Editing Network simulation (section)

{{Short description|Simulating computer networks}}
{{Use American English|date = March 2019}}

{{More citations needed|date=September 2023}}

In [[computer network]] research, '''network simulation''' is a technique whereby a software program replicates the behavior of a real network. This is achieved by calculating the interactions between the different network entities such as routers, switches, nodes, access points, links, etc.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Wehrle |first1=Klaus |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CvUvxpSe8NoC&dq=%22Network+simulation%22&pg=PA49 |title=Modeling and Tools for Network Simulation |last2=Günes |first2=Mesut |last3=Gross |first3=James |date=2010-09-22 |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |isbn=978-3-642-12331-3 |language=en}}</ref> Most simulators use discrete event simulation in which the modeling of systems in which state variables change at discrete points in time.  The behavior of the network and the various applications and services it supports can then be observed in a test lab; various attributes of the environment can also be modified in a controlled manner to assess how the network/protocols would behave under different conditions.