Testbed-based Performance Evaluation of a Connectionless Multicast Protocol for MANETs

Connectionless multicast protocols are well suited for networks with a large number of small multicast groups. These protocols however do not scale with large groups, and are not robust for high mobility. We proposed a connectionless multicast protocol named MCOM that addresses the issues of mobility, scalability, and robustness. The MCOM protocol design allows for better scalability by group size and has better protection for packet delivery under high mobility. The MCOM protocol is also able to adapt to the density of multicast group members. MCOM was implemented in Click Modular Router and evaluated in a testbed consisting of eight computers. The results indicate that MCOM is suited for dynamic MANETs in terms of mobility and the density of multicast group members.