Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM)

Issues Driving LAN Changes

Traffic Integration
Voice, video and data traffic Multimedia became the buzz word
One-way batch Two-way batch One-way interactive Two-way interactive Web traffic voice messages Mbone broadcasts video conferencing

Quality of Service guarantees (e.g. limited jitter, non-blocking streams) LAN Interoperability Mobile and Wireless nodes

Stallings High-Speed Networks

Stallings High-Speed Networks

Voice

ATM Adaptation Layers

A/D AAL

s1 , s2
Digital voice samples

cells

Video
A/D

picture frames

Compression compressed frames

AAL cells

Data
Bursty variable-length packets

AAL

cells

Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM)

Voice Data packets Images MUX
Wasted bandwidth

TDM

4
ATM

`
4 3 1 3 2 2 1

ATM
ATM standard (defined by CCITT) is widely accepted by common carriers as mode of operation for communication particularly BISDN. ATM is a form of cell switching using small fixedsized packets.
Basic ATM Cell Format
5 Bytes Header 48 Bytes Payload

ATM Conceptual Model Four Assumptions

1. ATM network will be organized as a hierarchy.
Users equipment connects to networks via a UNI (UserNetwork Interface). Connections between provided networks are made through NNI (Network-Network Interface).

2. ATM will be connection-oriented.

A connection (an ATM channel) must be established before any cells are sent.

Private UNI

Private ATM network

X
Private NNI

Public ATM network A

X
NNI Public UNI

X
B-ICI Public ATM network B

X
Public UNI

Figure 9.5

ATM Connections
two levels of ATM connections: virtual path connections virtual channel connections indicated by two fields in the cell header: virtual path identifier VPI virtual channel identifier VCI

ATM Virtual Connections

Virtual Paths Physical Link

Virtual Channels

ATM Conceptual Model Assumptions

3. Vast majority of ATM networks will run on optical fiber networks with extremely low error rates. 4. ATM must support low cost attachments.
This decision lead to a significant decision to prohibit cell reordering in ATM networks. ATM switch design is more difficult.

UNI Cell Format

GFC (4 bits) VPI (4 bits) ATM cell header VPI (4 bits) VCI (4 bits) VCI (8 bits)

VCI (4 bits)

PT (3 bits) HEC (8 bits)

CLP (1 bit)

Payload (48 bytes)

ATM Cell Switching

1

Switch

voice 67 video 67 data 39

1
2 3

video 25

voice 32

25 32 32 61

N 1 3 2

75
67 39 67

6 data 32

video 61

video 75

VP3 a b c d e
ATM Sw 1 ATM DCC

VP5
ATM Sw 2

a
ATM Sw 3

b c

VP2
VP1

Sw = switch

ATM Sw 4

d e

Digital Cross Connect Only switches virtual paths

ATM Protocol Architecture

ATM Adaptation Layer (AAL) the protocol for packaging data into cells is collectively referred to as AAL. Must efficiently package higher level data such as voice samples, video frames and datagram packets into a series of cells. Design Issue: How many adaptation layers should there be?

Management plane Plane management Control plane User plane Layer management

Higher layers

Higher layers

ATM adaptation layer

ATM layer

Physical layer

User information

User information

AAL
ATM PHY ATM PHY ATM PHY

AAL ATM PHY

End system
Network End system

Original ATM Architecture

CCITT envisioned four classes of applications (A-D) requiring four distinct adaptation layers (1-4) which would be optimized for an application class:
A. B. C. D. Constant bit-rate applications CBR Variable bit-rate applications VBR Connection-oriented data applications Connectionless data application

ATM Architecture
An AAL is further divided into:
The Convergence Sublayer (CS) manages the flow of data to and from SAR sublayer. The Segmentation and Reassembly Sublayer (SAR) breaks data into cells at the sender and reassembles cells into larger data units at the receiver.

Original ATM Architecture

ATM layer

Transmission convergence sublayer

Physical layer
Physical medium dependent sublayer

Physical medium

Original ATM Architecture

The AAL interface was initially defined as classes A-D with SAP (service access points) for AAL1-4. AAL3 and AAL4 were so similar that they were merged into AAL3/4. The data communications community concluded that AAL3/4 was not suitable for data communications applications. They pushed for standardization of AAL5 (also referred to as SEAL the Simple and Efficient Adaptation Layer). AAL2 was not initially deployed.

