CIS 700-5: The Design and Implementation of Cloud Networks
Spring 2017
NOTE: Class will be held in the DSL Conference Room, NOT the room listed in Penn InTouch
Instructor: Vincent Liu
Room:
Distributed Systems Laboratory (DSL) Conference Room
Time: Monday and Wednesday 1:30-3:00 PM
Discussions:
Piazza
Office hours: Wednesday 3-4 PM (470 Levine North) or by appointment
Course Description
Much of today's computing occurs in and around data centers. Large, specialized networks connect each data center's servers together and also connect those servers to the outside world. This graduate seminar course will explore the design and implementation of these massive network deployments---inside data centers, between data centers, and in the Internet.
A crucial part of the exploration is understanding how large cloud networks are built today by companies like Facebook, Google, and Microsoft. Equally important is where recent research is taking them. This seminar will cover topics such as network architecture, congestion control, troubleshooting, OS/application design, and software-defined networking.
This course satisfies a PhD seminar requirement for PhD students.
Prerequisites
This class is geared toward PhD students or Masters students that are interested in ongoing research. General background in computer systems and networking is preferred.
Format
The class will meet for 1.5 hours twice per week. The format is largely discussion based. Every week, students will be expected to read a couple papers and come to class prepared to discuss them. All students will need to submit an interesting thought about the readings before class. Additionally, one student will be tasked with leading discussion for the day.
In addition to the reading and discussions, students will, in groups of 2-3, engage in a research project of their choosing. The hope is that the project will bridge cloud networking and students' existing research/interests. More concretely, students will be expected to write a proposal for their chosen research project, and produce a presentation and written report of their results at the end of the semester.
Grading
Reading and participation: 50%
- Paper reviews: 20%
- Leading discussion: 15%
- Discussion participation: 15%
Project: 50%
Schedule
Date |
Topic |
Discussion Leader |
Reading List |
Jan. 11 |
Introduction [PPT] |
Vincent |
|
Jan. 16 |
No Class (Martin Luther King, Jr. Day) |
|
|
Jan. 18 |
Data Center Architectures [PPT] |
Vincent |
|
Jan. 23 |
Network Topologies [PPT] |
Vincent |
|
Jan. 25 |
Data Center Traffic Patterns |
Josh Fried |
|
Jan. 30 |
Optical/Wireless Networks |
Sam Weinberg |
|
Feb. 1 |
Congestion Control |
Ji Yong Cho |
|
Feb. 6 |
No Class (Google Summit) |
Feb. 8 |
No Class (Google Summit)
Project proposals/plan due.
|
Feb. 13 |
Traffic Balancing |
Sam Weinberg |
|
Feb. 15 |
Load Balancing |
Qizhen Zhang |
|
Feb. 20 |
VMs and Containers |
Mihir Pattani |
|
Feb. 22 |
Kernel Bypass |
Henri Maxime Demoulin |
|
Feb. 27 |
Multitenant Networking |
Henri Maxime Demoulin |
|
Mar. 1 |
Scheduling |
Saeed Abedi |
|
Mar. 6 |
No Class (Spring Break) |
Mar. 8 |
No Class (Spring Break) |
Mar. 13 |
Software-defined Networking (SDN) |
Mihir Pattani |
|
Mar. 15 |
Wide-area SDN |
Ji Yong Cho |
|
Mar. 20 |
Programmable switches |
Mikael Mantis |
|
Mar. 22 |
Network Function Virtualization (NFV) |
Akshay Sriraman |
|
Mar. 27 |
No Class (NSDI) |
Mar. 29 |
No Class (NSDI) |
Apr. 3 |
Cloud Applications |
Qizhen Zhang |
|
Apr. 5 |
Cloud Security |
Josh Fried |
|
Apr. 10 |
Ordering |
Saeed Abedi |
|
Apr. 12 |
Monitoring and Diagnostics |
Mikael Mantis |
|
Apr. 17 |
Network Management |
Akshay Sriraman |
|
Apr. 19 |
No Class (Finish Projects) |
Apr. 24 |
Project Presentations |
Apr. 26 |
Project Presentations |