Queues as Harris recurrent Markov chains

We present a framework for representing a queue at arrival epochs as a Harris recurrent Markov chain (HRMC). The input to the queue is a marked point process governed by a HRMC and the queue dynamics are formulated by a general recursion. Such inputs include the cases of i.i.d, regenerative, Markov modulated, Markov renewal and the output from some queues as well. Since a HRMC is regenerative, the queue inherits the regenerative structure. As examples, we consider split & match, tandem, G/G/c and more general skip forward networks. In the case of i.i.d. input, we show the existence of regeneration points for a Jackson type open network having general service and interarrivai time distributions.A revised version of the author's winning paper of the 1986 George E. Nicholson Prize (awarded by the Operations Research Society of America).