BidCache: Auction-Based In-Network Caching in ICN

In Information Centric Networks, each node on the Data delivery path has the ability to cache the data items that flow through it. However, each node takes the decision on whether to cache a particular data item or not independently from the other nodes on the Data delivery path. This approach might result in an inefficient usage of such in-network caching capacity and lead to a reduced network robustness and performance. In this paper, we propose BidCache, a method that allows nodes situated on the path traversed by the Interest to participate in an auction to win the right to cache the data item which will be returned for that Interest, thereby avoiding redundant caching due to individual nodes' caching decisions. Our proposed method differs from existing cooperative caching techniques due to the fact that the auction is embedded in the data request and delivery processes, which limits the overhead of electing and signaling the auction winner. Simulations show that BidCache achieves optimized spreading of the content across the network (30% - 240% improvement of cache hit ratio in a realistic network topology) compared to the state of the art, thereby increasing its robustness with respect to producers going offline. BidCache also reduces the latency experienced by requesting nodes without increasing the network traffic.