Abstract: Millions of sensors continuously produce and transmit data to control real-world infrastructures using complex networks in the Internet of Things (IoT). However, IoT devices are limited in computational power, including storage, processing, and communication resources, to effectively perform compute-intensive tasks locally. Edge computing resolves the resource limitation problems by bringing computation closer to the edge of IoT devices. Providing distributed edge nodes across the network reduces the stress of centralized computation and overcomes latency challenges in the IoT. Therefore, edge computing presents low-cost solutions for compute-intensive tasks. Software-Defined Networking (SDN) enables effective network management by presenting a global perspective of the network. While SDN was not explicitly developed for IoT challenges, it can, however, provide impetus to solve the complexity issues and help in efficient IoT service orchestration. The current IoT paradigm of massive data generation, complex infrastructures, security vulnerabilities, and requirements from the newly developed technologies make IoT realization a challenging issue. In this research, we provide an extensive survey on SDN and the edge computing ecosystem to solve the challenge of complex IoT management. We present the latest research on Software-Defined Internet of Things orchestration using Edge (SDIoT-Edge) and highlight key requirements and standardization efforts in integrating these diverse architectures. An extensive discussion on different case studies using SDIoT-Edge computing is presented to envision the underlying concept. Furthermore, we classify state-of-the-art research in the SDIoT-Edge ecosystem based on multiple performance parameters. We comprehensively present security and privacy vulnerabilities in the SDIoT-Edge computing and provide detailed taxonomies of multiple attack possibilities in this paradigm. We highlight the lessons learned based on our findings at the end of each section. Finally, we discuss critical insights toward current research issues, challenges, and further research directions to efficiently provide IoT services in the SDIoT-Edge paradigm.

Abstract: To satisfy the expected plethora of demanding services, the future generation of wireless networks (6G) has been mandated as a revolutionary paradigm to carry forward the capacities of enhanced broadband, massive access, and ultrareliable and lowlatency service in 5G wireless networks to a more powerful and intelligent level. Recently, the structure of 6G networks has tended to be extremely heterogeneous, densely deployed, and dynamic. Combined with tight quality of service (QoS), such complex architecture will result in the untenability of legacy network operation routines. In response, artificial intelligence (AI), especially machine learning (ML), is emerging as a fundamental solution to realize fully intelligent network orchestration and management. By learning from uncertain and dynamic environments, AI-/ML-enabled channel estimation and spectrum management will open up opportunities for bringing the excellent performance of ultrabroadband techniques, such as terahertz communications, into full play. Additionally, challenges brought by ultramassive access with respect to energy and security can be mitigated by applying AI-/ML-based approaches. Moreover, intelligent mobility management and resource allocation will guarantee the ultrareliability and low latency of services. Concerning these issues, this article introduces and surveys some state-of-the-art techniques based on AI/ML and their applications in 6G to support ultrabroadband, ultramassive access, and ultrareliable and lowlatency services.

Abstract: The power system worldwide is going through a revolutionary transformation due to the integration with various distributed components, including advanced metering infrastructure, communication infrastructure, distributed energy resources, and electric vehicles, to improve the reliability, energy efficiency, management, and security of the future power system These components are becoming more tightly integrated with IoT They are expected to generate a vast amount of data to support various applications in the smart grid, such as distributed energy management, generation forecasting, grid health monitoring, fault detection, home energy management, etc With these new components and information, artificial intelligence techniques can be applied to automate and further improve the performance of the smart grid In this paper, we provide a comprehensive review of the state-of-the-art artificial intelligence techniques to support various applications in a distributed smart grid In particular, we discuss how artificial techniques are applied to support the integration of renewable energy resources, the integration of energy storage systems, demand response, management of the grid and home energy, and security As the smart grid involves various actors, such as energy produces, markets, and consumers, we also discuss how artificial intelligence and market liberalization can potentially help to increase the overall social welfare of the grid Finally, we provide further research challenges for large-scale integration and orchestration of automated distributed devices to realize a truly smart grid

