Lawrence Brakmo

Home Page

Background

I am currently taking a break. Previously I was at Meta/Facebook, working in the Kernel and Networking groups. Before that I was at Google as a member of the host networking group. Previous to that, I was a researcher and project manager of the OS group at DoCoMo USA Labs in San Jose, California. I got my Ph.D. degree in Computer Science from The University of Arizona, my adviser was Larry L. Peterson.

My CV (pdf, html) provides more detailed information.

Research Interests

My research interests include networking, operating systems, energy management and handheld devices. Most of my later work was on TCP enhancements to improve networking performance. While at Meta I worked with eBPF and developed TCP-BPF as well as mechanisms to manage per-cgroup ingress and egress bandwidths. While at Google I developed TCP-NV, a successor to TCP-Vegas that does congestion avoidance in modern networks. While at DoCoMo I worked on new OS techniques to increase isolation and the performance of software components in order to increase system reliability and performance. Before joining DoCoMo USA Labs I worked at Digital/Compaq/HP's WRL (Western Research Lab) where I was involved in the port of  Linux to Itsy, an advanced handheld developed at Digital's Western Research Lab, and where I created µSleep (micro-sleep) an energy management technique that reduced energy consumption on Itsy by up to 70%. In addition, I worked on user interfaces and device virtualization. Prior to joining Digital, I did research in the area of networking under the tutelage of Larry Peterson. In particular, I developed x-Sim, an accurate network simulator based on the x-kernel, which executes real network protocols in each virtual host. In addition, I worked on network congestion and developed a new congestion avoidance technique that I later incorporated into TCP Vegas.

Although I am interested in all type of systems, my focus on the last few years has been on small devices, especially handhelds and smart phones.

Contact Information

Lawrence Brakmo