William Stallings

Data and Computer

Communications
7th Edition

Chapter 10
Circuit Switching and Packet
Switching

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Switching Networks
• Long distance transmission is typically done over
a network of switched nodes
• Nodes not concerned with content of data
• End devices are stations
—Computer, terminal, phone, etc.
• A collection of nodes and connections is a
communications network
• Data routed by being switched from node to
node

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Nodes
• Nodes may connect to other nodes only, or to
stations and other nodes
• Node to node links usually multiplexed
• Network is usually partially connected
—Some redundant connections are desirable for
reliability
• Two different switching technologies
—Circuit switching
—Packet switching

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Simple Switched Network

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Switching Activities
• Some nodes connect only to other nodes
(intermediary nodes). Sole purpose is to switch
data
• Some nodes have one or more stations
attached. They accept from and deliver data to
the attached station.
• Node-to-node links are usually multiplexed
• Multiple paths enhance reliability

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Circuit Switching
• Originated in public telephone networks
• Well suited to analog transmission of voice signal
• Dedicated communication path between two stations
• Three phases
— Establish
— Transfer
— Disconnect
• Must have switching capacity and channel capacity to
establish connection
• Must have intelligence to work out routing

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Circuit Switching - Applications
• Inefficient
—Channel capacity dedicated for duration of
connection
—If no data, capacity wasted
• Set up (connection) takes time
• Once connected, transfer is transparent
• Developed for voice traffic (phone)

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Public Circuit Switched
Network

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Telecom Components
• Subscriber
— Devices attached to network
• Subscriber line
— Link between subscriber and network
• Also called Local Loop or Subscriber Loop
— Almost all Local Loops are TPW
— Range from Few km up to tens of km
• Exchange
— Switching center in the network
— End office specific switching center that supports subscribers
• Trunks
— Branches between exchanges
— Multiplexed

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Circuit Establishment

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Circuit Switching Concepts
• Digital Switch
— Provide transparent signal path between devices
— Typically allows full duplex transmission
• Network Interface
• Functions and h/w needed to connect digital
devices to the network
• Control Unit
— Establish connections - Generally on demand, Handle and
acknowledge requests, Determine if destination is free,construct
path
— Maintain connection
— Disconnect

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Blocking or Non-blocking
Circuit Switching
• Blocking
—A network may not be able to connect stations
because all paths are in use (more stations than
path)
—Used on voice systems
• Short duration calls
• Non-blocking
—Permits all stations to connect (in pairs) at once (at
least as many paths as stations)
—Used for some data connections

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Space Division Switching
• Developed for analog environment, but carried
over into digital
• Signal paths are physically separate (slide 15)
• Each connection requires dedicated path
(crossbar switch)

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Crossbar switch
• Number of crosspoints grows as square of
number of stations
• Loss of crosspoint prevents connection
—Inefficient use of crosspoints
—If all stations connected, only a few crosspoints in
use
• Non-blocking

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Space Division Switch

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Multistage Switch
• Reduced number of crosspoints
• More than one path through network
—Increased reliability
• More complex control
• May be blocking

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Three Stage Space Division
Switch

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Time Division Switching
• Modern digital systems rely on intelligent control
of space and time division elements
• Use digital time division techniques to set up
and maintain virtual circuits
• Partition low speed bit stream into pieces that
share higher speed stream

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Control Signaling Functions
• Audible communication with subscriber
• Transmission of dialed number
• Call can not be completed indication
• Call ended indication
• Signal to ring phone
• Billing info
• Equipment and trunk status info
• Diagnostic info
• Control of specialist equipment

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Control Signal Sequence
• Both phones on hook
• Subscriber lifts receiver (off hook)
• End office switch signaled
• Switch responds with dial tone
• Caller dials number
• If target not busy, send ringer signal to target subscriber
• Feedback to caller
— Ringing tone, engaged tone, unobtainable
• Target accepts call by lifting receiver
• Switch terminates ringing signal and ringing tone
• Switch establishes connection
• Connection release when Source subscriber hangs up

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Switch to Switch Signaling
• Subscribers connected to different switches
• Originating switch seizes interswitch trunk
• Send off hook signal on trunk, requesting digit
register at target switch (for address)
• Terminating switch sends off hook followed by
on hook (wink) to show register ready
• Originating switch sends address

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Location of Signaling
• Subscriber to network
—Depends on subscriber device and switch
• Within network
—Management of subscriber calls and network
—More complex