Abstract: The post-pandemic future will offer tremendous opportunity and challenge from transformation of the human experience linking physical, digital and biological worlds: 6G should be based on a new architecture to fully realize the vision to connect the worlds. We explore several novel architecture concepts for the 6G era driven by a decomposition of the architecture into platform, functions, orchestration and specialization aspects. With 6G, we associate an open, scalable, elastic, and platform agnostic het-cloud, with converged applications and services decomposed into micro-services and serverless functions, specialized architecture for extreme attributes, as well as open service orchestration architecture. Key attributes and characteristics of the associated architectural scenarios are described. At the air-interface level, 6G is expected to encompass use of sub-Terahertz spectrum and new spectrum sharing technologies, air-interface design optimized by AI/ML techniques, integration of radio sensing with communication, and meeting extreme requirements on latency, reliability and synchronization. Fully realizing the benefits of these advances in radio technology will also call for innovations in 6G network architecture as described.

Abstract: Space-air-ground integrated network (SAGIN) is envisioned as a promising solution to provide cost-effective, large-scale, and flexible wireless coverage and communication services. Since realworld deployment for testing of SAGIN is difficult and prohibitive, an efficient SAGIN simulation platform is requisite. In this article, we present our developed SAGIN simulation platform which supports various mobility traces and protocols of space, aerial, and terrestrial networks. Centralized and decentrallized controllers are implemented to optimize the network functions such as access control and resource orchestration. In addition, various interfaces extend the functionality of the platform to facilitate user-defined mobility traces and control algorithms. We also present a case study where highly mobile vehicular users dynamically choose different radio access networks according to their quality of service (QoS) requirements.

Abstract: The highly demanding Over-The-Top (OTT) multimedia applications pose increased challenges to Internet Service Providers (ISPs) for assuring a reasonable Quality of Experience (QoE) to their customers due to lack of flexibility, agility and scalability in traditional networks. The future networks are shifting towards the cloudification of the network resources via Software Defined Networks (SDN) and Network Function Virtualization (NFV). This will equip ISPs with cutting-edge technologies to provide service customization during service delivery and offer QoE which meets customers’ needs via intelligent QoE control and management approaches. Towards this end, we provide in this paper a tutorial and a comprehensive survey of QoE management solutions in current and future networks. We start with a high-level description of QoE management for multimedia services, which integrates QoE modelling, monitoring, and optimization. This followed by a discussion of HTTP Adaptive Streaming (HAS) solutions as the dominant technique for streaming videos over the best-effort Internet. We then summarize the key elements in SDN/NFV along with an overview of ongoing research projects, standardization activities and use cases related to SDN, NFV, and other emerging applications. We provide a survey of the state-of-the-art of QoE management techniques categorized into three different groups: a) QoE-aware/driven strategies using SDN and/or NFV; b) QoE-aware/driven approaches for adaptive streaming over emerging architectures such as multi-access edge computing, cloud/fog computing, and information-centric networking; and c) extended QoE management approaches in new domains such as immersive augmented and virtual reality, mulsemedia and video gaming applications. Based on the review, we present a list of identified future QoE management challenges regarding emerging multimedia applications, network management and orchestration, network slicing and collaborative service management in softwarized networks. Finally, we provide a discussion on future research directions with a focus on emerging research areas in QoE management, such as QoE-oriented business models, QoE-based big data strategies, and scalability issues in QoE optimization.

