1. Proposed Extensible Approach for WLAN Mesh Standardization
doc.: IEEE /0165r1
March 2005
March 2005
Proposed Extensible Approach for WLAN Mesh Standardization
Date:
Authors:
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Steven Conner, Intel Corp.
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.

2. Abstract Overview of proposed approach for extensibility in 802.11s
doc.: IEEE /0165r1
March 2005
March 2005
Abstract
Overview of proposed approach for extensibility in s
Two major classes of interoperability for s
Intra-mesh interop: Mesh Point – to – Mesh Point Interop within a WLAN Mesh
Inter-mesh/net interop: Interop between a WLAN Mesh and one or more other WLAN Meshes or other LAN segments
Focus of this proposal overview:
Approach to achieve interop with extensibility between Mesh Points within a WLAN Mesh
Network model to achieve interop with extensibility between WLAN Mesh and the outside world through Mesh Portals
* Details on other aspects of the proposal to be presented at a later session.
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.

3. Deployment Scenarios Under Consideration in 802.11 TGs
March 2005
Safety/Military Networks
Campus/Public Networks
Office Networks
Residential Networks
* See 11-04/662r16 for detailed usage scenarios
Question: Should Intra-WLAN Mesh interoperability be achieved with exactly one solution for all deployment scenarios?
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.

4. March 2005
Extensible Approach for s: Supporting alternative path selection metrics and protocols
What the s Functional Requirements and Scope document says:
“The proposal shall define a protocol architecture to allow for alternative path selection metrics and/or routing protocols based on application requirements.” (11-04/1174r13 FR#3)
Why support different path selection protocols?
Flexible enough for market segment needs today and in the future
One mandatory protocol for interoperability, fully meets the needs of small deployments
Allow protocol extensions within the s framework to meet special application requirements
If different protocols can be used in different 11s mesh networks, need a way to identify:
Which protocol(s) a particular device is capable of supporting
Which protocol is used in a particular mesh
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.

5. March 2005
Extensible Approach for s (cont): Using an Association Profile to Identify the Active Protocol/Metric
Each mesh has one active mesh association profile, specifying:
Active path selection protocol (e.g. linkstate, distvector, etc)
Active path selection metric(s) (e.g. airtime, latency, etc.)
Other extensible protocols
Active mesh profile advertised to new mesh points in beacon and probe response information elements (IEs) during discovery
Initialization steps when a Mesh Point boots up:
Mesh Discovery
Discover neighboring WLAN Meshes and their profiles
Mesh Association and Authentication
Associate with a mesh matching a supported profile
Mesh Path Selection and Data Forwarding
Participate in the path selection protocol specified by the profile of the associated mesh
Devices that don’t support the active path selection protocol may join as limited participants at the edge of the mesh (e.g., comm. directly with neighbors, but don’t fully participate in path selection and forwarding)
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.

6. Example Mesh Association
March 2005
Example Mesh Association
Mesh Point x discovers Mesh (WLANMesh_Home) with Profile (link state, airtime metric)
Mesh Identifier:
WLANMesh_Home
Mesh Profile:
(link state, airtime metric)
Mesh Point x associates with the mesh, since it is capable of supporting (link state, airtime metric) 3 6
Mesh Point x begins participating in link state path selection and data forwarding protocol 8 5 7 4 1 2 x
Capability:
Path Selection: link state, distance vector
Metrics: airtime, latency
One active protocol in one mesh, but allow for alternative protocols in different meshes to meet special application needs
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.

7. March 2005
802.11s Mesh Network Model
Mesh
Points
Bridge
or Router
Mesh
Portals
Layer2
LAN
Segment
Layer2
LAN
Segment
.11s Mesh #2
.11s Mesh #1
* See 11-04/1477r4 for terminology definitions
Achieve inter-mesh/net interop by making internal WLAN Mesh operation transparent to higher-layer protocols and other LAN segments connected via Mesh Portals
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.

8. doc.: IEEE /0165r1
March 2005
Interoperability with Higher Layer Protocols: MAC Data Transport over an s WLAN Mesh
March 2005
MSDU source may be:
Endpoint application
Higher-layer protocol (802.1D, IP, etc.), e.g. at Mesh Portal
Etc.
Client
Client
MSDU (e.g. ARP, DHCP, IP, etc)
MAC SAP
MPDU
Mesh
Point
Mesh
Point
Mesh
Point
Mesh
Point
Mesh
Point
* Note: hooks into .11s may optionally provide statistics relating to the WLAN Mesh to future higher-layer protocols that can leverage this info.
802.11s Transparent to Higher-Layers: Internal L2 behavior of WLAN Mesh is hidden from higher-layer protocols under MAC-SAP
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.

9. Reference Model for 802.11s Interworking
March 2005
L3 Router
L3 Router
Mesh Portal
Mesh Portal
802.11s
MAC
802
Bridge
802.11s
MAC
802
Bridge
802.11s
802.11s
802.11s
802.11s
Mesh
Mesh
Mesh
Mesh
Point
Point
Point
Point
802.11s
802.11s
802.11s
802.11s
Mesh
Mesh
Mesh
Mesh
Point
Point
Point
Point
The s MAC entity appears as a single port to an bridging relay or L3 router s mesh portals expose the WLAN mesh behavior as an 802-style LAN segment (appears as a single loop-free broadcast LAN segment to the bridge relay and higher layers).
* See IEEE Annex F for another example 802 multi-hop L2 standard that used a similar approach.
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.

10. Conclusion Key proposal philosophy:
March 2005
Conclusion
Key proposal philosophy:
802.11s should enable full intra-mesh interoperability for small/medium mesh deployments
802.11s should support scalability with inter-mesh/net communication via mesh portals
802.11s should be extensible to support diverse applications and future innovation/standardization
This presentation summarized proposed framework and mechanisms to enable extensibility in s
Other proposal details to follow
We are very interested in additional discussion and ideas on how to make s an extensible standard
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.

11. March 2005
Backup
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.

12. 802.11s Functional Component Architecture
doc.: IEEE /0165r1
March 2005
March 2005
802.11s Functional Component Architecture
Focus of this
Presentation
Mesh Interworking
Mesh Configuration and Management
Upper
Layers
Mesh Topology Learning, Path Selection and Forwarding
Mesh Network Measurement
Mesh Medium Access Coordination (including QoS)
Mesh Security
802.11s
Mesh
Services
Medium Access (11e/n+)
MAC
PHY
IEEE802.11　PHY
IEEE a/b/g/n
* Details on other aspects of the proposal to be presented at a later session.
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.

13. MAC Data Transport over an 802.11s WLAN Mesh (Mesh AP Example)
March 2005
MAC Data Transport over an s WLAN Mesh (Mesh AP Example)
Client
Client
MSDU
MAC SAP
MPDU
Mesh AP
Mesh
Point
Mesh AP
STA
STA
Mesh
Point
Mesh
Point
Steven Conner, Intel Corp.