The International Conference on ns-3 (ICNS3) formerly known as Workshop on ns-3 (WNS3) will be held on October 19-21, 2026 at the University of Naples Federico II, Italy. The objective of this conference is to bring together ns-3 users and developers, networking simulation practitioners, and developers of other network simulation tools, together with an increasing number of industrial users, to discuss the ns-3 tool and related activities. Industry participation has become an important driver of ns-3’s evolution, providing practical feedback that helps steer the simulator toward greater real-world relevance.

ICNS3 2026 is planned to be an in-person event. The organizers request that an author from each accepted paper plan to attend in person. Additional events will be planned during the same days (October 19-21), including the annual developers and maintainers meeting, and possibly training and tutorial sessions.

As in past years, the conference organizers will apply to ACM to publish accepted papers in the ACM International Conference Proceeding Series (ICPS).

Papers must be written in English and must not exceed 9 pages. Every paper will be peer-reviewed. At least one author of each accepted paper must register and present the work at the conference.

Paper submission
-----------------

ICNS3 invites authors to submit original high-quality papers presenting different aspects of developing and using ns-3. In such papers, reproducibility and methodology will be key reviewing criteria, as explained below.

Papers on the validation and verification of ns-3 models or simulation campaigns are especially encouraged and will be grouped into a validation session.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

- New models, devices, protocols, and applications for ns-3
- Using ns-3 in modern networking research
- Comparison with other network simulators and emulators
- Speed and scalability issues for ns-3
- Multiprocessor and distributed simulation with ns-3, including use of GPUs
- Validation of ns-3 models
- Credibility and reproducibility issues for ns-3 simulations
- User experience issues of ns-3
- Frameworks for the definition and automation of ns-3 simulations
- Post-processing, visualization, and statistical analysis tools for ns-3
- Models ported from other simulators to ns-3
- Using real code for simulation with ns-3 and using ns-3 code in network applications
- Integration of ns-3 with testbeds, emulators, and other simulators or tools
- Using ns-3 API from programming languages other than C++ or Python
- Porting ns-3 to unsupported platforms
- Network emulation with ns-3
- Using ns-3 in education and teaching
- Using ns-3 as a digital twin

More information at:

https://www.nsnam.org/research/icns3/icns3-2026/call-for-papers/