Byzantine Agreement in a generalized connected network

Traditionally, the Byzantine Agreement (BA) problem is studied either in a fully connected network or in a broadcast network. A generalized network model for BA is proposed in this paper. A fully-connected network or a broadcast network is a special case of the new network architecture. Under the new generalized network model, the BA problem is reexamined with the assumption of malicious faults on both processors and transmission medium (TM), as opposed to previous studies which consider malicious faults on processors only. The proposed algorithm uses the minimum number of message exchanges, and can tolerate the maximum number of allowable faulty components to make each healthy processor reach a common agreement for the cases of processor failures, TM failures, or processor/TM failures. The results can also be used to solve the interactive consistency problem and the consensus problem     

Randomized Byzantine Agreement

A randomized model of distributed computation was recently presented by Rabin [ 81. This model admits a solution to the Byzantine Agreement Problem for systems of n asynchronous processes where no more than t are faulty. The algorithm described by Rabin produces agreement in an expected number of rounds which is a small constant independent of n and t. Using the same model, we present an algorithm of similar complexity which is able to tolerate a greater portion of malicious processes. The algorithm is also applicable, with minor changes, to systems of synchronous processes.     

Grouping Byzantine Agreement

The reliability of the distributed system has always been an important topic of research. Byzantine Agreement (BA) protocol, which allows the fault-free processors to agree on a common value, is one of the most fundamental problems studied in a distributed system. In previous works, the problem was visited in a fully connected network or an unfully connected network with fallible processors. In this paper, the BA problem is reexamined in a group-oriented network, which has the feature of grouping, and the network topology does not have to be fully connected. We also enlarge the fault tolerant capability by allowing dormant faults and malicious faults (also called as the dual failure mode) to exist in a group-oriented network simultaneously. The proposed protocol is more efficient than the traditional BA protocols and can tolerate the maximum number of tolerable faulty processors.     

Performance study of Byzantine Agreement Protocol with artificial neural network

Since 1982, numerous Byzantine Agreement Protocols (BAPs) have been developed to solve arbitrary faults in the Byzantine Generals Problem (BGP). A novel BAP, using an artificial neural network (ANN), was proposed by Wang and Kao. It requires message exchange rounds similar to the traditional BAP and its suitability, in the context of network size, has not been investigated. In the present study, we propose to adopt Nguyen-Widrow initialization in ANN training, which modifies message communication and limits the message exchange rounds to three rounds. This modified approach is referred to as BAP-ANN. The BAP-ANN performs better than the traditional BAP, when the network size n is greater than nine. We also evaluate the message exchange matrix (MEM) constructed during the message exchange stage. For a fixed number of faulty nodes and remainder cases of (n mod 3), the study shows that the mean epoch for ANN training decreases as the network size increases, which indicates better fault tolerance.     

Message-optimal protocols for Byzantine Agreement

It is often important for the correct processes in a distributed system to reach agreement, despite the presence of some faulty processes. Byzantine Agreement (BA) is a paradigm problem that attempts to isolate the key features of reaching agreement. We focus here on the number of messages required to reach BA, with particular emphasis on the number of messages required in thefailure-free runs, since these are the ones that occur most often in practice. The number of messages required is sensitive to the types of failures considered. In earlier work, Amduret al. (1992) established tight upper and lower bounds on the worst- and average-case number of messages required in failure-free runs for crash failures. We provide tight upper and lower bounds for all remaining types of failures that have been considered in the literature on the BA problem: receiving omission, sending omission, and general omission failures, as well as arbitrary failures with or without message authentication. We also establish a tradeoff between number of rounds and number of messages in the failure-free runs required to reach agreement in the case of crash, sending, and general omission failures.The work of V. Hadzilacos was supported, in part, by a grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.     

