithm:

Sequence numbers: Each routing advertisement comes with a sequence number. Within
ad-hoc networks, advertisements may propagate along many paths. Sequence numbers
help to apply the advertisements in correct order. This avoids the loops that are likely
with the unchanged distance vector algorithm.

Damping: Transient changes in topology that are of short duration should not
destabilize the routing mechanisms. Advertisements containing changes in the topology
currently stored are therefore not disseminated further. A node waits with
dissemination if these changes are probably unstable. Waiting time depends on the time
between the first and the best announcement of a path to a certain destination.
EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 51
N1
N2
N3

N4
N5

EC6802 WIRELESS NETWORKS 52

DYNAMIC SOURCE ROUTING

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 Dynamic Source Routing (DSR)

• When node S wants to send a packet to node D, but does not know a
route to D, node S initiates a route discovery

• Source node S floods Route Request (RREQ)

• Each node appends own identifier when forwarding RREQ

© 2001 Nitin Vaidya

Route Discovery in DSR
Y

Z
S E
F
B
C M L
J
A G
H D
K
I N

Represents a node that has received RREQ for D from S

© 2001 Nitin Vaidya

Route Discovery in DSR
Broadcast transmission Y

[S] Z
S E
F
B
C M L
J
A G
H D
K
I N

Represents transmission of RREQ

[X,Y] Represents list of identifiers appended to RREQ

© 2001 Nitin Vaidya

Route Discovery in DSR
Y

Z
S [S,E]
E
F
B
C M L
J
A [S,C] G
H D
K
I N

• Node H receives packet RREQ from two neighbors:

potential for collision

© 2001 Nitin Vaidya

Route Discovery in DSR
Y

Z
S E
F [S,E,F]
B
C M L
J
A G
H D
[S,C,G] K
I N

• Node C receives RREQ from G and H, but does not forward

it again, because node C has already forwarded RREQ once

© 2001 Nitin Vaidya

Route Discovery in DSR
Y

Z
S E
F [S,E,F,J]
B
C M L
J
A G
H D
K
I [S,C,G,K] N

• Nodes J and K both broadcast RREQ to node D

• Since nodes J and K are hidden from each other, their
transmissions may collide

© 2001 Nitin Vaidya

Route Discovery in DSR
Y

Z
S E
[S,E,F,J,M]
F
B
C M L
J
A G
H D
K
I N

• Node D does not forward RREQ, because node D

is the intended target of the route discovery

© 2001 Nitin Vaidya

Route Discovery in DSR

• Destination D on receiving the first RREQ, sends a Route Reply (RREP)

• RREP is sent on a route obtained by reversing the route appended to

received RREQ

• RREP includes the route from S to D on which RREQ was received by

node D

© 2001 Nitin Vaidya

Route Reply in DSR
Y

Z
S RREP [S,E,F,J,D]
E
F
B
C M L
J
A G
H D
K
I N

Represents RREP control message

© 2001 Nitin Vaidya

 Route Reply in DSR

Route Reply can be sent by reversing the route in Route Request (RREQ) only if links are
guaranteed to be bi-directional
• To ensure this, RREQ should be forwarded only if it received on a link that is known to
be bi-directional

If unidirectional (asymmetric) links are allowed, then RREP may need a route discovery for
S from node D
• Unless node D already knows a route to node S
• If a route discovery is initiated by D for a route to S, then the Route Reply is
piggybacked on the Route Request from D.

© 2001 Nitin Vaidya

Dynamic Source Routing: Advantages

• Routes maintained only between nodes who need to communicate

• reduces overhead of route maintenance

• Route caching can further reduce route discovery overhead

• A single route discovery may yield many routes to the destination,

due to intermediate nodes replying from local caches

© 2001 Nitin Vaidya

Dynamic Source Routing: Disadvantages

• Packet header size grows with route length due to source routing
• Flood of route requests may potentially reach all nodes in the network
• Care must be taken to avoid collisions between route requests propagated by
neighboring nodes
• insertion of random delays before forwarding RREQ
• Increased contention if too many route replies come back due to nodes replying using
their local cache
• Route Reply Storm problem
• Reply storm may be eased by preventing a node from sending RREP if it hears
another RREP with a shorter route

© 2001 Nitin Vaidya