Routing as a service (RaaS): An open framework for customizing routing services.

With the emergence of various types of network applications, the user communication requirements for them are becoming more and more diversified and personalized. In order to accommodate the user frequently changing demands for different network applications, the Internet Service Provider (ISP) traditionally purchases and operates new dedicated network equipment, which always incurs high capital expense (CAPEX) and operating expense (OPEX) from the economic viewpoint and also burdens network management. Inspired by the ideas of Software Defined Networking (SDN) and Network Function Virtualization (NFV), we consider dealing with the above challenge by reusing virtualized network functions and selecting appropriate ones to compose the customized routing services on the routing paths for different applications. In this paper, based on SDN and NFV, we propose Routing as a Service (RaaS) as an open framework to customize the specific routing services for applications. Then, we present Routing Service Product Line (RSPL) by introducing Dynamic Software Product Line (DSPL) into the proposed RaaS, so as to rapidly customize a large number of routing services with different characteristics. In addition, according to the proposed framework, we also carry out a case study to customizing routing services with benefits of both the user and the ISP considered. Simulation results show that the proposed RaaS is feasible and efficient.