SERVICE-SPECIFIC CONTROL ARCHITECTURES FOR ATM

The concept of a service-specific control architecture (SSCA) in an AT M environment is presented, sere, a control architecture denotes the o ut-of-band control and management mechanisms operational in a network or virtual network (or part thereof), An SSCA can use knowledge about the applications it serves to make better use of network resources, an d thus provide a more efficient service. Such a control architecture c an be designed to provide only the subset of control functions require d by the applications it serves, thereby greatly reducing its complexi ty. The switchlet mechanism, which allows more than one control archit ecture to be operational simultaneously within the same network, enabl es the use of service-specific control architectures, Implementation w ork is presented to illustrate the use of switchlets and SSCA's. This includes both an environment which uses switchlets to dynamically crea te virtual networks, and an SSCA used to provide video- and audioconfe rencing facilities in an ATM environment.