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In Channel Signaling
• Use same channel for signaling control and call
— Requires no additional transmission facilities
• Inband
— Control signals have same electromagnetic properties
(frequency) as voice signal
— Can go anywhere a voice signal can
— Impossible to set up a call on a faulty speech path
• Out of band
— Voice signals do not use full 4kHz bandwidth
— Narrow signal band within 4kHz used for control
— Can be sent whether or not voice signals are present
— Need extra electronics
— Slower signal rate (narrow bandwidth)

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Drawbacks of In Channel
Signaling
• Limited transfer rate
• Delay between entering address (dialing) and
connection
• Overcome by use of common channel signaling

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Common Channel Signaling
• Control signals carried over paths independent of voice
channel
• One control signal channel can carry signals for a
number of subscriber channels
• Common control channel for these subscriber lines
• Associated Mode
— Common channel closely tracks interswitch trunks
• Disassociated Mode
— Additional nodes (signal transfer points)
— Effectively two separate networks

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Common
Channel
Signaling
Modes

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Signaling System Number 7
• SS7
• Common channel signaling scheme
• ISDN
• Overall purpose to provide international
standardized common channel signaling system
• Performs call management (setup, maintenance,
termination) and network management
functions
• Network is circuit switched, but control is packet
switched

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Softswitch Architecture
• Latest trend in circuit-switching technology
• General purpose computer running software to make it
a smart phone switch
• Lower cost, greater functionality
• Can packetize digitized voice data, allowing voice over
IP
• Performs call routing
• Separates call processing from hardware function of
switch

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Traditional Circuit Switching

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Softswitch

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Circuit Switching Shortcomings
• Inefficient for data because of idle time
• Provides for transmission at constant rate –
must transmit and receive at same data rate.
Limits versatility

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Packet Switching Basic
Operation
• Data transmitted in small packets
—Typically 1000 octets (8 bit byte)
—Longer messages split into series of packets
—Each packet contains a portion of user data plus
some control info
• Control info
—Routing (addressing) info
• Packets are received, stored briefly (buffered)
and passed on to the next node
—Store and forward

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Use of Packets

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Advantages
• Line efficiency
— Single node to node link can be shared by many packets over
time
— Packets queued and transmitted as fast as possible
• Data rate conversion
— Each station connects to the local node at its own speed
— Nodes buffer data if required to equalize rates
• Packets are accepted even when network is busy
— Delivery may slow down
• Priorities can be used

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Switching Technique
• Station breaks long message into packets
• Packets sent one at a time to the network
• Packets handled in two ways
—Datagram
—Virtual circuit

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Datagram
• Each packet treated independently
• Packets can take any practical route
• Packets may arrive out of order
• Packets may go missing
• Up to receiver to re-order packets and recover
from missing packets

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Datagram
Diagram

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Virtual Circuit
• Preplanned route established before any packets
sent
• Call request and call accept packets establish
connection (handshake)
• Each packet contains a virtual circuit identifier
instead of destination address
• No routing decisions required for each packet
• Clear request to drop circuit
• Not a dedicated path

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Virtual
Circuit
Diagram

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Virtual Circuits v Datagram
• Virtual circuits
—Network can provide sequencing and error control
—Packets are forwarded more quickly
• No routing decisions to make
—Less reliable
• Loss of a node loses all circuits through that node
• Datagram
—No call setup phase
• Better if few packets
—More flexible
• Routing can be used to avoid congested parts of the
network

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Circuit vs. Packet Switching
Circuit Switched Packet Switched
• Bandwidth • Bandwidth
guaranteed dynamically allocated
on as-needed basis
• Circuit capacity not
• May have concurrent
reduced by other transmissions over
network traffic physical channel
• Circuit costs • May have delays and
independent of congestion
amount of data • More cost-effective,
transmitted, resulting offer better
in wasted bandwidth performance

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X.25
• Old ITU standard
• Interface between host and packet switched
network
• Almost universal on packet switched networks
and packet switching in ISDN
• Defines three layers
—Physical
—Link
—Packet

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X.25 Use of Virtual Circuits

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Virtual Circuit Service
• Logical connection between two stations
—External virtual circuit
• Specific preplanned route through network
—Internal virtual circuit
• Typically one to one relationship between
external and internal virtual circuits
• Can employ X.25 with datagram style network
• External virtual circuits require logical channel
—All data considered part of stream

