An Overview of the Defense Switched Network CONUS Architecture for the Mid 1990s

Recent analyses performed by the Defense Communications Agency (DCA) have concluded that the existing AUTOVON is no longer the most advantageous network for fulfilling the requirements of the military users. A new architecture has been developed which better relates to the needs of the military user in the mid-1990s, readily integrates with other military communications upgrade programs, incorporates ISDN capabilities, and provides the best economical solution. The proposed architecture is known as the Defenese Switched Network (DSN). Although the DSN is a worldwide network, this paper addresses the CONUS portion, which consists of a Virtual Private Line Network (VPLN) as the predominant element, augmented with a smaller Private Line Network (PLN).