Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have introduced “data caps”, or quotas on the amount of data that a customer can download during a billing cycle. Under this model, Internet users who reach a data cap can be subject to degraded performance, extra fees, or even temporary interruption of Internet service. For this reason, users need better visibility into and control over their Internet usage to help them understand what uses up data and control how these quotas are reached. In this paper, we present the design and implementation of a tool, called uCap, to help home users manage Internet data. We conducted a field trial of uCap in 21 home networks in three countries and performed an in-depth qualitative study of ten of these homes. We present the results of the evaluation and implications for the design of future Internet data management tools.
Hyojoon Kim is a Ph.D. candidate in the School of Computer Science at the Georgia Institute of Technology under the supervision of Professor Nick Feamster. He is broadly interested in computer networks and systems, but currently focus more on network configuration analysis, network reliability enhancement, and building better abstractions for network management. He received his B.S. in Computer Science from University of Wisconsin - Madison and M.S. from Georgia Tech. In the past, he has worked as a research engineer at Future Systems, a major manufacturer of network & security solutions in South Korea, and did several internships at HP Labs-Palo Alto, CA, USA.