Run-time Performance Monitoring, Verification, and Healing of End-to-End Services

Softwarization enables tremendous flexibility for networks as the use of software-defined networking (SDN) and programmable data planes (e.g. P4) together support dynamic reconfiguration of networks in real-time, in response to network conditions and new service requests. In such networks, it is imperative to ensure that end-to-end network services continue to satisfy SLAs, especially performance requirements. However, in the presence of unpredictable dynamics due to network reconfigurations, it is not possible to guarantee prior to deployment that a service will meet such SLAs. Run-time verification – in combination with programmable control and data plane monitoring – can provide a basis for detecting potential performance SLA violations, together with identifying and executing appropriate network mitigations. In this paper, we propose a verification transverse based on formal specifications, that spans performance SLAs across the distributed SDN control and programmable data planes, and can coordinate with both planes to execute dynamic reconfiguration that mitigate the detected issues. We demonstrate a proof-of-concept prototype based on an extension of the Aerial run-time verification tool, together with the Inband Network Telemetry (INT) capability, on a network running distributed ONOS controllers together with a P4 data plane.