Abstract: Billions of devices are connected to the Internet of Things (IoT). These devices generate a large volume of data, which poses an enormous burden on conventional networking infrastructures. As an effective computing model, edge computing is collaborative with cloud computing by moving part intensive computation and storage resources to edge devices, thus optimizing the network latency and energy consumption. Meanwhile, the software-defined networks (SDNs) technology is promising in improving the quality of service (QoS) for complex IoT-driven applications. However, building SDN-based computing platform faces great challenges, making it difficult for the current computing models to meet the low-latency, high-complexity, and high-reliability requirements of emerging applications. Therefore, a cloud-mobile edge computing (MEC) collaborative task offloading scheme with service orchestration (CTOSO) is proposed in this article. First, the CTOSO scheme models the computational consumption, communication consumption, and latency of task offloading and implements differentiated offloading decisions for tasks with different resource demand and delay sensitivity. What is more, the CTOSO scheme introduces orchestrating data as services (ODaS) mechanism based on the SDN technology. The collected metadata are orchestrated as high-quality services by MEC servers, which greatly reduces the network load caused by uploading resources to the cloud on the one hand, and on the other hand, the data processing is completed at the edge layer as much as possible, which achieves the load balancing and also reduces the risk of data leakage. The experimental results demonstrate that compared to the random decision-based task offloading scheme and the maximum cache-based task offloading scheme, the CTOSO scheme reduces delay by approximately 73.82%–74.34% and energy consumption by 10.71%–13.73%.

Abstract: Kubernetes, an open-source container orchestration platform, enables high availability and scalability through diverse autoscaling mechanisms such as Horizontal Pod Autoscaler (HPA), Vertical Pod Autoscaler and Cluster Autoscaler. Amongst them, HPA helps provide seamless service by dynamically scaling up and down the number of resource units, called pods, without having to restart the whole system. Kubernetes monitors default Resource Metrics including CPU and memory usage of host machines and their pods. On the other hand, Custom Metrics, provided by external software such as Prometheus, are customizable to monitor a wide collection of metrics. In this paper, we investigate HPA through diverse experiments to provide critical knowledge on its operational behaviors. We also discuss the essential difference between Kubernetes Resource Metrics (KRM) and Prometheus Custom Metrics (PCM) and how they affect HPA's performance. Lastly, we provide deeper insights and lessons on how to optimize the performance of HPA for researchers, developers, and system administrators working with Kubernetes in the future.

Abstract: Building on resource‐based theory and resource orchestration theory, we investigate the impact of two characteristics of boundary‐spanning search, search breadth and search depth, on firms' exploitative and exploratory green innovations. We also examine the moderating role of resource orchestration capability. The results of data analysis from 186 manufacturing firms in China show that both search breadth and search depth have inverted U‐shaped relationships with exploitative and exploratory green innovations. Furthermore, resource orchestration capability is found to moderate the inverted U‐shaped relationship between boundary‐spanning search and green innovation. Specifically, with high resource orchestration capability, the inverted U‐shaped relationships of search breadth with exploitative and exploratory green innovations are flattened, whereas the relationships of search depth with exploitative and exploratory green innovations are almost linear. Our research contributes to the literature on green innovation by uncovering the complex effects of boundary‐spanning search on exploitative and exploratory green innovations.

Abstract: The current Edisonian approach to discovery requires up to two decades of fundamental and applied research for materials technologies to reach the market. Such a slow and capital-intensive turnaround calls for disruptive strategies to expedite innovation. Self-driving laboratories have the potential to provide the means to revolutionize experimentation by empowering automation with artificial intelligence to enable autonomous discovery. However, the lack of adequate software solutions significantly impedes the development of self-driving laboratories. In this paper, we make progress towards addressing this challenge, and we propose and develop an implementation of ChemOS; a portable, modular and versatile software package which supplies the structured layers necessary for the deployment and operation of self-driving laboratories. ChemOS facilitates the integration of automated equipment, and it enables remote control of automated laboratories. ChemOS can operate at various degrees of autonomy; from fully unsupervised experimentation to actively including inputs and feedbacks from researchers into the experimentation loop. The flexibility of ChemOS provides a broad range of functionality as demonstrated on five applications, which were executed on different automated equipment, highlighting various aspects of the software package.

