Wouldn't it be great
if routers had the equivalent of 'User mode Linux' each process
handling a service, isolated and protected from each other. The
physical router would be nothing more than a generic kernel handling
resource allocation. Each virtual router would have access to x amount
of resources and will either halt, sleep, crash when it exhausts those
resources for a given time slice.
This is possible today. Build your own routers using
the right microkernel, OSKIT and the Click Modular Router
software and you can have this. When we restrict ourselves
only to router packages from major vendors then we are
doomed to using outdated technology at inflated prices.
--Michael Dillon