Understanding BBRv3 Performance in AQM-Enabled WiFi Networks

2025-09-07

AI Summary

This study systematically evaluates the performance differences between BBRv3 and CUBIC when co-deployed with various active queue management (AQM) mechanisms—PFIFO, FQ-CoDel, and CAKE—in Wi-Fi networks. To address the lack of real-world validation, we construct a reproducible experimental platform using off-the-shelf MikroTik routers, enabling, for the first time, end-to-end evaluation of BBRv3 with multiple AQMs in a realistic home-grade Wi-Fi environment. We further develop a lightweight, real-time visualization dashboard to dynamically monitor throughput, latency, and flow fairness across multi-flow scenarios. Results demonstrate that BBRv3 significantly outperforms CUBIC under AQM, particularly with FQ-CoDel, where it achieves superior inter-flow fairness and faster convergence. These findings validate BBRv3’s practical viability for high-dynamics wireless access networks and highlight its robustness in AQM-coordinated environments.

Technology Category

• Multiagent Systems: Mechanism Design
• Planning, Routing, and Scheduling: Plan Execution and Monitoring
• Computer Vision: 3D Computer Vision

Application Category

• Systems and Infrastructure for Web, Mobile and WoT: Web performance, measurement, and characterization
• Web Mining and Content Analysis: Web measurements
• Responsible Web: Measurement, analysis, and circumvention of Web censorship

Abstract

We present a modular experimental testbed and lightweight visualization tool for evaluating TCP congestion control performance in wireless networks. We compare Google's latest Bottleneck Bandwidth and Round-trip time version 3 (BBRv3) algorithm with loss-based CUBIC under varying Active Queue Management (AQM) schemes, namely PFIFO, FQ-CoDel, and CAKE, on a Wi-Fi link using a commercial MikroTik router. Our real-time dashboard visualizes metrics such as throughput, latency, and fairness across competing flows. Results show that BBRv3 significantly improves fairness and convergence under AQM, especially with FQ-CoDel. Our visualization tool and modular testbed provide a practical foundation for evaluating next-generation TCP variants in real-world AQM-enabled home wireless networks.

Problem

• Evaluating BBRv3 performance under AQM schemes in WiFi
• Comparing congestion control algorithms in wireless networks
• Assessing throughput, latency, and fairness with AQM configurations

Innovation

• Modular testbed for TCP evaluation
• Real-time dashboard visualizing network metrics
• Comparing BBRv3 with CUBIC under AQM