Abstract: Containers, as a lightweight application virtualization technology, have recently gained immense popularity in mainstream cluster management systems like Google Borg and Kubernetes. Prevalently adopted by these systems for task deployments of diverse workloads such as big data, web services, and IoT, they support agile application deployment, environmental consistency, OS distribution portability, application-centric management, and resource isolation. Although most of these systems are mature with advanced features, their optimization strategies are still tailored to the assumption of a static cluster. Elastic compute resources would enable heterogeneous resource management strategies in response to the dynamic business volume for various types of workloads. Hence, we propose a heterogeneous task allocation strategy for cost-efficient container orchestration through resource utilization optimization and elastic instance pricing with three main features. The first one is to support heterogeneous job configurations to optimize the initial placement of containers into existing resources by task packing. The second one is cluster size adjustment to meet the changing workload through autoscaling algorithms. The third one is a rescheduling mechanism to shut down underutilized VM instances for cost saving and reallocate the relevant jobs without losing task progress. We evaluate our approach in terms of cost and performance on the Australian National Cloud Infrastructure (Nectar). Our experiments demonstrate that the proposed strategy could reduce the overall cost by 23% to 32% for different types of cloud workload patterns when compared to the default Kubernetes framework.

Abstract: Hosting virtualized network functions (VNF) has been regarded as an effective way to realize network function virtualization (NFV). Considering the cost diversity in cloud computing, from the perspective of service providers, it is significant to orchestrate the VNFs and schedule the traffic flows for network utility maximization (NUM) as it implies maximal revenue. However, traditional heuristic solutions based on optimization models usually follow some assumptions, limiting their applicability. Recent studies have shown that deep reinforcement learning (DRL) is a promising way to tackle such limitations. However, DRL agent training also suffers from slow convergence problem, especially with complex control problems. We notice that optimization models actually can be applied to accelerate the DRL training. Therefore, we are motivated to design a model-assisted DRL framework for VNF orchestration in this paper. Other than letting the agent blindly explore actions, the heuristic solutions are used to guide the training process. Based on such principle, the DRL framework is also redesigned accordingly. Experiment results validate the high efficiency of our model-assisted DRL framework as it not only converges $23\times$ faster than traditional DRL algorithm, but also with higher performance at the same time.

Abstract: The proliferation of advanced underwater technology and the emergence of various cloud services promote the horizon of cloud-based underwater acoustic sensor network (UASN). Sending end data to cloud for analysis is becoming a prominent trend, driving cloud computing as an indispensable computing paradigm. However, UASN bears tremendous burdens with respect to data collection from end to cloud, such as large transmission power consumption and high delay, which makes it difficult to meet the delay-sensitive and context-aware service requirements by using cloud computing alone. To this end, a two-level bidirectional data prediction model for end-edge-cloud orchestration is proposed in this article. The mobility and computing ability of edge elements are exploited to analyze and collect data. Edge elements predict the future data based on historical information and trend to decrease acoustic communication. Moreover, a data collection protocol with mobile edge elements is designed. With this protocol, computing paradigms are shifted from centralized cloud to distributed edge, and the differentiated capability of heterogeneous devices is exploited. After extensive experiments, the results show that the data collection cost is dramatically decreased while the bandwidth utilization is increased, which is critical for underwater acoustic communication. The proposed method and protocol strike a good balance between data accuracy and energy consumption for the new end-edge-cloud orchestrated system.

Abstract: This paper investigates the recent-advances in intent-based technologies while concentrating on aspects related to network management and orchestration. We provide a comprehensive analysis of the standardization activities as well as platforms related to intent-based networking. At the end of the paper, we also provide some insights into challenges related to future development process on the intent-based networking design. Our survey results indicate that intent-based networking concept has not evolved further since 2015 in terms of framework, platform and tool developments. However, recent rapid advances in Natural Language Understanding (NLU) propelled by IT and cloud giants (Google, Amazon, Facebook) are expected to increase its adaption into networking and telecommunication world in the forthcoming years.

Abstract: Containerization is a lightweight virtualization technology enabling the deployment and execution of distributed applications on cloud, edge/fog, and Internet-of-Things platforms. Container technol ...

