How to Implement Network Automation in ns3

To implement the network automation in ns3, which considers improving the simulation effectively and permits for dynamic control via network configure set up. Rely upon us for any types of configuration on network automation in ns3.

Here the below are the procedures on how to implement the network automation in ns3 environment.

Prerequisites

1. ns-3 Installation: Ensure ns-3 is installed on your system.
2. Python or C++ Programming: Knowledge of Python or C++ is essential.
3. Understanding of ns-3: Familiarity with ns-3 modules and basic simulation scripts.

Steps to Implement Network Automation

1. Set Up the Development Environment

Make certain that you installed ns3. If not then install and download it from official website.

2. Create a Basic Simulation Script

Start by creating a basic ns-3 simulation script. You can use either Python or C++.

basic-simulation.cc

#include “ns3/core-module.h”

#include “ns3/network-module.h”

#include “ns3/internet-module.h”

#include “ns3/point-to-point-module.h”

using namespace ns3;

int main (int argc, char *argv[])

{

CommandLine cmd;

cmd.Parse (argc, argv);

NodeContainer nodes;

nodes.Create (2);

PointToPointHelper pointToPoint;

pointToPoint.SetDeviceAttribute (“DataRate”, StringValue (“5Mbps”));

pointToPoint.SetChannelAttribute (“Delay”, StringValue (“2ms”));

NetDeviceContainer devices;

devices = pointToPoint.Install (nodes);

InternetStackHelper stack;

stack.Install (nodes);

Ipv4AddressHelper address;

address.SetBase (“10.1.1.0”, “255.255.255.0”);

Ipv4InterfaceContainer interfaces = address.Assign (devices);

Simulator::Run ();

Simulator::Destroy ();

return 0;

}

3.      Add Automation Functionality

To add automation functionality, you can use ns-3’s built-in scheduling features or external scripts to dynamically control the simulation.

Using ns-3 Scheduler

You can use ns-3’s simulator scheduler to automate actions during the simulation.

automation-simulation.cc

#include “ns3/core-module.h”

#include “ns3/network-module.h”

#include “ns3/internet-module.h”

#include “ns3/point-to-point-module.h”

using namespace ns3;

void ChangeDataRate(Ptr<NetDevice> device, std::string newRate) {

Ptr<PointToPointNetDevice> ptpDevice = DynamicCast<PointToPointNetDevice> (device);

ptpDevice->SetDataRate (DataRate (newRate));

NS_LOG_UNCOND (“Data rate changed to ” << newRate);

}

int main (int argc, char *argv[])

{

CommandLine cmd;

cmd.Parse (argc, argv);

NodeContainer nodes;

nodes.Create (2);

PointToPointHelper pointToPoint;

pointToPoint.SetDeviceAttribute (“DataRate”, StringValue (“5Mbps”));

pointToPoint.SetChannelAttribute (“Delay”, StringValue (“2ms”));

NetDeviceContainer devices;

devices = pointToPoint.Install (nodes);

 

InternetStackHelper stack;

stack.Install (nodes);

Ipv4AddressHelper address;

address.SetBase (“10.1.1.0”, “255.255.255.0”);

Ipv4InterfaceContainer interfaces = address.Assign (devices);

Simulator::Schedule (Seconds (10), &ChangeDataRate, devices.Get (0), “10Mbps”);

Simulator::Run ();

Simulator::Destroy ();

return 0;

}

Using External Scripts (Python)

You can use Python scripts to automate running ns-3 simulations with different parameters.

run_simulation.py

import os

data_rates = [“5Mbps”, “10Mbps”, “15Mbps”]

for rate in data_rates:

os.system(f”./waf –run \”automation-simulation –DataRate={rate}\””)

automation-simulation.cc (with argument parsing)

#include “ns3/core-module.h”

#include “ns3/network-module.h”

#include “ns3/internet-module.h”

#include “ns3/point-to-point-module.h”

 

using namespace ns3;

int main (int argc, char *argv[])

{

std::string dataRate = “5Mbps”;

CommandLine cmd;

cmd.AddValue (“DataRate”, “Data rate for the point-to-point link”, dataRate);

cmd.Parse (argc, argv);

NodeContainer nodes;

nodes.Create (2);

PointToPointHelper pointToPoint;

pointToPoint.SetDeviceAttribute (“DataRate”, StringValue (dataRate));

pointToPoint.SetChannelAttribute (“Delay”, StringValue (“2ms”));

NetDeviceContainer devices;

devices = pointToPoint.Install (nodes);

InternetStackHelper stack;

stack.Install (nodes);

Ipv4AddressHelper address;

address.SetBase (“10.1.1.0”, “255.255.255.0”);

Ipv4InterfaceContainer interfaces = address.Assign (devices);

Simulator::Run ();

Simulator::Destroy ();

return 0;

}

Running the Automation

1. Build the ns-3 project:

./waf configure

./waf build

2. Run the Python script to automate the simulations:

python run_simulation.py

Here we had learning how to implement the python script in ns3 environment for network automation that effectively permits the dynamic control for network.

We provide performance analysis support further data about network automation stay in touch with ns3simulation.com.