Understanding Frame Relay Presentation by Jeff K Esquibel

Understanding Frame Relay Presentation by Jeff K. Esquibel

Presentation Overview Frame Relay Benefits Frame Relay Components Understanding Frame Relay Services Competing Technologies Frame Relay’s Market Success Future Competition Frame Relay Vs. ATM Frame Relay Vs. IP Co-Existence Frame Relay’s Continued Success

Benefits of Frame Relay Savings over Private Lines – Reduces number of dedicated devices which reduces equipment costs – Reduces complexity for network managers Greater Bandwidth Flexibility than Private Lines Higher Reliability and Resiliency than Private Lines Lower Cost of Ownership and Better Bandwidth Utilization – Growth of Branch Office Networks

Benefits of Frame Relay (cont’d) Consolidation of LAN, SNA, On-net Voice, and/or Packetized Video Simplifies Network Architecture – Reduces Operations and Administrative Costs – Improves Application Performance and Network Efficiency Smooth migration to ATM – Service and Network Interworking with ATM (FRF. 5 and FRF. 8) –

Frame Relay Basics: Terms And Definitions User to Network Interface (UNI) – Network to Network Interface (NNI) – A pre-defined VC Switched Virtual Circuit (SVC) – The connection between two frame relay ports Permanent Virtual Circuit (PVC) – Specifies signaling and management functions between two frame relay networks Virtual Circuit (VC) – Specifies signaling and management functions between a frame relay network device and the end user’s device A VC that is established dynamically Data Link Connection Identifier (DLCI) – Virtual Circuit Identification Number

Differences between PVCs And SVCs PVCs – Staticly Defined at Configuration, Unless PVC Parameters Need to be Modified – Connection is Always Configured Whether There is Information to Send or Not SVCs – Dynamically Established When There is Information to Send (Call-by-Call Basis) – Connection is Released When There is No More Information to Send

Benefits Of SVCs Simplified Network Design, Particularly for Large and Highly Meshed Networks – Scalable Network Design – Provisioning N*(N-1)/2 Connections Not Required Easier to Maintain and Manage Supports Any-to-Any Connectivity

Benefits Of SVCs Can Offer a More Cost-Effective Solution – Pay Based on Usage: Call Length, Bandwidth Used, Number of Frames Sent, Etc. – Only Pay When Using the Network Offers a Migration Path to PVCs – Locations Already Have Connections to the Frame Relay Network – Can Easily Transition to PVCs as Traffic Volumes Increase

How Does Frame Relay Work? Frame Relay Structure

Frame Relay Terms And Definitions (cont’d) Committed Information Rate (CIR) – The bandwidth defined for a VC Bc = Committed Burst – Maximum number of committed bits to be transmitted over time interval Be = Excess Burst – Number of Excess bits that will be transmitted over time Tc Time interval – Time measurement based how much bandwidth is available for data to burst on to the network

Frame Relay Terms And Definitions (cont’d) FECN Forward Explicit Congestion Notification – Bit set by the network node (FR Switch) that is experiencing congestion – Sent in the direction of the receiver (destination) BECN Backward Explicit Congestion Notification – Bit set by the network node that is experiencing congestion – Sent in the direction of the sender (source) DE Discard Eligible bit – Set by either the DTE (access device FRAD, router etc. ) or the network nodes (switches) – May be set selectively by some DTE devices – May be set by network nodes in the event the user has exceeded CIR and the network is experiencing congestion

Frame Relay Components NNI UNI Frame Relay Network DCE PVC DTE DCE SVC DCE DTE Frame Relay Network

Service Comparison Private Lines (TDM) Frame Relay Engineer Network for Peak Traffic Needs Engineer Network for Average Traffic Needs CSU/DSU per Leased Line per remote site CSU/DSU per Leased Line that can access many remote sites Time Division Multiplexing Statistical Multiplexing and Burst Capability Resiliency is Not Inherent Resiliency is Inherent in Network

Networking for the New Millennium Frame Relay

Frame Relay’s Market Success - U. S. $9. 6 B $10. 4 B (in $Ms) PL Revs: Source: Vertical Systems Group - 1997 $10. 9 B $11. 3 B $11. 8 B

Frame Relay’s Market Success International $10. 3 B $12. 2 B (in $Ms) PL Revs: Source: Vertical Systems Group - 1997 $12. 6 B $13. 1 B $13. 5 B

Market Forecast by WAN Technology Leased Lines $27. 7 B $22. 6 B Frame Relay $6. 8 B $3. 9 B Network Service Market Worldwide 1997 and 2000 Estimates X. 25 $2. 7 B $2. 6 B ATM $1. 6 B SMDS $. 242 B $. 128 B $. 167 B Sources: Vertical Systems Group 1997 and Data Comm 1998 Forecast

Frame Relay Complements Other Technologies Application Technology LAN & SNA Data & On-net Voice Data, On-net Voice & Packetized Video FR, SMDS, ATM FR, ATM Dedicated or Dial FR Dial Remote Access or Dial FR Technology < 1. 5 Mbps FR 1. 5 - 45 Mbps FR, ATM >45 Mbps FR or ATM Speeds ATM Interworking HQ Regional Sites Remote Sites Mobile Workers & Telecommuters Agreement FR - ATM FRF. 5 and FRF. 8 FR - SMDS SIP

Technology Comparison

The Competitive Road Ahead ATM / Frame Relay Battle Joined By IP – Deployment of VPDNs (i. e. Intra/Extranets) Power IP adoption for Businesses Majority of End Users Migrating Private Line Networks Will Look to Frame Relay and IP – Legacy Applications Demanding Frame Relay Performance; New Applications a Result of IP Features and Benefits Frame Relay at the Edge, ATM at the Core Frame Relay Transport for IP Services

High Speed IP Environments Solutions/Technologies Outside Frame Relays’ Intended Scope are Servicing the Very High Speed IP Environments and Campus Backbone – IP Over SONET Offers Users a Simple and Efficient High Speed Transport Option for IP at OC-3 and Greater Speeds – Gigabit Ethernet Delivers the Mass Bandwidth Many Campus Backbones Operating in a Pure Data Environment Require

Co-Existence Frame Relay ATM IP VPN’s, Intranet, Extranet, etc. Even as Buying Decisions Move Away from Underlying Connectivity, Frame Relay will Continue to Play a Major Role In Service Delivery

Summary Frame Relay is Widely Accepted and Deployed, Building Upon its Own Momentum Frame Relay’s Longevity and Visibility as a Technology is Fostered by its Ability to Co-exist and Complement Legacy as well as Emerging Technologies Standards Continue to Evolve to Meet Changing End User Environments and Requirements Frame Relay Will Continue to Play an Integral Part in Layer 2 Connectivity Accelerated Growth in Frame Relay Implementations is Expected to Continue Market Maturity of ATM and IP Still Years Away

Frame Relay Reference Material Frame Relay Forum Web page www. frforum. com Data Communications Magazine www. datacomm. com Network World www. nwfusion. com Internet Week (formerly Comm. Week) www. internetwk. com Black, Uyless. Frame Relay Networks: Specifications and Implementations. 2 nd ed. New York: Mc. Graw-Hill, 1996. Smith, Philip. Frame Relay: Principles and Applications Wokingham, England: Addison. Wesley, 1995.

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