Interactive Visualization of Dynamic Source Routing Using a Flask-Based Web Framework

Abstract

Dynamic Source Routing (DSR) has long served as a robust protocol for mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs), offering on-demand, adaptive routing ideal for infrastructure-less environments. However, traditional approaches to teaching and experimenting with DSR remain confined to backend simulations with limited visibility and interactivity. This addresses that gap by introducing an interactive, Flask-based web application designed to simulate and visualize the internal mechanics of the DSR protocol. The platform enables users to load custom network topologies, initiate route discovery, and observe real-time propagation of Route Request (RREQ), Route Reply (RREP), and error handling. The proposed tool emphasizes educational clarity, user accessibility, and real-time analysis.

Introduction

Mobile Ad Hoc Networks (MANETs) are decentralized, self-configuring wireless networks ideal for environments lacking fixed infrastructure, such as emergency rescue, military, sensor fields, and rural communication. Routing is critical in MANETs due to the dynamic nature of node connectivity. The Dynamic Source Routing (DSR) protocol is a widely studied on-demand routing method that uses route discovery and route maintenance to efficiently manage network paths without constant control message exchanges.

Despite DSR’s importance, existing simulation tools like NS2/NS3 and OMNeT++ are complex, backend-driven, and lack interactive, real-time visualization, creating educational challenges. To address this, the research introduces a lightweight, browser-accessible simulation platform built with Python Flask (backend) and JavaScript/HTML (frontend). This platform allows users to create or upload network topologies, simulate node communications, and visually track DSR’s packet flows (RREQ, RREP, RERR) in real time. It offers intuitive controls for route establishment, failure simulation, error handling, and route caching, making complex routing behaviors more tangible and easier to learn.

The literature review highlights foundational and comparative studies on DSR and related protocols, emphasizing scalability issues and the need for visual educational tools. Previous work has shown improvements through mobility-aware and adaptive strategies but lacked accessible interfaces.

The proposed methodology includes a modular client-server architecture where nodes and control packets are represented as Python objects. Users can simulate route discovery and maintenance processes with real-time animations of packet propagation and network state changes.

Evaluation shows the simulation accurately implements the DSR protocol (per RFC 4728), responds with low latency (0.8–1.2 seconds), and receives positive usability and educational feedback from students and instructors. The platform’s modular design allows easy integration of additional protocols or features, supporting its role as both an educational tool and a lightweight research environment.

Conclusion

This presented an interactive, browser-based simulation platform for the Dynamic Source Routing (DSR) protocol, developed using Python Flask and modern web technologies. The motivation stemmed from the lack of accessible, visual, and real-time tools to understand and demonstrate reactive routing behavior in mobile ad hoc networks. Traditional DSR analysis often relies on backend simulators or abstract mathematical models, which hinder comprehension, especially for learners and researchers outside core networking domains. The proposed framework bridges this gap by offering a dynamic, user-friendly interface where users can create custom topologies, simulate DSR operations, and visualize the flow of packets such as RREQ, RREP, and RERR in real time. Through modular backend design and efficient frontend rendering, the system supports live simulations with minimal latency and high accuracy, faithfully reproducing core DSR logic. Evaluation results confirmed the platform’s responsiveness, protocol correctness, and educational value, demonstrating strong alignment with the problem statement’s goals. By lowering the technical barriers to protocol understanding and encouraging hands-on exploration, the framework serves both pedagogical and prototyping purposes. It enables students to grasp complex network behaviors interactively and gives researchers a base for extending protocol logic. Future Work: The framework can be extended to support additional protocols like AODV, DSDV, and hybrid approaches, allowing comparative studies. Mobility models and real-time traffic generation modules can also be integrated to simulate realistic environments. Containerization using Docker and cloud deployment are planned to make the tool scalable and usable in distributed learning environments.

References

[1] D. B. Johnson and D. A. Maltz, \"Dynamic Source Routing in AdHoc Wireless Networks,\"MobileComputing,vol.353,pp.153–181,1996. ? Introduced the DSR protocol and described its on-demand route discovery and maintenance mechanism. [2] C. E. Perkins and E. M. Royer, \"Ad-hoc On-Demand Distance Vector Routing,\" Proc. 2nd IEEE Workshop on Mobile Computing Systems and Applications, 1999, pp. 90–100. ? Compared DSR and AODV in dynamic environments and evaluated their scalability and performance. [3] M. S. Parvez and F. S. Hossain, \"Design and Implementation of a Simple Firewall in Python,\" International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, vol. 6, no. 9, pp. 828–832,2015. ? Demonstrated Python-based network simulation and inspired modular implementations like Flask DSR. [4] K. Fall and K. Varadhan, \"The NS Manual,\" The VINT Project, UC Berkeley, LBL, USC/ISI,and Xerox PARC, 2001. ? Provided foundational simulation environment used for routing protocol analysis including DSR. [5] J. Broch, D. A. Maltz, D. B. Johnson, Y. Hu, and J. Jetcheva, \"A Performance Comparison of Multi-Hop Wireless Ad Hoc Network Routing Protocols,\" Proc. 4th Annual ACM/IEEE International Conference on Mobile Computing and Networking (MobiCom), 1998, pp. 85–97. ? Conducted extensive simulation-based comparison of DSR, AODV, and other routing protocols. [6] L. Wang and T. Kunz, \"Performance Evaluation of Routing Protocols for Mobile Ad Hoc Networks,\" Proc. International Conference on Personal Wireless Communications,2003. ? Analyzed DSR under varying mobility and network sizes. [7] S. R. Das, C. E. Perkins, and E. M. Royer, \"Performance Comparison of Two On-Demand Routing Protocols for Ad Hoc Networks,\" IEEE Personal Communications, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 16–28,2001. ? Benchmarked DSR against AODV in packet delivery, delay, and routing overhead. [8] S. Corson and J. Macker, \"Mobile Ad Hoc Networking (MANET): Routing Protocol Performance Issues and Evaluation Considerations,\" RFC 2501, Internet EngineeringTaskForce(IETF),Jan.1999. ? Outlined key metrics and challenges for evaluating ad hoc routing protocols. [9] A. Boukerche, B. Turgut, N. Aydin, M. Z. Ahmad, L. Bölöni, and D. Turgut, \"Routing Protocols in Ad Hoc Networks: A Survey,\" Computer Networks, vol. 55, no. 13, pp.3032–3080,2011. ? Reviewed state-of-the-art routing protocols including DSR and their research trends. [10] R. Kumar and M. Dave, \"A Comparative Study of Various Routing Protocols in VANET,\" International Journal of Computer Science Issues, vol. 8, no. 4, pp. 643–648,2011. ? Offered protocol behavior insights useful for adapting DSR to mobile and vehicular networks.

Copyright

Copyright © 2025 P Sai Prabhallika S, Prakash O. Sarangamath S, Dr. SDN Hayath Ali S. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.