A Markovian approach for modeling packet traffic with long-range dependence

We present a simple Markovian framework for modeling packet traffic with variability over several time scales. We present a fitting procedure for matching second-order properties of counts to that of a second-order self-similar process. Our models essentially consist of superpositions of two-state Markov modulated Poisson processes (MMPPs). We illustrate that a superposition of four two-state MMPPs suffices to model second-order self-similar behavior over several time scales. Our modeling approach allows us to fit to additional descriptors while maintaining the second-order behavior of the counting process. We use this to match interarrival time correlations.