Revised ATM Architecture

Revised ATM Service Categories

Class Description Example

CBR
RT-VBR

Constant Bit Rate

Real Time Variable Bit Rate

T1 circuit
Real-time videoconferencing

NRT-VBR
ABR UBR

Non-real-time Variable Bit Rate

Available Bit Rate Unspecified Bit Rate

Multimedia email
Browsing the Web Background file transfer

QoS, QoS , PVC PVC, , and SVC

Quality of Service (QoS) requirements are handled at connection time and viewed as part of signaling. ATM provides permanent virtual connections and switched virtual connections.
Permanent Virtual Connections (PVC)

Switched Virtual Connections (SVC) set up and released on demand by the end user via signaling procedures.

permanent connections set up manually by network manager.

AAL Services
Service
Timing between Source and Destination

Class A

Class B

Class C

Class D

Related

Not Related

Bit Rate
Connection Mode

Constant
Connection Oriented Circuit Emulation Constant Bit Rate Video and Audio AAL 1

Variable Connectionle ss Connectionoriented Data Transfer AAL 3/4 AAL 5 Connectionles s Date Transfer AAL3/4 AAL 5

Examples of Services

Variable Bit Rate Video and Audio

AAL TYPE

AAL 2

Supports Class A traffic, i.e., constant bit rate data with specific requirements for delay, delay jitter, and timing, e.g., PCM voice, CBR video, and emulation of Tcarrier circuits (DS1, DS3) Receives constant bit rate stream with a well defined clock from source and delivers the same to the destination Provides for timing recovery (using SRTS), synchronization, and indication of lost information not recovered by AAL1 Summary of AAL 1 functions Segmentation and reassembly of user information Handling of cell delay variation Handling of cell payload assembly delay Handling lost and misinserted cells Recovery of sending clock frequency at receiver Checking and handling AAL PCI (header) error

AAL Type 1 Protocol

AAL Type 1 SARSAR-PDU

Consists of 1 octet header (PCI) and 47 octets of payload Sequence Number (SN): A 1-bit Convergence Sublayer Indication and 3-bit sequence count to detect deletion or misinsertion of cells Sequence Number Protection (SNP): 3-bit CRC with even parity for detecting and correcting SN error
4 bits SN 4 bits SNP 47 Octets SAR-PDU Payload

AAL Type 1 Sequence Number and Sequence Number Protection The 4 bit RTS is transferred by the CSI bit in successive SAR-PDU headers with an odd SN (SN = 1, 3, 5, 7) For P format operations, the CSI value in SAR-PDU headers with an even SN (SN = 0, 2, 4, 6) is set to 1
1 bit Convergence Sublayer Indication (CSI) 3 bits Sequence Number (SN)

3 bit Cyclic Redundancy Check

1 bit Even Parity

AAL 1
Higher layer User data stream

b1

b2

b3

Convergence sublayer

CS PDUs
47 47 47

SAR PDUs SAR sublayer

H H H

1 47

1 47

1 47

ATM layer

ATM Cells
48

48

48

AAL Type 1 CS PDU

Two CS PDU formats Non-P format: No CS header (CS PCI), 47 octet user information for transfer of unstructured data such as circuit emulation of full DS1 or DS3 P format: 1 octet header (Structure Pointer SP), and 46 octet user information for transfer of octet-aligned data such as N x 64 kbps (e.g., fractional DS1) services
47 Octets AAL User Information CS-PDU Non-P Format
1-Octet SP 46 Octets AAL User Information

CS-PDU P Format

AAL Type 2 Protocol

Designed to support Class B (VBR) traffic Supports variable bit rate data where a strong timing relationship between source and destination is required, e.g., VBR audio and video Data passed to AAL2 from higher layers at the source at fixed intervals and must be passed to the destination at the same rate The amount of data passed to AAL2 may vary with each transfer Supports voice compression and silence suppression Supports idle voice channel deletion Supports multiple user channels with varying bandwidth on a single ATM connection

