[ns] Performance change due to change data order in packets header: Could anybody explain???

[Ghada Al-Mashaqbeh]

Hi all,
   
  I have modified AODV protocol to support other routing metric than hop-count, at the final stages of performance testing I have realized the following:
   
  I have added new fields to RREQ and RREP packets, lets say I have added three quantities of type double (x, y, z) to the RREQ to allow intermediate nodes to calculate the new  route metric. What I have realized that the protocol performance will be different for the following two cases:
  -- if I have added these values as an array to the RREQ header (i.e.double  new_metric[3]), 
  -- if I add them as a three elements (i.e. double x, double y, double z).
   
  Also if only one element of the array is filled (i.e. new_metric[0], for example) the performance will be different from having all array elements are filled.
   
  I am measuring the total network throughput, the results are different for different RREQ format elements arrangements.
   
  Can any body explain this to me? what is happening here?
   
  Thanks,
   
  Ghada

       
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