Abstract: Software Defined Networking (SDN) is a new technology that makes computer networks farther programmable. SDN is currently attracting significant consideration from both academia and industry. SDN is simplifying organisations to implement applications and assist flexible delivery, offering the capability of scaling network resources in lockstep with application and data. This technology allows the user to manage the network easily by permitting the user to control the applications and operating system. SDN not only introduces new ways of interaction within network devices, but it also gives more flexibility for the existing and future networking designs and operations. SDN is an innovative approach to design, implement, and manage networks that separate the network control (control plane) and the forwarding process (data plane) for a better user experience. The main differentiation between SDN and Traditional Networking is that SDN removes the decision-making part from the routers and it provides, logically, a centralised Control-Plane that creates a network view for the control and management applications. Through the establishment of SDN, many new network capabilities and services have been enabled, such as Software Engineering, Traffic Engineering, Network Virtualisation and Automation, and Orchestration for Cloud Applications. This paper surveys the state-of-the-art contribution such as a comparison between SDN and traditional networking. Also, comparison with other survey works on SDN, new information about controller, details about OpenFlow architecture, configuration, comprehensive contribution about SDN security threat and countermeasures, SDN applications, benefit of SDN, and Emulation & Tested for SDN. In addition, some existing and representative SDN tools from both industry and academia are explained. Moreover, future direction of SDN security solutions is discussed in detail.

Abstract: Private and public networks sharing resources for Internet of Things (IoT) network through network function virtualization (NFV) and software-defined networking (SDN) forms a heterogeneous cloud-edge environment. However, the heterogeneous cloud-edge network faces trust and adaptation issues in resource allocation. To address these two problems, we introduce consortium blockchain and deep reinforcement learning (DRL) to construct the trusted and auto-adjust service function chain (SFC) orchestration architecture. In the architecture, this article integrates the consortium blockchain into the distributed SFC orchestration model to realize trusted resource sharing. In addition, for realizing auto-adjusted service provision, this article designs a dynamic hierarchical SFC orchestration algorithm (DHSOA) based on DRL to minimize the orchestration cost and improve the quality of service. Moreover, considering the dynamics of network entities, this article proposes a time-slotted model to support dynamic service migration which adapts to the high-mobility IoT network. The simulation results show that DHSOA has better performance than the link-state routing algorithm and deep $Q$ -network placement algorithm not only in cost saving of 15.8% and 10.1% but also in time saving of 22.0% and 10.0%.

Abstract: Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) and Network Slicing are two key enablers for 5G, particularly to empower low-latency services, known as Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communications (URLLC). However, MEC and Network Slicing are evolving in parallel, and are being defined by two different standardization bodies, ETSI and 3GPP, which limits their integration and their benefits as complementary solutions. In this paper, we fill this gap by providing a novel scheme, compliant with both ETSI and 3GPP, that integrates these two key technologies and brings enhanced slicing capabilities to the edge of the 5G network. In particular, we devise a novel management and orchestration architecture, based on the latest 3GPP specifications, which integrates MEC as a 5G sub-slice. Furthermore, we highlight several issues that emerge when extending Network Slicing to the edge, security and isolation included, providing a solution for each issue.

Abstract: Educational AI (AIEd) systems are increasingly designed and evaluated with an awareness of the hybrid nature of adaptivity in real-world educational settings. In practice, beyond being a property of AIEd systems alone, adaptivity is often jointly enacted by AI systems and human facilitators (e.g., teachers or peers). Despite much recent research activity, theoretical and conceptual guidance for the design of such human–AI systems remains limited. In this paper we explore how adaptivity may be shared across AIEd systems and the various human stakeholders who work with them. Based on a comparison of prior frameworks, which tend to examine adaptivity in AIEd systems or human coaches separately, we first synthesize a set of dimensions general enough to capture human–AI hybrid adaptivity. Using these dimensions, we then present a conceptual framework to map distinct ways in which humans and AIEd systems can augment each other’s abilities. Through examples, we illustrate how this framework can be used to characterize prior work and envision new possibilities for human–AI hybrid approaches in education.

