Springer Architecture and Design for the Future Internet: 4WARD Project (Signals and Communication Technology)

Architecture and Design for the Future Internet addresses the Networks of the Future and the Future Internet, focusing on networks aspects, offering both technical and non-technical perspectives. It presents the main findings of 4WARD (Architecture and Design for the Future Internet), a European Integrated Project within Framework Programme 7, which addressed this area from an innovative approach. Today’s network architectures are stifling innovation, restricting it mostly to the application level, while the need for structural change is increasingly evident. The absence of adequate facilities to design, optimise and interoperate new networks currently forces a convergence to an architecture that is suboptimal for many applications and that cannot support innovations within itself, the Internet. 4WARD overcomes this impasse through a set of radical architectural approaches, built on a strong mobile and wireless background. The main topics addressed by the book are: the improved ability to design inter-operable and complementary families of network architectures; the enabled co-existence of multiple networks on common platforms through carrier-grade virtualisation for networking resources; the enhanced utility of networks by making them self-managing; the increased robustness and efficiency of networks by leveraging diversity; and the improved application support by a new information-centric paradigm in place of the old host-centric approach. These solutions embrace the full range of technologies, from fibre backbones to wireless and sensor networks. Review I have the pleasure to share with you my satisfaction as to the achievements of the EU R&D Project 4WARD. Architecture and Design for the Future Internet details the many unique contributions of the project to the development of a solid scientific basis for the Future Internet. Key amongst its many contributions are those relating to a new architecture framework where mobility, multi-homing and security become an intrinsic part of the network architecture rather than add-on solutions, hence allowing networks to bloom as a family of interoperable networks each complementing each other and each addressing individual requirements such as mobility, QoS, security, resilience, wireless transport and energy-awareness. 4WARD also addressed particularly well the question as to how virtualization can provide an opportunity to roll out new architectures, protocols, and services with network service providers sharing a common physical infrastructure. Tightly coupled to virtualization is network management, where 4WARD has broken new territory by advocating an approach where management functions come as embedded capabilities of devices. 4WARD has gone further than others by recognizing the paradigm shift brought about by the move from a node-centric age to an information-centric age. The partners and scientific staff of 4WARD are to be congratulated for the work performed and for providing a perfect illustration of how Europe’s commitment and creativity will enable the future. Dr. Joao Schwarz da Silva, Former Director of DG-INFSO, European Commission (Foreword to the book) From the Back Cover Architecture and Design for the Future Internet addresses the Networks of the Future and the Future Internet, focusing on networks aspects, offering both technical and non-technical perspectives. It presents the main findings of 4WARD (Architecture and Design for the Future Internet), a European Integrated Project within Framework Programme 7, which addressed this area from an innovative approach. Today’s network architectures are stifling innovation, restricting it mostly to the application level, while the need for structural change is increasingly evident. The absence of adequate facilities to design, optimise and interoperate new networks currently forces a convergence to an architecture that is suboptimal for many applications and that cannot s