SBIR-STTR Award

IP is today's dominant networking protocol. Newer version of this protocol is expected to be used in the next generation wire and wireless networks. However, the lack of quality of Service (QoS) and data security are the two major shortcomings of the IP protocol. Unauthorized data or resource access on IP networks has been facilitated by the lack of these services. Trlokom proposes to develop a system that integrates data security and QoS. Our system will use dedicated hardware to improve the cryptographic data processing to the wirespeed. Strong authentication of the data packets transmitted over the network will form a natural defense against the network based attacks, such as the DoS attacks. The APIs for RSVP and Differentiated Services (DS) will be used to provide QoS for the applications. The QoS and security support in our system will ensure proper functioning of the applications even when the network is under an attack. Our proposed system can also be used for building interactive video applications, virtual private networks (VPNs), and multi-level security systems at a low cost. At the end of Phase I, we will deliver an architecture to provide security and QoS to the applications in the IP networks. A security system with QoS and hardware crypto accelerator can be used for various applications, such as virtual private networks, multi-level security system, multi-media multicast etc. This system will provide end-to-end security and QoS that is easy to use at a reduced cost.

During the Phase I of the project, we developed a system level architecture for quality of service (QoS) provisioning at the end-host that works with secure communication protocols. This architecture will enable deployment of agile, split-based, network centric communication systems that are distributed, collaborative, and scalable. By breaking the mold of server-based methods for QoS and Security, we achieve significant cost reduction while improving the performance and scalability. Our proposed solution will be the first product with true end-to-end QoS (IS and DS) and security. Our Phase II goal is to deliver a prototype software and hardware that provides support for end-to-end QoS and Security. Dedicated hardware integrated into a network interface card (NIC) will be used to improve performance with in-line implementation of QoS and Security protocols and data processing. There are some NICs in the market that have tried to support security and QoS, but they have not been very successful because of lack of end-to-end feature. Since our architecture allows for application independent QoS and security, there will be no need to modify individual applications. Centralized policy control enables quick optimization of the network for improved performance. This approach also blends naturally with peer-to-peer networking.

Keywords:
QOS, SECURITY, REAL-TIME MULTIMEDIA , WIRELESS NETWORKS, END-TO-END COMMUNICATION, FORWARD ERROR CORRECTION, MOBILE IP, VPN