Advancing resilience with SDN: A comprehensive review of cyber-physical strategies for smart grid

As modern power systems rapidly evolve into cyber-physical power systems (CPPS), the integration of advanced communication networks introduces significant opportunities alongside critical vulnerabilities. The escalating complexity of CPPS cyber-physical infrastructure heightens susceptibility to extreme events such as cyberattacks and natural disasters, potentially compromising system stability and resilience. Consequently, enhancing CPPS resilience requires addressing not only the physical network layer but also strengthening cyber-network recovery and resistance capabilities. To address this requirement, this paper investigates the role of software-defined networking (SDN) in bolstering CPPS resilience. Specifically, we examine how SDN provides key resilience-enabling attributes—including recoverability, flexibility, scalability, and adaptive network control—that stem from its centralized architecture. This architecture enables dynamic resource allocation and rapid fault detection, capabilities critical for maintaining system performance during cross-layer threats. Then, we review existing SDN applications in power systems, highlighting implementations for real-time monitoring, fault isolation, and resource optimization that demonstrate SDN's viability for CPPS resilience enhancement. Through analysis of current research and future trends, this paper underscores SDN's potential to substantially improve CPPS resilience, enabling more effective disruption resistance and recovery to ensure continuous, secure power supply. Finally, we discuss integration challenges and potential solutions, outlining open issues and future research directions.