Reflexive Forwarding: Way Forward for Communications in an Information-centric IoT?

The research presented in this work investigates Reflexive Forwarding, which was proposed at the IETF for an information-centric IoT. The work uses modeling and simulations to perform a comparative study with other solutions. The identified performance metrics highlight Reflexive Forwarding's consistent flow balance, contrasting with unbalanced message flows in other solutions. While competitive in rapid content reception to compared solutions, Reflexive Forwarding necessitates additional messages, increasing overall messaging. This dichotomy poses a crucial choice between flow balance with higher traffic, offering multiple benefits versus lower congestion with unbalanced flows. Opting for flow balance, despite higher traffic, proves advantageous due to its multifaceted benefits, contrasting with the potential adverse outcomes of selecting lower congestion with unbalanced flows.