Key Management and Service Framework for QKD networks

Overview

This repository provides the open-source implementation of methodologies described in the paper “Decentralized Key Management and Service in Quantum Key Distribution Networks: An Experimental Implementation”. It includes the following components:

1. The proposed AUTO rate control scheme, designed for dynamic and efficient rate adjustments in QKD networks.
2. The QKD-TL scheme, leveraging the ECN mechanism for congestion control as a comparative baseline.
3. An Active Queue Management (AQM) scheme, aimed at enhancing network performance by managing packet queues dynamically.
4. A congestion control scheme based on the Resource Reservation Protocol, optimizing resource allocation in network traffic scenarios.

Usage Instructions

Compilation

To compile the source files, use the following command:

g++ -o output_file source_file.cpp

Replace output_file with your desired executable name and source_file.cpp with the relevant source file. Ensure that all dependencies are correctly included in your environment.

Configuration

Topology and Routing Configuration

This project implements a distributed architecture suitable for custom network topologies. The provided example demonstrates a seven-node network topology, chosen for its ability to model diverse network conditions and interactions within a distributed quantum key distribution (QKD) environment. This topology allows for realistic simulations of both key packet transmission and congestion scenarios, providing a robust framework for evaluating the implemented methodologies. It comprises:

1. A barbell topology for key data packet transmission (PC1-PC4, PC6-PC7).
2. A simulated QKD key injection node (PC5), responsible for introducing quantum keys into the network.

The simulated injection node utilizes begin and end commands to mark the start and end of experiments for precise control.

Node Configuration

The IP addresses for the example topology nodes are predefined as follows:

• PC1: {"192.168.190.128", "192.168.194.128", "192.168.195.128", "192.168.196.129"}
• PC2: {"192.168.190.129", "192.168.191.128", "192.168.192.128", "192.168.194.133"}
• PC3: {"192.168.191.129", "192.168.194.131"}
• PC4: {"192.168.192.129", "192.168.194.134"}
• PC5: {"192.168.194.129"}
• PC6: {"192.168.196.128", "192.168.194.130"}
• PC7: {"192.168.195.129", "192.168.194.132"}

After configuring the IP addresses, you must set up the node key relay routing table. Refer to the get_next_node_inf() function in the source code for detailed instructions.

Key Simulation Configuration

With the network topology and routing configured, communication between nodes becomes operational. To emulate quantum key distribution (QKD), load the simulated key data files available in our open-source dataset QNLab-USTC/USTC-QNLab-KMS24-Dataset.

Key data files must be named in the format HostX_HostY.txt, containing:

For example, a file named PC1_PC2.txt might include the following data:

1627849623000000, 15
1627849624000000, 10

Here, the first column represents the timestamp (in nanoseconds), and the second column indicates the number of key packets transmitted at that time.

• Timestamps of key exchanges.
• Number of transmitted key packets, simulating the quantum key generation process on the link between HostX and HostY.

For injection, configure the simulated key injection node to read the appropriate key data file.

Request Model Configuration

To define a static request input, modify the macro INIT_REQUEST_LIST within the source code. Use the following format:

{{source_node, destination_node, number_of_packets, transmission_time}}

Additionally, for advanced traffic modeling, compile and execute PPBP_create_file.cpp to generate request files based on the PPBP traffic model. These files can be subsequently loaded into the program.

Running the Program

After completing the configurations:

1. Execute the program on the data transmission hosts.
2. Run the program on the simulated injection node.
3. On the simulated injection node terminal, type begin to start the experiment.
4. To terminate the experiment, type end.

Upon completion, the following outputs will be available on each node:

• send_time.csv: Records the timestamps of sent packets.
• recv_time.csv: Records the timestamps of received packets.
• HostName.csv: Contains information on the request completion queue for the respective node.

Refer to the source code for a detailed explanation of the output formats.

License

This project is licensed under the GPL-3.0 license.

Contact

For further inquiries or technical support, please contact:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: Research Group of Quantum Network, USTC