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An investigation into the use of software defined networking controllers in aerial networks

Software Defined Networking (SDN) is rapidly gaining acceptance and use in terrestrial networks but little research has been done to apply it to aerial networks. This paper describes an investigation into five open-source controllers using a specific set of criteria based on the characteristics of these networks. A preliminary qualitative investigation compares the controllers based on their state handling and failure recovery mechanisms, resulting in the selection of two controllers for further investigation. Further quantitative tests were performed on these controllers to determine which was more suitable for deployment in an airborne environment. Key aspects such as controller failure recovery and the resultant generated traffic were analyzed and quantified. Due to the much lower bandwidth in aerial networks when compared to terrestrial networks, a low-bandwidth solution with high recovery speed and adaptability is required. This investigation takes these factors into account and gives insight into which open-source controller would be best as a starting point for use in this highly constrained environment.