FIBERKIT: a Datakit compatible 500 megabit virtual circuit switch

A 500 Mb, low-latency data network is demonstrated. This network, called FIBERKIT, is designed to allow large numbers of workstations, file servers, and supercomputers to interact at high speeds. FIBERKIT uses the same virtual circuit switch technology developed for Datakit, but is built around an optical backplane to obtain much higher speeds. The basic FIBERKIT architecture can be scaled using existing technology to support bandwidths in excess of 10 Gb/s and switching speeds greater than 50 million packets per second. FIBERKIT will allow users to build large LANs, MANs and WANs (local, metropolitan, and wide area networks) , at very high speed, that are secure, robust, and easy to maintain. The authors consider the performance characteristics of FIBERKIT, some of the technology making it possible, and techniques for fully utilizing FIBERKIT and Datakit in distributed computing environments.<>