Computer Networks and Systems

This text, intended for a first course in performance evaluation, provides a self-contained treatment of all aspects of queueing theory. It starts by introducing readers to the terminology and usefulness of queueing theory and continues by considering Markovian queues in equilibrium, Little's law, reversibility, transient analysis and computation, and the M/G/1 queueing system. Subsequent chapters treat the theory of networks of queues and computational algorithms for networks of queues. Stochastic Petri networks, including those whose solutions can be given in product form, are covered in detail. A chapter on discrete-time queueing systems, which are of recent interest, discusses arrival processes, Geom/Geom/m queueing models, and case studies of discrete-time queueing networks arising in industrial applications. This third edition includes a new chapter on current models of network traffic as well as sixteen new homework problems on discrete-time models and a revised and updated set of references. The discussion of network traffic models includes a survey of continuous and discrete time models, a detailed discussion of burstiness, a complete introduction to self-similar traffic and a presentation of solution techniques. Solutions for all of the homework problems in this text are available in a separate volume.