Preparation for 4D recitation
- Read A Clean Slate 4D Approach to Network Control and Management.
- Note that the version of this paper that we've linked starts with a summary from the paper reviewers. You should read that summary.
This paper doesn't present an existing, real system. Instead, the author propose a design space for thinking about network architectures. They pick a particular design point in that space, which they term "4D", and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of this particular architecture. Finally, they lay out a research agenda for continuing to evaluate—and perhaps even implementing—4D.
As you read, think about the following:
- What other, perhaps less extreme, design points exist in this space?
- Is 4D worth pursuing?
- What makes the implementation of 4D—or perhaps any clean slate design—challenging?
Question for Recitation
Before you come to this recitation, write up (on paper) a brief answer to the following (really—we don't need more than a couple sentences for each question). If your TA has requested that you email your answer to them, you may do that instead, but it should still be handed in before your recitation begins.
Your answers to these questions should be in your own words, not direct quotations from the paper.
- What do the authors mean by a "clean slate approach"?
- How does 4D address problems that plague existing networks?
- Why do the author present this particular clean slate approach?