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Solution Manual To Chapter 08

Switching provides a practical solution to connecting multiple devices in a network. There are three main switching methods - circuit switching, packet switching, and message switching. Packet switching is the most common today and involves packetizing data and routing each packet independently through the network based on addressing information carried in each packet. Virtual circuit switching is a form of packet switching where packets follow pre-established paths defined by virtual circuits.

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2K views4 pages

Solution Manual To Chapter 08

Switching provides a practical solution to connecting multiple devices in a network. There are three main switching methods - circuit switching, packet switching, and message switching. Packet switching is the most common today and involves packetizing data and routing each packet independently through the network based on addressing information carried in each packet. Virtual circuit switching is a form of packet switching where packets follow pre-established paths defined by virtual circuits.

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Moeed Ali Khan
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© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
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CHAPTER 8 : Switching

Solutions to Review Questions

Review Questions

1. TSI (time-slot interchange) is the most popular technology in a time-division switch.


It used random access memory (RAM) with several memory locations. The RAM
fills up with incoming data from time slots in the order received. Slots are then sent
out in an order based on the decisions of a control unit.

2. In a space-division switch, the path from one device to another is spatially separate
from other paths. The inputs and the outputs are connected using a grid of electronic
microswitches. In a time-division switch, the inputs are divided in time using TDM.
A control unit sends the input to the correct output device.

3. There are two approaches to packet switching: datagram approach and


virtualcircuit approach.

4. In a circuit-switched network, data are not packetized; data flow is somehow a


continuation of bits that travel the same channel during the data transfer phase. In a
packet-switched network data are packetized; each packet is somehow an
independent entity with its local or global addressing information.

5. The three traditional switching methods are circuit switching, packet switching, and
message switching. The most common today are circuit switching and packet
switching.

6. The address field defines the virtual circuit number (local) addressing.

7. The address field defines the end-to-end (source to destination) addressing.

8. Switching provides a practical solution to the problem of connecting multiple devices


in a network. It is more practical than using a bus topology; it is more efficient than
using a star topology and a central hub. Switches are devices capable of creating
temporary connections between two or more devices linked to the switch.

9. In multistage switching, blocking refers to times when one input cannot be connected
to an output because there is no path available between them—all the possible
intermediate switches are occupied. One solution to blocking is to increase the
number of intermediate switches based on the Clos criteria.

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10. A packet switch has four components: input ports, output ports, the routing
processor, and the switching fabric. An input port performs the physical and data link
functions of the packet switch. The output port performs the same functions as the
input port, but in the reverse order. The routing processor performs the function of
table lookup in the network layer. The switching fabric is responsible for moving the
packet from the input queue to the output queue.

Exercises

12. When a packet arrives at a router in a datagram network, the only information in the
packet that can help the router in its routing is the destination address of the packet.
The table then is sorted to make the searching faster. Today’s routers use some
sophisticated searching techniques. When a packet arrives at a switch in a virtual-
circuit network, the pair (input port, input VCI) can uniquely determined how the
packet is to be routed; the pair is the only two pieces of information in the packet that
is used for routing. The table in the virtual-circuit switch is sorted based on the this
pair. However, since the number of port numbers is normally much smaller than the
number of virtual circuits assigned to each port, sorting is done in two steps: first
according to the input port number and second according to the input VCI.

13. A datagram or virtual-circuit network handles packetized data. For each packet, the
switch needs to consult its table to find the output port in the case of a datagram
network, and to find the combination of the output port and the virtual circuit
identifier in the case of a virtual-circuit network. In a circuit-switched network, data
are not packetized; no routing information is carried with the data. The whole path is
established during the setup phase.

14. According to Clos, n = (N/2)1/2 = 7.07. We can choose n = 8. The number of crossbars
in the first stage can be 13 (to have similar crossbars). Some of the input lines can be
left unused. We then have k = 2n − 1 = 15. Figure 8.3 shows the configuration.