Lower bound for scalable Byzantine Agreement

We consider the problem of computing Byzantine Agreement in a synchronous network with n processors, each with a private random string, where each pair of processors is connected by a private communication line. The adversary is malicious and non-adaptive, i.e., it must choose the processors to corrupt at the start of the algorithm. Byzantine Agreement is known to be computable in this model in an expected constant number of rounds. We consider a scalable model where in each round each uncorrupt processor can send to any set of log n other processors and listen to any set of log n processors. We define the loss of an execution to be the number of uncorrupt processors whose output does not agree with the output of the majority of uncorrupt processors. We show that if there are t corrupt processors, then any randomised protocol which has probability at least 1/2 + 1/ logn of loss less than requires at least f rounds. This also shows that lossless protocols require both rounds, and for at least one uncorrupt processor to send messages during the protocol.     

Asynchronous Byzantine Agreement with optimal resilience

We present an efficient, optimally-resilient Asynchronous Byzantine Agreement (ABA) protocol involving $n = 3t+1$ parties over a completely asynchronous network, tolerating a computationally unbounded Byzantine adversary, capable of corrupting at most $t$ out of the $n$ parties. In comparison with the best known optimally-resilient ABA protocols of Canetti and Rabin (STOC 1993) and Abraham et al. (PODC 2008), our protocol is significantly more efficient in terms of the communication complexity. Our ABA protocol is built on a new statistical asynchronous verifiable secret sharing (AVSS) protocol with optimal resilience. Our AVSS protocol significantly improves the communication complexity of the only known statistical and optimally-resilient AVSS protocol of Canetti et al. Our AVSS protocol is further built on an asynchronous primitive called asynchronous weak commitment (AWC), while the AVSS of Canetti et al. is built on the primitive called asynchronous weak secret sharing (AWSS). We observe that AWC has weaker requirements than AWSS and hence it can be designed more efficiently than AWSS. The common coin primitive is one of the most important building blocks for the construction of an ABA protocol. In this paper, we extend the existing common coin protocol to make it compatible with our new AVSS protocol that shares multiple secrets simultaneously. As a byproduct, our new common coin protocol is more communication efficient than all the existing common coin protocols.     

Efficient Algorithms for Anonymous Byzantine Agreement

This paper considers the Byzantine agreement problem in a completely connected network of anonymous processors. In this network model the processors have no identifiers and can only detect the link through which a message is delivered. We present a polynomial-time agreement algorithm that requires 3⌊(n−t)t/(n−2t)⌋+4 rounds, where n>3t is the number of processors and t is the maximal number of faulty processors that the algorithm can tolerate. We also present an early-stopping variant of the algorithm.     

Visiting Byzantine Agreement underlying Ad Hoc environment

The Mobile Ad Hoc Network (MANET) has become more popular because the MANET is a self-organizing, self-configuring, and an instantly deployable multi-hop wireless network that responds to application needs without any fixed infrastructure. Moreover, the MANET is fault-tolerant and reliable. A mechanism is needed in the MANET that allows a set of nodes to agree on a common value. The distributed Byzantine Agreement (BA) problem is one of the most important issues in designing a fault-tolerant system. In many cases, reaching a common agreement among fault-free nodes in coping with the influence from faulty components is crucial in a fault-tolerant system. When a common agreement is achieved, all fault-free nodes in the system can produce stable results without any influence from the faulty components. In this study, the BA problem is visited in a MANET, in which the components are subject to a malicious fault. The proposed protocol can tolerate the maximum number of allowable faulty nodes using a minimum number of message exchange rounds. Each fault-free node can reach a common agreement value for the BA problem in a MANET. The text was submitted by the authors in English.     

A Simple and Efficient Randomized Byzantine Agreement Algorithm

A new randomized Byzantine agreement algorithm is presented. This algorithm operates in a synchronous system of n processors, at most t of which can fail. The algorithm reaches agreement in 0(t/log n) expected rounds and O(n2tf/log n) expected message bits independent of the distribution of processor failures. This performance is further improved to a constant expected number of rounds and O(n2) message bits if the distribution of processor failures is assumed to be uniform. In either event, the algorithm improves on the known lower bound on rounds for deterministic algorithms. Some other advantages of the algorithm are that it requires no cryptographic techniques, that the amount of local computation is small, and that the expected number of random bits used per processor is only one. It is argued that in many practical applications of Byzantine agreement, the randomized algorithm of this paper achieves superior performance.     

