Use of Link-by-Link Flow Control in Maximizing ATM Network Performance: Simulation Results

Simulations have been performed to verify the effectiveness of using link-by-link flow controlled virtual channels for maximizing ATM network performance. A simulator which accurately reflects the real hardware design of a flow controlled ATM switch is used. The switch is currently under joint development by BNR and Harvard. The simulation results clearly demonstrate that the flow control mechanism is able to provide sufficiently rapid feedback to allow a network to adapt to load changes and maximize its performance. The simulations also show that, when compared to VCs using other traffic management approaches, flow controlled virtual circuits are efficient in terms of buffer usage and in point-to-multipoint multicast implementations.

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