Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Multicast support for mobile hosts using Mobile IP: Design issues and proposed architecture

  • Published:
Mobile Networks and Applications Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

In this paper, we consider the problem of providing multicast to mobile hosts using Mobile IP for network routing support. Providing multicast in an internetwork with mobile hosts is made difficult because many multicast protocols are inefficient when faced with frequent membership or location changes. This basic difficulty can be handled in a number of ways, but three main problems emerge with most solutions. The tunnel convergence problem, the duplication problem, and the scoping problem are identified in this paper and a set of solutions are proposed. The paper describes an architecture to support IP multicast for mobile hosts using Mobile IP. The basic unicast routing capability of Mobile IP is used to serve as the foundation for the design of a multicast service facility for mobile hosts. We believe that our scheme is transparent to higher layers, simple, flexible, robust, scalable, and, to the extent possible, independent of the underlying multicast routing facility. For example, our scheme could interoperate with DVMRP, MOSPF, CBT, or PIM in the current Internet. Where differences exist between the current version of IP (IPv4) and the next generation protocol (IPv6), these differences and any further optimizations are discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. A. Acharya and B. Badrinath, Delivering multicast messages in networks with mobile hosts, in: Proc. 13th Int. Conf. Distributed Computing Systems, Pittsburgh, PA (May 1993) pp. 292–299.

  2. A. Acharya, A. Bakre and B. Badrinath, IP multicast extensions for mobile internetworking, in: Proc. IEEE INFOCOM'96, San Francisco, CA (March 1996).

  3. A. Ballardie, P. Francis and J. Crowcroft, Core based trees (CBT): an architecture for scalable inter-domain multicast routing, in: Proc. 1993 ACM SIGCOMM Conference, San Francisco, CA (September 1993) pp. 85–95.

  4. K. Brown and S.Singh, RelM: reliable multicast for mobile networks, Technical Report, Department of Computer Science, University of South Carolina (September 1995).

  5. V. Chikarmane,Network support for mobile hosts in a TCP/IP internetwork, M.Sc. Thesis, Department of Computer Science, University of Saskatchewan (August 1995).

  6. V. Chikarmane, R. Bunt and C. Williamson, Mobile IP-based multicast as a service for mobile hosts, in: Proc. 2nd Int. Workshop on Services in Distributed and Networked Environments, Whistler, BC, Canada (June 1995) pp. 11–18.

  7. V. Chikarmane, C. Williamson and R. Bunt, Implementing Mobile IP routing in 4.3 BSD Unix: a case study, Internetworking: Research and Experience 6(4) (December 1995) 209–227.

    Google Scholar 

  8. S. Deering, Multicast routing in a datagram internetwork, Ph.D. Thesis, Department of Computer Science, Stanford University (1991).

  9. S. Deering and D. Cheriton, Multicast routing in datagram internetworks and extended LANs, ACM Trans. Computer Systems 8(2) (May 1990) 85–110.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. S. Deering, D. Estrin, D. Farinacci and V. Jacobson, An architecture for wide-area multicast routing, in: Proc. 1994 ACM SIGCOMM Conference, London, UK (August 1994) pp. 126–135.

  11. R. Droms, Dynamic host configuration protocol, RFC 1541, Network Working Group (November 1993).

  12. H. Eriksson, MBONE: The multicast backbone, Commun. ACM 37(8) (August 1994) 54–60.

    Article  MathSciNet  Google Scholar 

  13. W. Fenner, Internet group management protocol, version 2, RFC 2236, Network Working Group (November 1997).

  14. G. Forman and J. Zahorjan, The challenges of mobile computing, IEEE Computer 27(4) (April 1994) 38–47.

    Google Scholar 

  15. T. Harrison, C. Williamson, W. Mackrell and R. Bunt, Mobile multicast (MoM) protocol: multicast support for mobile hosts, in: Proc. 3rd Annual ACM/IEEE Conf. Mobile Computing and Networking (MobiCom'97), Budapest, Hungary (September 1997) pp. 151–160.

  16. C. Williamson, T. Harrison, W. Mackrell and R. Bunt, Performance evaluation of the MoM mobile multicast protocol, Mobile Networks and Applications 3(2) (1998) 189–201.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. T. Imielinski and B. Badrinath, Mobile wireless computing, Commun. ACM 37(10) (October 1994) 18–28.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. J. Ioannidis, Protocols for mobile internetworking, Ph.D. Thesis, Columbia University (1993).

  19. D. Johnson and C. Perkins, Route optimization in Mobile IP, Internet Draft, Mobile IP Working Group (November 1996) (work in progress).

  20. G. Montenegro, Bi-directional tunneling for Mobile IP, Internet Draft, Mobile IP Working Group, Sun Microsystems Inc. (September 1996) (work in progress).

  21. G. Malkin, ed., Routing information protocol, RFC 1058, Rutgers University (June 1988).

  22. G. Malkin, ed., RIP version 2 carrying additional information, RFC 1723, Xylogics, Inc. (November 1994).

  23. J. Moy, Multicast routing extensions for OSPF, Commun. ACM 37(8) (August 1994) 61–66.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. A. Myles and D. Skellern, Comparison of mobile host protocols for IP, Internetworking: Research and Experience 4(4) (December 1993) 175–194.

    Google Scholar 

  25. C. Perkins, IP mobility support, RFC 2002, Mobile IP Working Group (October 1996).

  26. C. Perkins, IP encapsulation within IP, RFC 2003, Mobile IP Working Group (October 1996).

  27. D. Waitzman, C. Partridge and S. Deering, eds., Distance vector multicast routing protocol, RFC 1075, BBN STC and Stanford University (November 1988).

  28. L. Wei and D. Estrin, The trade-offs of multicast trees and algorithms, in: Proc. 1994 Int. Conf. Computer Communications and Networks, San Francisco, CA (September 1994).

  29. L. Wei and D. Estrin, Multicast routing in dense and sparse modes: simulation study of tradeoffs and dynamics, in: Proc. 1995 Int. Conf. Computer Communications and Networks, Las Vegas, NV (September 1995) pp. 150–157.

  30. G. Xylomenos and G. Polyzos, IP multicast for mobile hosts, IEEE Communications (January 1997) 54–58.

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Computer Science, University of Saskatchewan, 57 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, S7N 5A9

    Vineet Chikarmane, Carey L. Williamson, Richard B. Bunt & Wayne L. Mackrell

Authors
  1. Vineet Chikarmane
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Carey L. Williamson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Richard B. Bunt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Wayne L. Mackrell
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Chikarmane, V., Williamson, C.L., Bunt, R.B. et al. Multicast support for mobile hosts using Mobile IP: Design issues and proposed architecture. Mobile Networks and Applications 3, 365–379 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1019101521453

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1019101521453

Keywords

Search

Navigation