engleski

Optimal MAC Packet Size in Wireless LAN

This paper presents an analytical method of optimal breaking of a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)/ Internet Protocol (IP) message into medium access control (MAC) packets in wireless networks (IEEE 802.11b wireless local area network standard), and an empirical, measurement-based, characterization of the average throughput as a function of the packet size. TCP performs reasonably well over the wired networks where packet losses are mainly due to network congestion. However, TCP suffers significant throughput degradation over wireless networks where packet losses are also due to transmission errors. In wireless LANs the MAC protocol is the main element that determines the efficiency in sharing the limitted communication bandwidth of the wireless channel. Our analysis and simulations show that changing paket size could decrease/increase throughput and packet loss. Wireless network links are characterized by rapidly time varying channel conditions, therefore, static link control techniques that make sense in well behaved wired links do not necessarily apply to wireless links. Adaptive sizing of the MAC layer frame in the presence of varying channel noise indeed has a large impact on the user seen throughput.

wireless LAN; throughput; TCP

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