ns-2 network simulator: Free, yes; friendly, no
The open source network simulation tool ns-2 is an invaluable tool for researchers working on wired or wireless networks. I came across ns-2 while working on my thesis. I needed a network simulator, and since my college lacked the brand-name heavyweights, I had to look for an alternative that was free but could do the job. While ns-2 is free, it’s also pretty unfriendly.
ns-2 is a variant of the REAL network simulator. Over the past few years it has been evolving, and it is still far from complete. Several organizations have been involved in its development, including DARPA, Xerox, UCB, and Sun Microsystems. The objective has been to make a network simulation tool to study and analyze new ideas in detail before implementation.
Read the whole article on linux.com, here.
November 26th, 2008 08:19
Spot on! In my case, I have been using NS for close to four years now but I cannot really say that I understand it that well. But with each passing day, I understand better and better such that I am planning to continue using it for my PhD research.
November 28th, 2008 01:36
Hi,
did you try Omnet++ ? It is a really convenient simulation tool for all kind of network protocols. It is written (and programmed) in C++, has a clear modular design, and a really nice GUI for your simulations, which makes debugging really easy! There is an active developer community and many network protocols are already available.
I tried ns2 once and it really sucked!
November 30th, 2008 19:56
I agree with you, Omnet++ is much more practical than ns2. Did you have a look at the research corner page within this blog? there are some advices about simulation tools that you may find useful.
Antonio
December 10th, 2008 22:15
Hi,
I agree with you. However, NS3 is coming along which I am hoping is better.
I haven’t tried Omnet but I have tried NetSim from Tetcos (www.tetcos.com).While it doesn’t have research level capabilities I have found it very useful to teach my UG students. And their demo on the site is too shy so try to get a full feature eval from them.
Barbara
January 11th, 2009 11:12
Well, well … NetSim is pretty good actually ! I have wasted too much time on NS
Johann
January 25th, 2009 22:20
Are OMNET’s results reliable ?
Many of my fellow researchers mentioned that there are several flawed assumptions / calculations which leads to erroneous results.
A few also mentioned that OMNET’s results are generally not accepted in research papers
February 20th, 2009 23:08
No OMNET results are not accepted.
I have tried the same models in NS, Opnet and OMNET. While NS and Opnet give similar results, OMNET’s was just way off.
February 25th, 2009 10:37
I had never seen NetSim before, but it looks like a pretty neat tool. Just right quick and simple modeling.
For depth nothing can beat Opnet.
February 27th, 2009 04:22
Oh yes Mange !
NS-2: Waste of time
OMNET++: Not reliable
Qualnet: Sidekick of Opnet
February 27th, 2009 14:39
Do you think ns3, opnet or net sim is good for zigbee simulation as well.I think so but still
looking for ideas from ppl who have used it. Relatively new to this field
March 1st, 2009 03:32
Hi…
I m using ns2 for simulation of routing in WSN. Can anyone please tell me where to find tcl script for any routing protocol.
March 4th, 2009 00:35
I need simulation and hardware trainer for lab in turkiye.
Is NetSim & LAN / W LAN Trainer combine from tetcos good ?
March 4th, 2009 03:41
NetSim is well recognized in the industry akhtabot.