Placement of network resources in communication networks

Data communication and telecommunication networks consist of nodes, links and network resources. Many studies have dealt with the design of optimal network topologies. In current methodologies, every node presents the same constraints and behavior, however, in reality, the network resources vary. The research problem at stake here is how to add central network resources (i.e., servers, gateways, network managers, probes, mainframes, etc.) in an optimal way. For small networks or for a small number of resources, it is feasible to solve the problem by checking all the possibilities of locating the resources and choosing the optimal location. However, this method cannot be applied for large networks, where a great many of resources are located. In such cases, we confront a difficult optimization problem that is classified as NPcomplete. In this study we deal with optimal and heuristics techniques in order to solve this kind of problem.