How to Implement Network Packet Tracing in ns3

To implement the network packet tracing in ns3 requires us to analyze and capture the network traffic at various points in the network. Understand the behavior of the network simulation, diagnose issues, and optimize performance with help of packet tracing. Here’s a complete step-by-step process to implement this:

Step-by-Step Implementation:

Step 1: Setup ns3 Environment

Make certain you have installed the ns3 on your computer.

Step 2: Include Necessary Modules

In this step, we have comprise the essential modules into the script:

#include “ns3/core-module.h”

#include “ns3/network-module.h”

#include “ns3/internet-module.h”

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

#include “ns3/applications-module.h”

#include “ns3/flow-monitor-module.h”

Step 3: Create the Simulation Script

1. Setup Nodes and Network:

using namespace ns3;

NS_LOG_COMPONENT_DEFINE (“NetworkPacketTracingExample”);

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

{

CommandLine cmd;

cmd.Parse (argc, argv);

// Create nodes

NodeContainer nodes;

nodes.Create (4);

// Create point-to-point links

PointToPointHelper pointToPoint;

pointToPoint.SetDeviceAttribute (“DataRate”, StringValue (“10Mbps”));

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

NetDeviceContainer devices;

devices = pointToPoint.Install (NodeContainer (nodes.Get (0), nodes.Get (1)));

devices.Add (pointToPoint.Install (NodeContainer (nodes.Get (1), nodes.Get (2))));

devices.Add (pointToPoint.Install (NodeContainer (nodes.Get (2), nodes.Get (3))));

// Install Internet stack

InternetStackHelper stack;

stack.Install (nodes);

// Assign IP addresses

Ipv4AddressHelper address;

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

Ipv4InterfaceContainer interfaces = address.Assign (devices);

// Set up applications

uint16_t port = 9;  // Discard port (RFC 863)

// Server application on node 3

Address serverAddress (InetSocketAddress (Ipv4Address::GetAny (), port));

PacketSinkHelper packetSinkHelper (“ns3::UdpSocketFactory”, serverAddress);

ApplicationContainer sinkApps = packetSinkHelper.Install (nodes.Get (3));

sinkApps.Start (Seconds (1.0));

sinkApps.Stop (Seconds (20.0));

// Client application on node 0

OnOffHelper onoff (“ns3::UdpSocketFactory”, Address (InetSocketAddress (interfaces.GetAddress (3), port)));

onoff.SetConstantRate (DataRate (“1Mbps”));

ApplicationContainer apps = onoff.Install (nodes.Get (0));

apps.Start (Seconds (2.0));

apps.Stop (Seconds (20.0));

// Enable pcap tracing for packet capture

pointToPoint.EnablePcapAll (“network-packet-tracing”);

// Enable ASCII tracing

AsciiTraceHelper ascii;

pointToPoint.EnableAsciiAll (ascii.CreateFileStream (“network-packet-tracing.tr”));

// Enable flow monitor

FlowMonitorHelper flowmon;

Ptr<FlowMonitor> monitor = flowmon.InstallAll ();

Simulator::Stop (Seconds (20.0));

Simulator::Run ();

// Print per-flow statistics

monitor->CheckForLostPackets ();

Ptr<Ipv4FlowClassifier> classifier = DynamicCast<Ipv4FlowClassifier> (flowmon.GetClassifier ());

std::map<FlowId, FlowMonitor::FlowStats> stats = monitor->GetFlowStats ();

for (std::map<FlowId, FlowMonitor::FlowStats>::const_iterator i = stats.begin (); i != stats.end (); ++i)

{

Ipv4FlowClassifier::FiveTuple t = classifier->FindFlow (i->first);

std::cout << “Flow ” << i->first << ” (” << t.sourceAddress << ” -> ” << t.destinationAddress << “)\n”;

std::cout << ”  Tx Bytes:   ” << i->second.txBytes << “\n”;

std::cout << ”  Rx Bytes:   ” << i->second.rxBytes << “\n”;

std::cout << ”  Tx Packets: ” << i->second.txPackets << “\n”;

std::cout << ”  Rx Packets: ” << i->second.rxPackets << “\n”;

std::cout << ”  Throughput: ” << i->second.rxBytes * 8.0 / (i->second.timeLastRxPacket.GetSeconds() – i->second.timeFirstTxPacket.GetSeconds()) / 1024 / 1024 << ” Mbps\n”;

}

Simulator::Destroy ();

return 0;

}

Step 4: Run the Simulation

Finally, now we can compile and run your simulation script by following the below:

sh

./waf configure

./waf build

./waf –run NetworkPacketTracingExample

Explanation

• Node Creation: Create nodes that demonstrate the various devices in the network.
• Point-to-Point Links: Configure point-to-point links between nodes with specified data rates and delays.
• Internet Stack: Install the Internet stack on all nodes.
• IP Configuration: Allocate the IP addresses to the interfaces.
• Applications: By using the OnOffApplication and PacketSink, we can simulate the traffic between nodes.
• Pcap Tracing: Capturing packets in the point-to-point links by permitting pcap.
• ASCII Tracing: Enable ASCII tracing to capture detailed packet traces in a human-readable format.
• Flow Monitor: Use the FlowMonitor module to gather and facsimile statistics about the traffic flows.

Step 5: Analyze the Traces

1. Open Pcap Files with Wireshark:

Analyze the captured packets by opening the generated .pcap files in Wireshark.

1. Open ASCII Trace File:

See the detailed packet traces by opening the generated .tr file in a text editor.

1. Analyze Flow Monitor Output:

Review the flow monitor output printed to the console to analyze traffic flow statistics.

Advanced Packet Tracing Techniques

1. Filtering Specific Traffic:

Analyze the certain kinds of traffic with the help of Wireshark filters. For instance, to filter UDP traffic:

plaintext

udp

1. Following Streams:

We can see the whole conversation among the endpoints by following specific TCP or UDP stream.

1. • Right-click on a packet and select Follow > TCP Stream or Follow > UDP Stream.
2. Inspecting Protocol Details:

Inspect detailed protocol information for each packet in Wireshark.

1. •  Get the layer-by-layer protocol details by extending the packet details pane.
2. Using Coloring Rules:

Use Wireshark’s coloring rules to highlight specific types of traffic for easier analysis.

1. • Go to View > Coloring Rules and customize the rules as needed.
2. Exporting Data:

We have to WireShark to export the certain data from grasped packets.

1. • Go to File > Export Packet Dissections to export packet details in various formats.

As per the script, we can have knowledge about how to implement the network packet tracing in ns3 and their advanced techniques and how to execute them with an example. We will help you regarding the network packet tracing by providing another script, if needed.

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