基于代理的Byzantine一致性协议的研究

本文在研究了国内外Byzantine协议的基础上提出了一种新的Byzantine一致性协议,即基于代理的Byzantine一致性协议。该协议按照Byzantine容错机制将所有参与运算的进程分成很多小块,每个块设有一个代理。通过代理,块内的进程向其他块的进程发送运算结果。这样,在进程发生Byzantine错误时可以先在块的内部处理,从而可以有效地减少容错的开销和时延,提高系统的安全性。     

The optimal generalized Byzantine Agreement in Cluster-based Wireless Sensor Networks

A Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) is a wireless network consisting of spatially distributed autonomous devices using sensor nodes in a wide range of applications in various domains. In the future, WSNs are expected to be integrated into the “Internet of Things” (IoT), where sensor nodes join the Internet dynamically, and use them to collaborate and accomplish their tasks. Because of the communications of WSN will produce a broadcast storm, the Cluster-based Wireless Sensor Network (CWSN) was proposed to ameliorate the broadcast storm. However, the capability of the fault-tolerance and reliability of CWSNs must be carefully investigated and analyzed. To cope with the influence of faulty components, reaching a common agreement in the presence of faults before performing certain tasks is essential. Byzantine Agreement (BA) problem is a fundamental problem in fault-tolerant distributed systems. To enhance fault-tolerance and reliability of CWSN, the BA problem in CWSN is revisited in this paper. In this paper, a new BA protocol is proposed that adapts to the CWSN and derives its limit of allowable faulty components, while maintaining the minimum number of message exchanges.     

Approximate Byzantine consensus in sparse,mobile ad-hoc networks

We consider the problem of approximate consensus in mobile ad-hoc networks in the presence of Byzantine nodes. Due to nodes’ mobility, the topology is dynamic. We propose a protocol based on the linear iteration method. The nodes collect information during several consecutive rounds: moving gives them the opportunity to gather progressively enough values. A novel sufficient and necessary condition guarantees the final convergence: from time to time only the correct nodes that own a value equal to (or very close to) either the minimum or the maximum value have to receive enough messages (quantity constraint) with either higher or lower values (quality constraint). Of course, nodes’ motion should not prevent this requirement to be fulfilled. New concepts are introduced to prove the correctness of the protocol. Based on particular mobility scenarios, simulations are conducted to analyze the impact of some parameters on three variants of the protocol.     

移动网络的未来:无线IP网络

本论文论述了移动通信技术的发展历程．提出了无线IP网络的概念，并对无线IP网络中的主要技术进行讨论．提出并分析了无线IP网络发展中存在的问题．     

网络时代下移动图书馆发展与应用浅析

当今时代是一个知识经济时代,是一个创新的时代,信息的数量越来越庞大,信息需求的多样化、时空化对信息的获取和有效管理的要求越来越高。在这种新的形势下,高校图书馆现有的信息服务面临着严峻的挑战。本文主要对高校图书馆服务理念的现状和存在的问题进行了分析,阐述了用户信息需求是新时期图书馆服务理念的内在动力,激烈的竞争环境及科学技术的不断发展是图书馆服务理念的外在驱动力。     

Robustness of star graph network under link failure

The star graph is an attractive underlying topology for distributed systems. Robustness of the star graph under link failure model is addressed. Specifically, the minimum number of faulty links, f(n, k), that make every (n − k)-dimensional substar S_n−k faulty in an n-dimensional star network S_n, is studied. It is shown that f(n,1)=n+2. Furthermore, an upper bound is given for f(n, 2) with complexity of O(n³) which is an improvement over the straightforward upper bound of O(n⁴) derived in this paper.     

