Gigabit local area networks: a systems perspective

A broad overview of gigabit local area networks (LANs) is presented from a systems perspective. Motivations and technical goals of gigabit LANs and challenges of coping with highly bursty traffic and large bandwidth mismatches between network links are described. The focus is on concerns unique to gigabit LANs, especially issues that differentiate them from gigabit wide area networks (WANs), metropolitan area networks (MANs), and lower-speed LANs. Major systems issues are discussed, and possible solutions, such as the virtual-connection architecture, are presented. The hardware technology required by gigabit LANs is illustrated by SONET components.<
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