Abstract: Contemporary highly dynamic technology and business environments, coupled with digitally savvy customers, are forcing both private and public organizations to continuously innovate and update their...

Abstract: The number of both service providers operating in the cloud market and customers consuming cloud-based services is constantly increasing, proving that the cloud computing paradigm has successfully delivered its potential. Nevertheless, the unceasing growth of the cloud market is posing hard challenges on its participants. On the provider side, the capability of orchestrating resources in order to maximise profits without failing customers’ expectations is a matter of concern. On the customer side, the efficient resource selection from a plethora of similar services advertised by a multitude of providers is an open question. In such a multi-cloud landscape, several research initiatives advocate the employment of software frameworks (namely, cloud resource orchestration frameworks - CROFs) capable of orchestrating the heterogeneous resources offered by a multitude of cloud providers in a way that best suits the customer’s need. The objective of this paper is to provide the reader with a systematic review and comparison of the most relevant CROFs found in the literature, as well as to highlight the multi-cloud computing open issues that need to be addressed by the research community in the near future.

Abstract: Currently, organizations face the need to create scalable applications in an agile way that impacts new forms of production and business organization. The traditional monolithic architecture no longer meets the needs of scalability and rapid development. The efficiency and optimization of human and technological resources prevail; this is why companies must adopt new technologies and business strategies. However, the implementation of microservices still encounters several challenges, such as the consumption of time and computational resources, scalability, orchestration, organization problems, and several further technical complications. Although there are procedures that facilitate the migration from a monolithic architecture to micro-services, none of them accurately quantifies performance differences. The current study aims primarily to analyze some related work that evaluated both architectures. Furthermore, we assess the performance and relationship between different variables of an application that runs in a monolithic structure compared to one of the micro-services. With this, the state-of-the-art review was initially conducted, which confirms the interest of the industry. Subsequently, two different scenarios were evaluated: the first one comprises a web application based on a monolithic architecture that operates on a virtual server with KVM, and the second one demonstrates the same web application based on a microservice architecture, but it runs in containers. Both situations were exposed to stress tests of similar characteristics and with the same hardware resources. For their validation, we applied the non-parametric regression mathematical model to explain the dependency relationship between the performance variables. The results provided a quantitative technical interpretation with precision and reliability, which can be applied to similar issues.

Abstract: The combination of network softwarization with network slicing enables the provisioning of very diverse services over the same network infrastructure. However, it also creates a complex environment where the orchestration of network resources cannot be guided by traditional, human-in-the-loop network management approaches. New solutions that perform these tasks automatically and in advance are needed, paving the way to zero-touch network slicing. In this paper, we propose AZTEC, a data-driven framework that effectively allocates capacity to individual slices by adopting an original multi-timescale forecasting model. Hinging on a combination of Deep Learning architectures and a traditional optimization algorithm, AZTEC anticipates resource assignments that minimize the comprehensive management costs induced by resource overprovisioning, instantiation and reconfiguration, as well as by denied traffic demands. Experiments with real-world mobile data traffic show that AZTEC dynamically adapts to traffic fluctuations, and largely outperforms state-of-the-art solutions for network resource orchestration.

Abstract: This chapter provides an overview of established algorithmic strategies for experiment planning for closed-loop experimentation highlighting their strengths and limitations through key examples from academia and industry. It also details the need for a transition from automation to autonomy in materials innovation and process optimization to accelerate discovery across sectors. In this context, we review the early realization of autonomous laboratories, and their associated strategies to optimization, and lay out a roadmap for deploying and orchestrating self-driving laboratories. As a specific tool to enable autonomy in technology innovation, we detail the architecture and suite of applications composing the ChemOS software package. We complete our discussion by highlighting recent demonstrations of ChemOS in chemistry, materials science and process optimization and discuss the specific use of ChemOS to accelerate drug discovery.