Topological network design: A survey

We consider the problem of topological optimization of communication networks subject to a number of design constraints, such as maximum network diameter, maximum node degree, k-node (link) survivability, and network fault tolerance. The primary design problem can be described as follows: Given a set of network nodes, it is required to find a topology Psi, selected from all possible topologies, so that the cost of Psi (measured possibly in terms of the maximum diameter, maximum node degree, etc.) is less than that of any other network topology and such that Psi satisfies some given design constraints. Fault tolerance is concerned with the ability of the network nodes to communicate in the presence of a set of faulty links and/or nodes. The network design problem considering reliability constraints is NP-hard. We classify the research efforts presented in the literature for solving the topological optimization design problem as hierarchical, enumerative, or iterative techniques. In this paper, we provide a survey of the topological network design techniques under different design constraints. Experimental results obtained by applying a number of algorithms to a set of randomly generated networks are presented and compared. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.