Choate: Toward High-Level, Cross-Layer SDN Programming

Software-defined networking (SDN) makes it possible to have a simplified and logically centralized network control. However, it is still challenging to provide unified cross-layer SDN programming. This paper presents Choate, a system that enables high-level, cross-layer, and protocol-independent SDN programming. It allows operators to program the network datapath using attributes defined by cross-layer protocols. Choate utilizes a coherent flow duplication algorithm to collect those attributes. In evaluating real-world topologies cases, Choate provides >3x throughput compared to a Layer2-and-Layer3 (L2/L3) SDN with a pfSense firewall.