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Frame Relay
• Designed to be more efficient than X.25
• Developed before ATM
• Larger installed base than ATM
• ATM now of more interest on high speed
networks

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Frame Relay
• Public WAN packet-switching protocol
• Provides LAN-LAN connectivity
• Relays frames across a network from source to
destination
• Connection-oriented protocol – must first
establish a connection before two nodes can
communicate

46
LAN-LAN Connectivity
Prior to Frame Relay
• Conventional dial-up circuit switching
• Dedicated leased line using point-to-point
protocols or X.25 Packet Switching
• (Both have significant problems in today’s
technology)

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Frame Relay Circuits
• Connection-oriented protocol
• Relies on permanent virtual circuit (PVC) –
provide non-dedicated connections through a
shared medium (bandwidth is shared among
multiple sites (simplex lines)
• Can also support switched virtual circuit (SVC)

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Frame Relay Permanent Virtual Circuit

• Pre-determined link between source and

destination
• Bandwidth is shared among multiple sites, not
dedicated
• Bandwidth cost based on Committed
Information Rate (CIR)
• Frames encapsulate data contained in layers 3-7

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CIR
• If Leased line, a fixed amount of bandwidth is provided,
regardless of use.
• If CIR, frame relay provider guarantees a given throughput
(bps) during normal workloads - user hedges bet and hopes for
more
• CIR can be symmetric or asymmetric (as in ADSL)
• If CIR is too small, network becomes congested, and frames
may be dropped
• If CIR is too high, you are paying for excessive bandwidth (think
of the Sprint commercials)
• Service provider does not guarantee delivery above CIR

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BURST
• A data transmission that is equal to, or exceeds
the CIR
• Committed Burst – Maximum amount of data
the provider guarantees to deliver within a
specified time period (CIR/time) – In general,
CIR should not exceed 70% of port speed
• Excessive Burst – Maximum amount of
uncommitted data a provider will attempt to
deliver within a specified time period

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Committed plus Excessive
Burst

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Switched Virtual Circuit
• Frame Relay also supports switched virtual
circuits (SVC)
• SVCs also support CIRs
• Circuits between source and destination are
established when needed (logical dynamic,
rather than logical permanent)
• Analogous to PSTN - paths change between
connections

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PVC Advantages and
Disadvantages
 Widespread availability
 Less complex network design
 Less expensive equipment
• Permanent connections - always paying for a
certain amount of bandwidth, regardless of use
• Every time a new connection is required, a new
permanent circuit must be established

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Frame Relay Basic Operation
• Packet switching – every frame carries source
and destination address
• Data link layer protocol, but does not support
flow control, error detection, frame sequencing
or ACK (all performed at end nodes (routers))
—Since frame integrity performed by end nodes, FR is
fast and efficient
• Statistical multiplexing – multiple subscribers
share same backbone

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Congestion Control and Management

• If no ACK within a given time period, sending

node assumes frame was discarded
• Discarded frames must be retransmitted,
increasing network traffic
• Provider responsibilities
— Design networks to provide sufficient bandwidth
— Ensure links are error free
— Prevent any node from monopolizing the system
— Distribute resources in fair and equitable manner
• Refer to Lucent White Paper
http://www.lucent.com/livelink/09009403800049af_
White_paper.pdf

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Advantages and Disadvantages
• Lost link by link error and flow control
—Increased reliability makes this less of a problem
• Streamlined communications process
—Lower delay
—Higher throughput

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Required Reading
• Stallings Chapter 10
• http://www.lucent.com/livelink/0900940380004
9af_White_paper.pdf

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Chapter 10 Review Questions
• Why is it useful to have more than one possible path through a
network for each pair of stations?
• Describe a simple switched network; describe a circuit switched
network
• What is a dedicated path?
• Describe the differences between blocking and non-blocking
circuit switching
• Describe how circuit switching is inefficient.
• Describe SS7.
• Describe packet switching. What are the advantages of packet
switching compared to circuit switching?
• Explain the difference between datagram and virtual circuit
operation.
• Continued on next page!

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Chapter 10 Review Questions
(cont.)
• What is the significance of packet size in a packet-switching
network?
• What is the difference between inchannel and common
channel signaling? Which is preferred, and why?
• Describe frame relay. What are the relative advantages
and disadvantages of frame relay?
• Compare and contrast PVC and SVC
• Explain the concept of the committed information rate
(CIR)
• Describe frame relay’s method of congestion control.

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