[Ict4devwg] Bandwidth Maximizer (BwM) – proving concepts, demonstrating potential and viability. Airjaldi Networks, India

[Vern Weitzel]

Subject: 	[bytesforall_readers] Bandwidth Maximizer (BwM) – proving
concepts, demonstrating potential and viability. Airjaldi Networks, India
Date: 	Sun, 14 Jun 2009 22:25:42 +0530
From: 	Frederick "FN" Noronha <fredericknoronha at gmail.com>
Reply-To: 	bytesforall_readers at yahoogroups.com
To: 	bytesforall_readers <bytesforall_readers at yahoogroups.com>





   Bandwidth Maximizer (BwM) – proving concepts, demonstrating potential
   and viability. Airjaldi Networks, India


     Project background and justification

The general quality standards of Internet service providers in
developing countries tend to be low as compared to developed ones. Total
service downtime is frequent; when service is available, high congestion
is common, resulting in slow, limiting, and erratic services and overall
low user experience.

Moreover, bandwidth costs in developing countries tend to be high – in
fact much higher than in developed countries. In rural areas, the
situation worsens with costs for service increasing as service quality
decreases.

The success and viability of any Internet network operating under these
realities hinges on finding ways to successfully maximize the number of
users per available bandwidth with minimal impact on their experience.
The erratic and problematic nature of many upstream connections makes it
difficult to provide good Internet service to subscribers while being
dependent on a single upstream provider for the whole network.

Finding ways to effectively and economically increase redundancy through
use of multiple providers is therefore essential. Where Internet
connectivity is available, usage patterns have a profound impact on
bandwidth congestion and hence user experience. While some of the
most-often used applications and protocols (for example, email, web
browsing, VoIP, social networks) tend to consume relatively little
bandwidth, services such as peer-to-peer (P2P, for example, Kaaza,
emule) applications can easily lead to available bandwidth being
“hogged” by a few users. Developing ways to successfully address such
“hogging” will ensure better overall user experience as well as increase
the number of users per available bandwidth (commonly referred to as
“oversubscription ratio”).


     Project summary

The main obstacle to building broadband Internet networks in rural areas
is the low economic viability of constructing such networks when
expensive commercial technologies to reach relatively few and dispersed
users are used. The high cost of Internet upstream bandwidth,
particularly in rural areas, where providers tend to be few, adds
significant challenges. Further, frequent long hours of total service
downtime and high congestion are common, often resulting in slow,
limiting, and erratic service.

One of the necessary conditions for ISPs operating in such areas is in
finding ways to ensure uninterrupted Internet connectivity and
maximizing the utilization of available bandwidth with minimal impact to
the user.

The AirJaldi team worked on the development of a unique set of solutions
for this challenge, collectively referred to as the “Bandwidth
Maximizer” (BwM). Essentially, AirJaldi’s BwM will combine tools for
identification and prioritization of traffic with local content caching
and filtering with peering-optimization tools. This will enable the use
and load-balancing of multiple upstream connections based on traffic
prioritization and bandwidth costs*.

In this proposal we seek funding for streamlining and sharing our
achievements in this field to date, as well as for laying the foundation
for further essential work in this field, to be carried out with future
additional funding.

The expected results of this proposal are:

     * A prototype bandwidth maximizer integrated and operational on a
       working network – the AirJaldi Network in Dharamsala.
     * Integration and component configuration of the working prototype
       documented and summarized in manuals to be made publically
       available along with the source-code.
     * The technical and financial benefits of the BwM clearly
       demonstrated and documented.
     * Outlining further work needed for improving the product and making
       it suitable for easy replication.


     Organization profile

AirJaldi is a social enterprise established in February 2007 following
more than two years of intensive field work focused on developing
connectivity solutions that address the challenges of building viable
wireless broadband Internet networks for rural areas of developing
countries.

Our proven ability to provide successful solutions for transcending the
last mile in rural areas is based on the integration of affordable “best
of breed” technologies, the ability to leverage the immense resources of
the F/OSS community, and the unique combination of first-rate R&D work
with in-depth knowledge of operational realities in developing countries.

Our first network, “The Dharamsala Community Wireless Mesh Network”,
began in 2004 as a modest project to connect a small number of
institutions in the Dharamsala area, and grew to become an economically
viable wireless network that is one of the biggest of its kind in Asia.
It now interconnects over 2,000 computers within a radius of about 70
kms around Dharamsala and provides its users with broadband Internet
access, VoIP-based telephony, community portals, email, video
conferencing, and web hosting.

AirJaldi is presently managing a smaller network in Dherradun, Northern
India, and is negotiating to build a number of additional networks in
India and elsewhere in Asia.

The modular structure, small and affordable relay nodes, low ecological
footprint and richness of services of our networks attracted much
attention and interest. Our work was at the center of an international
conference entitled “AirJaldi: Empowering Communities through Wireless
Networks”, held in Dharamsala on October 2006, which brought together
some of the leading figures in the field of rural Internet connectivity.
Our work received a special mention for excellence at the 2008 Stockholm
Challenge Award.

For more information about Airjaldi Networks, visit:
http://www.airjaldi.com/ <http://www.airjaldi.com/>

http://isif.asia/groups/isif/wiki/16c08/Bandwidth_Maximizer_(BwM)_%C3%A2%C2%80%C2%93_proving_concepts__demonstrating_potential_and_viability._Airjaldi_Networks__India_.html 

<http://isif.asia/groups/isif/wiki/16c08/Bandwidth_Maximizer_(BwM)_%C3%A2%C2%80%C2%93_proving_concepts__demonstrating_potential_and_viability._Airjaldi_Networks__India_.html>

-- 
FN * http://fredericknoronha.wordpress.com
<http://fredericknoronha.wordpress.com> http://twitter.com/fn
<http://twitter.com/fn>
M +91-9822122436 P +91-832-2409490
http://fredericknoronha.multiply.com/
<http://fredericknoronha.multiply.com/> http://goa1556.goa-india.org
<http://goa1556.goa-india.org>

"Nothing is more powerful than habit." - Ovid