We can calculate the total number of crosspoints as


13 (8 × 15) + 15 (13 × 13) + 13 (15 × 8) = 5655
The number of crosspoints is still much less than the case with one crossbar (10,000). We
can see that there is no blocking involved because each 8 input line has 15 intermediate
crossbars. The total number of crosspoints here is a little greater than the minimum
number of crosspoints according to Clos using the formula 4N[(2N)1/2 − 1], which is
5257.

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15.

a. If n > k, an n × k crossbar is like a multiplexer that combines n inputs into k outputs.


However, we need to know that a regular multiplexer discussed in Chapter 6 is n × 1.

b. If n < k, an n × k crossbar is like a demultiplexer that divides n inputs into k outputs.


However, we need to know that a regular demultiplexer discussed in Chapter 6 is 1 × n.
16.
a. In a circuit-switched network, end-to-end addressing is needed during the setup and
teardown phase to create a connection for the whole data transfer phase. After the
connection is made, the data flow travels through the already-reserved resources. The
switches remain connected for the entire duration of the data transfer; there is no need
for further addressing.
b. In a datagram network, each packet is independent. The routing of a packet is done
for each individual packet. Each packet, therefore, needs to carry an endto-end
address. There is no setup and teardown phases in a datagram network
(connectionless transmission). The entries in the routing table are somehow
permanent and made by other processes such as routing protocols.
First: (3200 Km) / (2 × 108 m/s) + (3 + 20 + 20) = 59.0 ms
Second: (11700 Km) / (2 × 108 m/s) + (3 + 10 + 20) = 91.5 ms
Third: (12200 Km) / (2 × 108 m/s) + (3 + 10+ 20 + 20) = 114.0 ms
Fourth: (10200 Km) / (2 × 108 m/s) + (3 + 7 + 20) = 81.0 ms
Fifth: (10700 Km) / (2 × 108 m/s) + (3 + 7 + 20 + 20) = 103.5 ms
c. In a virtual-circuit network, there is a need for end-to-end addressing during the setup
and teardown phases to make the corresponding entry in the switching table. The
entry is made for each request for connection. During the data transfer phase, each
packet needs to carry a virtual-circuit identifier to show which virtual-circuit that
particular packet follows.

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17.
Packet 1: 2
Packet 2: 3
Packet 3: 3
Packet 4: 2

18. The switching or routing in a datagram network is based on the final destination
address, which is global. The minimum number of entries is two; one for the final
destination and one for the output port. Here the input port, from which the packet has
arrived is irrelevant. The switching or routing in a virtual-circuit network is based on the
virtual circuit identifier, which has a local jurisdiction. This means that two different
input or output ports may use the same virtual circuit number. Therefore, four pieces of
information are required: input port, input virtual circuit number, output port, and output
virtual circuit number.

20. In circuit-switched and virtual-circuit networks, we are dealing with connections. A


connection needs to be made before the data transfer can take place. In the case of a
circuit-switched network, a physical connection is established during the setup phase and
the is broken during the teardown phase. In the case of a virtual-circuit network, a virtual
connection is made during setup and is broken during the teardown phase; the connection
is virtual, because it is an entry in the table. These two types of networks are considered
connection-oriented. In the case of a datagram network no connection is made. Any
time a switch in this type of network receives a packet, it consults its table for routing
information. This type of network is considered a connectionless network.
22.
a. In a datagram network, the destination addresses are unique. They cannot be
duplicated in the routing table.
b. In a virtual-circuit network, the VCIs are local. A VCI is unique only in relationship
to a port. In other words, the (port, VCI) combination is unique. This means that we
can have two entries with the same input or output ports. We can have two entries
with the same VCIs. However, we cannot have two entries with the same (port, VCI)
pair.

25.
Packet 1: 2, 70
Packet 2: 1, 45
Packet 3: 3, 11
Packet 4: 4, 41

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