Simulation and Comparison of Control Messages Effect on AODV and DSR Protocols in Mobile Ad-hoc Networks

الملخص

a Mobile Ad-hoc NETwork (MANET) is a set of portable wireless devices forming a temporary wireless network without utilize of any supplementary infrastructure and there is no centralized management. In MANET’s routing protocols, one of the most important key challenges is the flooding process of control packets and its influences on the performance in the network. In this paper, we present a simulation study evaluating the performance of on-demand routing protocols, specifically Dynamic Source Routing (DSR) and Ad hoc On-Demand Distance Vector (AODV), under varying conditions. By altering the number of source nodes (traffic load), pause time of nodes (speed), and the number of nodes (network size), we aimed to understand the impact of control messages on the protocols' performance. Our results indicate that DSR exhibits better scalability, with control packets stabilizing or decreasing slightly as the network size grows. Conversely, AODV shows a sharp and exponential increase in control packets with more nodes, suggesting higher control overhead and reduced scalability in larger networks. Both protocols display inconsistent variations in control packets with changes in the number of source nodes, likely due to route maintenance and discovery mechanisms. While DSR demonstrates a controlled and predictable increase in control packets, making it more efficient for larger networks, it may require optimized settings for fluctuating node densities. In contrast, AODV is efficient for small to medium-sized networks but faces higher control overhead in very large networks, necessitating careful management to prevent congestion and excessive control messaging. The preference between DSR and AODV is determined by particular network requirements, with each protocol having its strengths and weaknesses, and their performance varying based on network size and conditions. Simulations of DSR and AODV protocols to analyse and study its performance were implemented in Global Mobile Simulator.