AAL Type 2 Voice Application Examples

PBX-to-PBX trunking for compressed voice ATM trunking on public-switched telephone network ATM backbone for cellular systems and personal communications services (PCS) ATM backbone connectivity to packet telephone

PBXPBX -to to-PBX Connectivity

PBX PCM Voice Compression Silence Suppression Packetization AAL ATM PHY

PBX PCM Voice Compression Silence Suppression Packetization AAL ATM PHY

ATM Network

AAL Type 2 Packets

AAL2 provides bandwidth-efficient transmission of lowrate, short, and variable-size packets for delay sensitive applications AAL2 uses one ATM connection between two points to carry packets from multiple native connections The ATM payloads from successive cells of the ATM connection are used as a byte stream on which packets from different native channels, called logical link channels (LLCs), are packed without regard to the cell boundaries A channel identification (CID) field is used in the packet header to identify the LLC to which a packet belongs A length indicator (LI) field is used to identify the boundaries of variable-length LLC packets

AAL Type 2 Protocol Sublayers

Service Specific Convergence Sublayer (SSCS)

Common Part Sublayer (CPS)

AAL 2 Common Part Sublayer

Defines an end-to-end AAL connection as a concatenation of AAL2 channels Each AAL2 channel is a bi-directional virtual channel, with the same channel identifier value for both directions AAL2 channels are established over an ATM layer PVC, SPVC, or SVC Provides basic structure for identifying the users of the AAL Assembling/disassembling the variable payload associated with each individual user Error detection and correction Multiplexing multiple AAL channels (merging multiple streams of CPS packets) onto a single ATM connection Provides QoS through the choice of AAL-SAP for data transfer

AAL 2 Structure
AAL-SAP

Service Specific Convergence Sublayer (SSCS)

SSCS-PDU Header (if present)

SSCS-PDU Payload SSCS-PDU

SSCS-PDU Trailer (if present)

Packet Header (PH)

Packet Payload (PP) Packet

Common Part Sublayer (CPS)

Start Field (STF)

CPS-PDU Payload CPS-PDU

ATM-SAP

ATM Layer

Cell Header

Cell Payload

Format of AAL2 Packet

CID 8 bits
LI 6 bits UUI 5 bits HEC 5 bits

Information 1 to 45/64 octets

Packet Payload (PP)

Packet Header (PH)

Packet

Channel Identification (CID): Uniquely identifies the individual user channel (LLC) within the AAL2, and allows up to 248 (8 - 255) individual users within each AAL2 structure. Length Indicator (LI): Identifies the length of the LLC packet associated with each individual user, and assures conveyance of variable payload. User-to User Indication (UUI): Provides a link between CPS and an appropriate SSCS that satisfies the higher layer application. Different SSCS protocols may be defined to support specific AAL2 user services, or groups of services. The SSCS may also be null.

Format of AAL2 CPSCPS-PDU

Cell Header 5 octets OSF 6 bits SN 1 bit P 1 bit CPS Information CPS-PDU Payload PAD 0 to 47 octets

Start Field

CPS -PDU

Packets are combined into CPS-PDU payload The Offset Field (OSF) identifies the location of the start of the remaining length of the packet that possibly started in the preceding cell and is continuing in the current cell Data integrity is protected by the Sequence Number (SN) The Start Field is protected from error by a Parity bit (P) When it is necessary to transmit a partially filled cell to limit packet emission delay, the remainder of the cell is padded with all zero octets

AAL 2 Service Specific Convergence Sublayer

SSCS is the link between the AAL2 CPS and the higher layer applications of the individual AAL2 users Standards for SSCS are being developed in ITU-T and ATM Forum A null SSCS satisfies most mobile voice applications

AAL Type 3/4 Protocol

Supports variable bit rate data where there is no timing relationship between source and destination, e.g., X.25, frame relay, and TCP/IP data Supports Class C (connection-oriented) and Class D (connectionless) traffic Convergence sublayer divided into two parts: Common Part Convergence Sublayer (CPCS) Service Specific Convergence Sublayer (SSCS) SSCS layer may provide assured or non-assured services, or may be null Assured service provides retransmission of missing or corrupted SSCS-PDUs and flow control is mandatory AAL-SDUs may be lost or corrupted for non-assured service and flow control is optional CPCS provides message mode or streaming mode services

