# Deploying Secure Distributed Systems: Comparative Analysis of GNS3 and SEED Internet Emulator
## 6 Results and Evaluation
### Energy Consumption Comparison  
Energy consumption is a significant concern for organizations, and emulated networks have the potential to reduce consumption by efficiently utilizing existing hardware resources. Energy efficiency is a significant advantage, and consolidating all network devices onto a single server can aid in space management. We collected energy consumption data for all of our network models and observed that the physical network architecture uses significantly less energy than the emulated networks. However, we also collected data on the host server's consumption for the emulation. The consumption was nearly the same as the emulated configuration, indicating that most of the consumption occurs on the host server. The emulation itself does not require a high level of energy. Similar studies have been conducted [65], where they evaluated the energy efficiency of a data center model using the NS-3 platform, yielding positive results. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c c c c} \hline \hline
**Nodes** & **Min Hops** & **Max** & **Min** & **Avg** & **StdDev** & **Median** & **Jitter** \\ \hline R1-cR1 & 3 & 192.00 & 11.00 & 50.69 & 29.43 & 42.00 & 20.91 \\ R1-cR2 & 4 & 171.00 & 22.00 & 65.86 & 26.45 & 63.00 & 19.59 \\ R1-cR3 & 5 &  
We used energy monitoring equipment to measure energy consumption which can be observed in Figure 6. Table 7 presents the energy measurements and compares the physical, emulated, and hybrid approaches. We considered a base system (\(x1\)) and estimated the consumption of a network twice (\(x2\)) the size with the same components. The physical network had the lowest energy consumption for the base system, while the emulated network consumed approximately 2.4-2.6-times more energy than the physical architecture (1.2-1.5-times for the \(x2\) system). We also tested the host server without the emulated network running, which produced almost identical results to the physical system, indicating that the host system absorbs most of the energy. Despite the host system consuming more energy than the physical network, if the server has available capacity, it can be utilized to run additional services for the organization. Therefore, the overall energy balance could still favor the emulated solution. Finally, we tested the hybrid emulated system, which uses both physical and emulated networks. We found that both network models consume a similar amount of energy. The emulated SEED Internet Emulator model consumed slightly less energy (kWh) than the emulated GNS3 model. Energy Data Collection  
To measure the energy data, we used the following methods:  
1. **Defining energy consumption measurement:** We measured energy consumption in kilowatt-hours (kWh), as it is the universal standard for measuring electricity consumption. 2. **Defining the data collection scope:** We measured the energy consumption of all variations of the network technology used in the study. 3. **Defining the rationale of measuring device choice:** We used the Anglerfish Smart Meter Energy Monitor for data collection. 4. **Defining device implementation:** We simply installed the device in the electric output socket and used an extension cable (consisting of twelve outlets) to provide power to the devices. 5. **Data analysis** We recorded the collected data through the device in Table 7 to observe the variations in network consumption. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c} \hline \hline
**Network** & \multicolumn{2}{c}{**Energy (kWh)**} \\ \hline _(Base System)_ & \(x1\) & \(x2\) \\ \hline Physical (3 Nodes) & 0.037 & 0.074 \\ Physical (6 Nodes) & 0.074 & 0.148 \\ \hline Emulated (GNS3) & 0.151 & 0.302 \\ Host Server & 0.143 & 0.286 \\ Emulated (Net) & 0.008 & 0.016 \\ \hline Hybrid Emulated System (Emulated/Physical) & 0.196 & N/A \\ _Emulated/Physical Ratio_ & _0.077_ & _0.154_ \\ \hline Emulated (SEED Internet Emulator) & 0.146 & 0.292 \\ Host Server & 0.143 & 0.286 \\ Emulated (Net) & 0.003 & 0.006 \\ _Internet Emulator/Physical Ratio_ & _0.071_ & _0.145_ \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table}