Aggregate Download Throughput for TCP-controlled long file transfers in a WLAN with multiple STA-AP association rates

TL;DR

This paper models and analyzes the aggregate download throughput in WLANs with multiple stations at different rates, using a Markov Chain approach to accurately predict performance for TCP-controlled long file transfers.

Contribution

It introduces a Markov Chain model to compute aggregate throughput in WLANs with multiple association rates, validated by simulation results.

Findings

Model accurately predicts aggregate throughput

Results closely match simulation data

Provides a numerical procedure for throughput computation

Abstract

We consider several WLAN stations associated at rates r1, r2, ..., rk with an Access Point. Each station is downloading a long file from a local server, located on the LAN to which the AP is attached. We model these simultaneous TCP-controlled transfers using a Markov Chain. Our analytical approach leads to a procedure to compute aggregate download throughput numerically, and the results match simulations very well.