AAL Type 3/4 Protocol Sublayers

Service Specific Convergence Sublayer (SSCS) Common Part Convergence Sublayer (CPCS)
Segmentation and Reassembly Sublayer (SAR)

AAL Type 3/4 CPCSCPCS-PDU

1 1 2 0-3 1 1 2

CPI

Btag BASize

CPCS-PDU Payload

PAD

AL

Etag Length

4-octet header and 4-octet trailer CPI Common Part Indicator Btag Beginning Tag BASize Buffer Allocation Size PAD Padding AL Alignment Etag End Tag Length Length of CPCS-PDU Payload

AAL Type 3/4 SARSAR-PDU

2 bits ST

4 bits SN

10 bits MID

352 bits SAR-PDU Payload

6 bits LI

10 bits CRC-10

2-octet header, 44-octet payload, and 2-octet trailer

ST Segment Type SN Sequence Number MID Multiplexing Identifier LI Length Indication CRC-10 CRC Code

AAL Type 5 Protocol

AAL5 is a simple and efficient AAL (SEAL) to perform a subset of the functions of AAL3/4 The CPCS-PDU payload length can be up to 65,535 octets and must use PAD (0 to 47 octets) to align CPCS-PDU length to a multiple of 48 octets
PAD Padding CPCS-UU CPCS User-to-User Indicator CPI Common Part Indicator Length CPCS-PDU Payload Length CRC-32 Cyclic Redundancy Chuck
0 - 47 CPCS-PDU Payload PAD 1 CPCS UU 1 CPI 2 Length 4 CRC-32

AAL Type 5 SARSAR-PDU

CPCS-SDU

CPCS-PDU

CPCS-PDU Payload

PAD

CPCS-PDU Trailer

SAR-PDU Payload SAR-PDU

SAR-PDU Payload SAR-PDU

SAR-PDU Payload SAR-PDU

SAR-PDU Payload SAR-PDU

SAR-PDU Payload SAR-PDU

AAL Type 5 Protocol

The CPCS-PDU is divided into 48 octets SAR-PDUs Since CPCS-PDU is 48-octet aligned, there is no need for a length field in the SAR-PDU The AAL5 SAR-PDU is 48 octets of data with no overhead of SAR-PDU header or trailer The PTI field of the cell header identifies the beginning or end of the CPCS-PDU PTI = 0X1: End-of-Message (EOM) PTI = 0X0: Beginning-of-Message (B0M), or Continuationof-Message (COM)

ATM NETWORKS
Public ATM Network:
Provided by public telecommunications carriers (e.g., AT&T, MCI WorldCom, and Sprint) Interconnects private ATM networks Interconnects remote non-ATM LANs Interconnects individual users

Private ATM Network:

Owned by private organizations Interconnects low speed/shared medium LANs (e.g., Ethernet, Token Ring, FDDI) as a backbone network Interconnects individual users as the front-end LAN for high performance or multimedia applications
50

Switches in the middle

End systems of ATM

51

Voice

File Server

FDDI Ethernet
Video Edge Switch

PBX

FDDI Ethernet

Private ATM Network

Public ATM Network

Private ATM Switch

Mainframe Computer

Token Ring

Edge Switch Edge Switch

Edge Switch

Mainframe Computer Token Ring

PBX

FDDI
Voice

Video

Ethernet

Video

52

ATM Interfaces
Private UNI P-NNI Private ATM WAN Public UNI

Public ATM Network

B-ICI

Private ATM LAN

Public ATM Network

53

How ATM Works?

ATM is connection-oriented -- an end-to-end connection must be established and routing tables setup prior to cell transmission Once a connection is established, the ATM network will provide endto-end Quality of Service (QoS) to the end users All traffic, whether voice, video, image, or data is divided into 53-byte cells and routed in sequence across the ATM network Routing information is carried in the header of each cell Routing decisions and switching are performed by hardware in ATM switches Cells are reassembled into voice, video, image, or data at the destination
54

User Applications
Voice Video Data

User Applications
Voice Video Data

BISDN Services

BISDN Services

Segmentation

Reassembly

Multiplexing

Demultiplexing
H

Workstation
H

Workstation

ATM Network

H H

55