Enhancing Secure Network Traffic Using Defensive Algorithm Based on SDN

Abstract

Software Defined Network (SDN) is a new paradigm over traditional network systems to revolutionize the network. SDN has provided a more flexible approach in setting up a network between applications and the underlying forwarding devices. This technological shift from traditional network to SDN has a big impact on breaking the network vendor s monopoly. Software Defined Network is a novel approach that tends to address the shortcomings of a traditional network. SDN is a revolutionary networking paradigm that provides the flexibility of programming the network interface as per the need and demands of the user. Software Defined Network is independent of vendor-specific hardware or protocols and offers easy extensions in the networking. A customized network as per user demand facilitates communication control via a single entity i.e. SDN controller. Vulnerabilities were introduced in SDN because of customized applications that are semi-independent of underlying network infrastructure. Software Defined Network has provided numerous benefits like breaking vendor lock-ins, reducing overhead cost, easy innovations, increasing programmability among devices, introducing new features, and so on. Security in the network is of utmost importance and a major challenge. The communication channel used in Software Defined Network is OpenFlow which has made Transport Layer Security (TLS) implementation an optional approach in SDN. TLS adoption is important and still vulnerable. This thesis focuses on making SDN OpenFlow communication more secure by following extended TLS support and defensive algorithm.