The invention relates to an increment deployment SDN network-based method for defending a link flooding attack. A node upgrade algorithm is utilized to pick out routers that need to be upgraded into software-defined network function nodes and the routers are upgraded; when congestion occurs in a network, a congestion link is positioned through the software-defined network function nodes deployed in the network; congestion link information of the whole network is collected, and on this basis, whether current network congestion forms a link flooding attack is judged; and if the link flooding attach is formed, global flow engineering is started to balance flow of the whole network, otherwise, the congestion link is relieved through backup of a path. According to the increment deployment SDN network-based method for defending a link flooding attack, in a traditional network, a small quantity of nodes are upgraded into software-defined network function nodes, the link flooding attack is detected, a link group that is attacked is positioned, and link flow of the whole network is balanced through centralized control flow engineering, so that the root of a link flooding attack is eliminated, thereby effectively defending the link flooding attack.