Network Digital Twin Toward Networking, Telecommunications, and Traffic Engineering: A Survey
Network Digital Twin (NDT) is an evolving technology that provides a framework through which a network administrator can have a virtual representation of a computer network. As a result, analysis, monitoring, testing, running new protocols, and more can be performed using the NDT before the final de...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IEEE
2025-01-01
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| Series: | IEEE Access |
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| Online Access: | https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10847826/ |
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| author | Reza Poorzare Dimitris N. Kanellopoulos Varun Kumar Sharma Poulami Dalapati Oliver P. Waldhorst |
| author_facet | Reza Poorzare Dimitris N. Kanellopoulos Varun Kumar Sharma Poulami Dalapati Oliver P. Waldhorst |
| author_sort | Reza Poorzare |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Network Digital Twin (NDT) is an evolving technology that provides a framework through which a network administrator can have a virtual representation of a computer network. As a result, analysis, monitoring, testing, running new protocols, and more can be performed using the NDT before the final deployment of the developed approach. In this way, the consequences of direct deployment and the negative impact on network operations can be avoided. Telecommunications, along with traffic engineering as one of its critical components, play a prominent role across various networking domains, including Internet service providers, data centers, cellular networks, intelligent transportation systems, and smart cities. In this context, NDT has the potential to serve as a key enabler for optimizing these domains by providing a digital framework, which can facilitate the evaluation and enhancement of different scenarios. Accordingly, this paper presents a comprehensive survey on how NDT can facilitate advancements in network traffic engineering across a wide range of networking domains. First, we start with an in-depth analysis of the evolution of the network digital twin technology and provide a comparison with simulation tools. Next, we examine the role of NDT in various networking and telecommunication domains. We also explore the applicability of NDT technology from a traffic engineering perspective across different network types. Subsequently, we highlight key open research questions and potential future directions that warrant further investigation. Finally, we conclude by outlining the promising future trajectory of NDT within the aforementioned domains. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ff2397923d1942bb9375245891ac97e7 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2169-3536 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | IEEE |
| record_format | Article |
| series | IEEE Access |
| spelling | doaj-art-ff2397923d1942bb9375245891ac97e72025-01-29T00:00:59ZengIEEEIEEE Access2169-35362025-01-0113164891653810.1109/ACCESS.2025.353194710847826Network Digital Twin Toward Networking, Telecommunications, and Traffic Engineering: A SurveyReza Poorzare0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4131-9398Dimitris N. Kanellopoulos1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4147-9295Varun Kumar Sharma2Poulami Dalapati3https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0539-3029Oliver P. Waldhorst4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5468-2073Institute of Data-Centric Software Systems (IDSS), Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences, Karlsruhe, GermanyDepartment of Mathematics, University of Patras, Patras, GreeceDepartment of Computer Science and Engineering, The LNM Institute of Information Technology, Jaipur, IndiaDepartment of Computer Science and Engineering, The LNM Institute of Information Technology, Jaipur, IndiaInstitute of Data-Centric Software Systems (IDSS), Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences, Karlsruhe, GermanyNetwork Digital Twin (NDT) is an evolving technology that provides a framework through which a network administrator can have a virtual representation of a computer network. As a result, analysis, monitoring, testing, running new protocols, and more can be performed using the NDT before the final deployment of the developed approach. In this way, the consequences of direct deployment and the negative impact on network operations can be avoided. Telecommunications, along with traffic engineering as one of its critical components, play a prominent role across various networking domains, including Internet service providers, data centers, cellular networks, intelligent transportation systems, and smart cities. In this context, NDT has the potential to serve as a key enabler for optimizing these domains by providing a digital framework, which can facilitate the evaluation and enhancement of different scenarios. Accordingly, this paper presents a comprehensive survey on how NDT can facilitate advancements in network traffic engineering across a wide range of networking domains. First, we start with an in-depth analysis of the evolution of the network digital twin technology and provide a comparison with simulation tools. Next, we examine the role of NDT in various networking and telecommunication domains. We also explore the applicability of NDT technology from a traffic engineering perspective across different network types. Subsequently, we highlight key open research questions and potential future directions that warrant further investigation. Finally, we conclude by outlining the promising future trajectory of NDT within the aforementioned domains.https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10847826/Digital twinnetwork digital twintelecommunicationstraffic engineeringtraffic optimization |
| spellingShingle | Reza Poorzare Dimitris N. Kanellopoulos Varun Kumar Sharma Poulami Dalapati Oliver P. Waldhorst Network Digital Twin Toward Networking, Telecommunications, and Traffic Engineering: A Survey IEEE Access Digital twin network digital twin telecommunications traffic engineering traffic optimization |
| title | Network Digital Twin Toward Networking, Telecommunications, and Traffic Engineering: A Survey |
| title_full | Network Digital Twin Toward Networking, Telecommunications, and Traffic Engineering: A Survey |
| title_fullStr | Network Digital Twin Toward Networking, Telecommunications, and Traffic Engineering: A Survey |
| title_full_unstemmed | Network Digital Twin Toward Networking, Telecommunications, and Traffic Engineering: A Survey |
| title_short | Network Digital Twin Toward Networking, Telecommunications, and Traffic Engineering: A Survey |
| title_sort | network digital twin toward networking telecommunications and traffic engineering a survey |
| topic | Digital twin network digital twin telecommunications traffic engineering traffic optimization |
| url | https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10847826/ |
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