Studying Wireless Routing Link Metric Dynamics

Multi-hop wireless mesh networks are increasingly being deployed for last-mile Internet access. Typically, network algorithms such as routing, channel assignment and topology control for such networks rely heavily on metrics that intend to capture link "Quality" across the network. However, the underlying dynamics of the proposed link metrics themselves have not yet been studied in detail. In this paper, the authors study the dynamics of the most popular link metrics in real network deployments. Using two wireless mesh testbeds, they measure a number of link metrics across different hardware platforms and network environments.