Circuit Switching and

Packet Switching
ENTC 345
Dr. Ana Goulart
Assistant Professor
Announcements
 Reading: Stallings
 Chapter 1 and 2
 Chapter 10

 TA: Aninda@neo.tamu.edu
 Office hours: Mondays 5 to 8 pm (T 101)

 Hw # 1 due today
Review
 M/M/1 example – incoming link information

 Hw#1: Examples of simulations and

applications

 How was the first lab?

On Opnet – Traffic
 Applications and Profiles
Application Models: generate typical application traffic patterns

Examples: FTP
Email
Remote Login
Video Conferencing Standard applications
Database
HTTP
Print
Voice

Custom
On Opnet
 Standard applications
 Client/Server Model
 Two-tier architecture * Sessions: single conversation
between client/server

request * Traffic organized into sessions

Client Server
response
Applications and Profiles
 Applications: simple traffic sources, or
complex protocols, or discrete set of tasks

 Application Profile: user’s behavior

 Specify application he/she uses
 how long and how often
Applications and Profiles
Application Profile: user’s behavior
 Example: start time, duration, repeatability,
parallel applications or serial applications

Profile 1 : Serial

Email HTTP Email HTTP FTP

Profile 2 : Parallel

Email

FTP
Application Model Hierarchy
Profile Object
Profile

Application Application Object

Tasks Task Object

(Custom applications)
Phase
Lab 1 – Small Internetwork

Application and Profile

Objects – database
Steps:
 Create application – add row 1
 Create profile – set attributes
 Workstation object - Assign profile to desired
workstations
 Server object – assign service type (application)

 Example: How would you model the traffic at the

library’s subnet?
A Network Configuration
ISP
(page 30 - Stallings)

R Internet
Residential Subscriber
user connection
R R

R
ATM
Firewall switch
host

Ethernet
switch
R

Private WAN
Server LAN PCs
Wide Area Network
Important concepts:

Circuit switching

Packet switching

Frame relay

ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode)

 Wide Area Networks
Important concepts:

Circuit switching –
- fixed routes, dedicated path between 2 stations
- on each link, a logical channel is dedicated to
the connection
- data transmitted along the dedicated path as
rapidly as possible

Packet switching –
- data sent in a sequence of packets
- each packet passed from node to node along
some path
- at each node, the entire packet is received,
stored briefly and transmitted to next node
Circuit Switching

- data transmitted along the dedicated path

as rapidly as possible
Packet Switching

A
R Internet

R R

At each node, the entire packet is received,

stored briefly and transmitted to next node

What is the primary framework to model

this behavior and analyze delays?
 Circuit switching x Packet switching
Timing of events:
Queuing delay

Call request signal

Pkt 1
Pkt 2
Circuit Propagation delay
Pkt 3
establishment
Time
Time Transmission delay
Call accept
signal
Data

A B C D
A B C D
Circuit switching Packet switching
 Delays in Circuit switching
Timing of events:

Call request signal

Circuit
After connection is established,
establishment
Information is transmitted at a
Time fixed data rate.
Node delays are negligible.
Propagation delay

Advantages?
Data
Disadvantages?

A B C D
Circuit switching Packet switching
 Circuit switching x Packet switching
Timing of events:
Queuing delay

Call request signal

Pkt 1
Pkt 2
Circuit Pkt 3
Propagation delay
establishment
Time
Time Transmission delay
Call accept
signal
Data

A B C D
A B C D
Circuit switching Packet switching
 Packet switching delays
Pkt 1
Transmission delay
Total delay from A to B
Propagation delay

Queuing delay + Processing

Pkt 1

What is the Throughput?

A B C

Packet switching
 Throughput
Pkt 1
Transmission delay
T = Total delay from A to B
Propagation delay

Queuing delay + Processing

Pkt 1

What is the Throughput?

L = size of packet (bits)

Throughtput = L / T
A B C

Packet switching
 Throughput
What else can impact the throughput?

- Packet losses
- The type of recovery mechanism

Pkt 1
Transmission delay
X
Propagation delay T = Total delay from A to B

Queuing delay + Processing

What is the Throughput?

L = size of packet (bits)

Throughput = L / T

As delay increases, the

A B throughput decreases
Impact of packet size
 Effect of packet size on transmission time
(figure 10.11, page 314 Stallings)

 Smallerpackets => higher service rate (or smaller

transmission times)

 Service rate on the outgoing link

 μ= Capacity (bits/sec)
Packet size (bits/packet)
Virtual Circuit Packet Switching
 Datagram packet switching
 No dedicated route for the conversation or
session

 Virtual Circuit Packet Switching

 Dedicated route for the conversation or
session
 Additional Call setup delay
Virtual Circuit switching (internal)
Timing of events: Call request signal

Circuit
establishment

Time
Call accept
signal
Pkt 1
Pkt 2 Data
Pkt 3

A B C D
Circuit switching

Packet switching
Virtual circuits (external)
 Logical path (or connections) between two
stations
Example: X.25 standard
Physical level – interface between station and
packet switched network
Link level – reliable data transfer across the physical
link (LAP-B)
Packet switching Network level – virtual circuit service, enables users
Network to set-up logical connections
Frame relay
 Designed to eliminate the overhead of X.25
 Virtual circuits or logical connections carried at
the link layer
 Call control signaling (separate)
 No hop-by-hop flow control (error and flow
control should be taken care by another higher
layer protocol