Data communication networks are widely used today and are an integral part of our daily life. The Internet is a medium for business, personal, and government communication, and it is difficult to envision today’s society without this essential infrastructure. The continued success of the Internet is dependent on our ability to maintain and improve the functionality, performance, and scalability of these networks. As a basis for obtaining the necessary knowledge about networks, there is a clear need for textbooks that provide an introduction to the foundations of this topic as well as a detailed understanding of more advanced issues.

While many available books cover the design of network protocols and their operation, there has been preciously little focus on the systems that implement networks. Early data communication networks struggled with the scarcity of transmission bandwidth, which led to significant efforts to improve management and efficient use of this resource. Over the last three decades, advances in transmission technology have led to the availability of vast amounts of bandwidth, thus shifting the main bottleneck of networks from the transmission medium to the switching and processing of transmitted data. As a result, modern networks and the Internet are not only in need of appropriate protocols for the wide deployment of applications and services, but also in need of efficient systems that enable the timely processing and forwarding of network traffic.

Network systems require technical skills in computer architecture, design methodologies, algorithm design, and networking. Architecture of Network Systems explains the practice and methodologies that will allow you to solve a broad range of problems in system design, including problems related to security, quality of service, performance, manageability, and more. Leading researchers Dimitrios Serpanos and Tilman Wolf develop architectures for all network sub-systems, bridging the gap between operation and VLSI. Discussing the major challenges in the design of networks and the architectures that have been developed, Serpanos and Wolf provide a systematic treatment of network architectures, from the basics to advanced topics.

• This is the first book to provide comprehensive coverage of the technical aspects of network systems, including processing systems, hardware technologies, memory managers, software routers, and more.
• Develops a systematic approach to network architectures, based on the OSI reference model, that is useful for practitioners at every level.
• Covers both the important basics and cutting-edge topics in network systems architecture, including Quality of Service and Security for mobile, real-time P2P services, Low-Power Requirements for Mobile Systems, and next generation Internet systems.