动态视角下的城市道路交通网络失效评价模型

利用可靠性相关理论,在对交通网络状态变化规律分析的基础上,给出了了城市道路交通单元及交通网络的‘失效—非失效’态的表达方法;分析了路段单元及交通网络的状态从观察起始点t0到首次演变到‘失效态’的时间分布规律,并以此为基础推导了城市道路单元及交通网络的失效概率、平均失效时长、失效率以及条件失效时长等失效评价模型,给出了模型标定的方法。以国内某城市核心城区5条道路单元组成的路网为实例,对首次失效时间进行了分布拟合及检验,对模型进行了标定,并将模型计算结果与实际观察结果进行了对比。结果表明,利用对数正态分布来拟合首次失效时间较为理想,而且模型的计算结果与实际观察结果也非常接近,表明模型具有良好的实用性。     

Mutual Information Agreement in Multicomputer Systems with the Detection and Identification of Byzantine Faults

A method is suggested of the mutual information agreementin multicomputer systems with intercomputer bus-type communication channels and the broadcast way of transfer of intercomputer messages. The method makes it possible to detect and identify symptoms (both by the places of their emergence and by the types of faults, such as malfunctions programmed malfunctions, or failures) of multiple faults of computers and transmitting interfaces (interface devices) with communication channels, which can occur in all cycles of the interchange. In addition, the method enables one to distinguish, first, faults of computers and transmitting interfaces, if it is possible, and, second, the situation of the nondelivery of a message in initial cycles and the situation of the delivery of this message with distortions.     

Indexing mobile objects using dual transformations

With the recent advances in wireless networks, embedded systems, and GPS technology, databases that manage the location of moving objects have received increased interest. In this paper, we present indexing techniques for moving object databases. In particular, we propose methods to index moving objects in order to efficiently answer range queries about their current and future positions. This problem appears in real-life applications such as predicting future congestion areas in a highway system or allocating more bandwidth for areas where a high concentration of mobile phones is imminent. We address the problem in external memory and present dynamic solutions, both for the one-dimensional and the two-dimensional cases. Our approach transforms the problem into a dual space that is easier to index. Important in this dynamic environment is not only query performance but also the update processing, given the large number of moving objects that issue updates. We compare the dual-transformation approach with the TPR-tree, an efficient method for indexing moving objects that is based on time-parameterized index nodes. An experimental evaluation shows that the dual-transformation approach provides comparable query performance but has much faster update processing. Moreover, the dual method does not require establishing a predefined query horizon.Received: 27 April 2003, Accepted: 11 May 2004, Published online: 14 September 2004Edited by: J. VeijalainenGeorge Kollios: Supported by NSF CAREER Award 0133825.Dimitrios Gunopulos: Supported by NSF ITR 0220148, NSF CAREER Award 9984729, NSF IIS-9907477, and NRDRP.Vassilis J. Tsotras: Supported by NSF IIS-9907477, NSF EIA-9983445 and the DoD.     

Deterministic network exploration by a single agent with Byzantine tokens

A mobile agent has to explore an unknown network with unlabeled nodes: it must visit all nodes by walking along the links of the network, and eventually stop. If no upper bound on the size of the network is known and nodes of the network cannot be marked, then this exploration task cannot be accomplished for arbitrary networks by a deterministic terminating algorithm. On the other hand, it is feasible, if there is one unmovable token at the starting node of the agent. We investigate the exploration problem in arbitrary networks in the presence of identical unmovable tokens, some of which are Byzantine. A Byzantine token can be visible or invisible to the agent whenever the latter visits the node where the token is located, and visibility is decided by the adversary at each visit of the agent. If no upper bound on the number of tokens is known to the agent, deterministic exploration of all networks is impossible, even if all tokens are fault free. It is also impossible if all tokens are Byzantine, even if their number is known. Our main result is a deterministic exploration algorithm with cost polynomial in the (unknown) size of the network, which works in arbitrary networks, provided that the agent knows some upper bound on the total number of tokens, and that at least one token is fault free.