RFC 2501 (rfc2501) - Page 1 of 12

Mobile Ad hoc Networking (MANET): Routing Protocol Performance Issues and Evaluation Considerations

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Network Working Group                                          S. Corson
Request for Comments: 2501                        University of Maryland
Category: Informational                                        J. Macker
                                               Naval Research Laboratory
                                                            January 1999


                   Mobile Ad hoc Networking (MANET):
   Routing Protocol Performance Issues and Evaluation Considerations

Status of this Memo

   This memo provides information for the Internet community.  It does
   not specify an Internet standard of any kind.  Distribution of this
   memo is unlimited.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (C) The Internet Society (1999).  All Rights Reserved.

Abstract

   This memo first describes the characteristics of Mobile Ad hoc
   Networks (MANETs), and their idiosyncrasies with respect to
   traditional, hardwired packet networks.  It then discusses the effect
   these differences have on the design and evaluation of network
   control protocols with an emphasis on routing performance evaluation
   considerations.

1. Introduction

   With recent performance advancements in computer and wireless
   communications technologies, advanced mobile wireless computing is
   expected to see increasingly widespread use and application, much of
   which will involve the use of the Internet Protocol (IP) suite. The
   vision of mobile ad hoc networking is to support robust and efficient
   operation in mobile wireless networks by incorporating routing
   functionality into mobile nodes.  Such networks are envisioned to
   have dynamic, sometimes rapidly-changing, random, multihop topologies
   which are likely composed of relatively bandwidth-constrained
   wireless links.

   Within the Internet community, routing support for mobile hosts is
   presently being formulated as "mobile IP" technology.  This is a
   technology to support nomadic host "roaming", where a roaming host
   may be connected through various means to the Internet other than its
   well known fixed-address domain space. The host may be directly
   physically connected to the fixed network on a foreign subnet, or be



Corson & Macker              Informational
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