Virtual Network Embedding with Multi-attribute Node Ranking Based on TOPSIS

Network virtualization provides an effective way to overcome the Internet ossification problem. As one of the main challenges in network virtualization, virtual network embedding refers to mapping multiple virtual networks onto a shared substrate network. However, existing heuristic embedding algorithms evaluate the embedding potential of the nodes simply by the product of different resource attributes, which would result in an unbalanced embedding. Furthermore, ignoring the hops of substrate paths that the virtual links would be mapped onto may restrict the ability of the substrate network to accept additional virtual network requests, and lead to low utilization rate of resource. In this paper, we introduce and extend five node attributes that quantify the embedding potential of the nodes from both the local and global views, and adopt the technique for order preference by similarity ideal solution (TOPSIS) to rank the nodes, aiming at balancing different node attributes to increase the utilization rate of resource. Moreover, we propose a novel two-stage virtual network embedding algorithm, which maps the virtual nodes onto the substrate nodes according to the node ranks, and adopts a shortest path-based algorithm to map the virtual links. Simulation results show that the new algorithm significantly increases the long-term average revenue, the long-term revenue to cost ratio and the acceptance ratio.