The study of the optimality of low-complexity greedy scheduling techniques in wireless communications networks is a very complex problem. The Local Pooling (LoP) factor provides a single-parameter means of expressing the achievable capacity region (and optimality) of one such scheme, greedy maximal scheduling (GMS). The exact LoP factor for an arbitrary network graph is generally difficult to obtain, but may be evaluated or bounded based on the network graph’s particular structure. In this paper, we provide rigorous characterizations of the LoP factor in large networks modeled as Erdős–Renyi (ER) and random geometric (RG) graphs under the primary interference model. We employ threshold functions to establish critical values for either the edge probability or communication radius to yield useful bounds on the range and expectation of the LoP factor as the network grows large. For sufficiently dense random graphs, we find that the LoP factor is between 1 2 and 2 3, while sufficiently sparse random graphs permit GMS optimality (the LoP factor is 1) with high probability. We then place LoP within a larger context of commonly studied random graph properties centered around connectedness. We observe that edge densities permitting connectivity generally admit cycle subgraphs that form the basis for the LoP factor upper bound of 2 3. We conclude with simulations to explore the regime of small networks, which suggest the probability that an ER or RG graph satisfies LoP and is connected decays quickly in network size.
We consider the stability of the longest-queue-first scheduling policy (LQF), a natural and low-complexity scheduling policy, for a generalized switch model. Unlike that of common scheduling policies, the stability of LQF depends on the variance of the arrival processes in addition to their average intensities. We identify new sufficient conditions for LQF to be throughput optimal for independent, identically distributed arrival processes. Deterministic fluid analogs, proved to be powerful in the analysis of stability in queueing networks, do not adequately characterize the stability of LQF. We combine properties of diffusion-scaled sample path functionals and local fluid limits into a sharper characterization of stability.