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International Conference on Evaluation of Novel Approaches to Software Engineering

Software Defined Networking Based Key Management for Quantum Key Distribution Networks: Architecture and Evaluation

Charalampos Chatzinakis, Inès Arif, Jorge López, Johanna Sepúlveda

Published Jan 1, 2026• 0 citations
Publisher
DOI
10.5220/0014954000004015

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Abstract Network management has been significantly transformed by software‐defined networking (SDN), which consolidates control and improves adaptability. As a result of this paradigm shift, security concerns have emerged concurrently. Within SDN environments, maintaining service path integrity is of utmost importance because malicious entities can exploit network flows to gain access to data, resulting in security breaches. Thus, QKD networks require a management plane that can control and manage the QKD resources. Quantum key distribution networks can be controlled and managed separately by SDN, allowing quantum key forwarding to be separated from their control and management. The paper provides an overview of QKD networks enabled by SDN, along with an overview of its architecture, interfaces, and protocols. This paper elaborates on the overall architecture and related interfaces and protocols of QKD networks assisted by SDN. Then, three important paradigms for simulation are presented using three use cases.
Software-defined networking (SDN) has emerged as a promising paradigm for managing and controlling network resources efficiently. However, ensuring the security of data packets transmitted within an SDN environment remains a critical challenge. Traditional networking relies on static configurations, while SDN offers dynamic control and programmability, revolutionizing network management. In SDN, the application layer employs tools like OpenDaylight and Mininet for network management and testing. The control layer, managed by controllers such as Floodlight or ONOS, orchestrates traffic flow among switches. In the infrastructure layer, Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) with the BB84 protocol ensures secure communication. Together, these layers enable agile, programmable, and secure networking paradigms. This paper proposes integrating quantum key distribution (QKD) into SDN architectures to bolster packet-level security. By leveraging quantum entanglement and uncertainty, a secure communication channel between SDN controllers and switches is established, resilient to quantum attacks. Evaluation through simulations and real-world experiments demonstrates efficacy in mitigating security threats while minimizing overhead and latency, advancing SDN security IEEE 802.1X capabilities and leveraging quantum technologies for cybersecurity.
This paper aims to address the challenge of designing secure and high-performance quantum key distribution networks (QKDNs), which are essential for encrypted communication in the era of quantum computing. Focusing on the control and management (CM) layer essential for monitoring and routing, the study emphasizes centrally managed software-defined networking (SDN). We begin by analyzing QKDN routing characteristics needed for evaluating two existing architectures and proposed new CM layer implementation. Following the theoretical analysis, we conduct a discrete-event-based simulation in which the proposed architecture is compared to an existing one, which serves as a performance baseline. The results provide recommendations based on use cases for which different architectures show superiority and offer valuable insights into the development and evaluation of CM architectures for QKDNs.