CIRCUIT SWITCHING

(1)
https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/circuit-switching-in-computer-network/
Circuit Switching in Computer Network
In circuit switching network resources (bandwidth) are divided into pieces and bit
delay is constant during a connection. The dedicated path/circuit established
between sender and receiver provides a guaranteed data rate. Data can be
transmitted without any delays once the circuit is established.

Telephone system network is one of the example of Circuit switching. TDM (Time
Division Multiplexing) and FDM (Frequency Division Multiplexing) are two methods of
multiplexing multiple signals into a single carrier.

Frequency Division Multiplexing : Divides into multiple bands

Frequency Division Multiplexing or FDM is used when multiple data signals are
combined for simultaneous transmission via a shared communication medium.It is a
technique by which the total bandwidth is divided into a series of non-overlapping
frequency sub-bands,where each sub-band carry different signal. Practical use in
radio spectrum & optical fibre to share multiple independent signals.

Time Division Multiplexing : Divides into frames

Time-division multiplexing (TDM) is a method of transmitting and receiving
independent signals over a common signal path by means of synchronized switches at
each end of the transmission line. TDM is used for long-distance communication
links and bears heavy data traffic loads from end user.
Time division multiplexing (TDM) is also known as a digital circuit switched.
drawbacks:
Inefficient use of resources: Circuit switching requires the establishment of a
dedicated communication path between two nodes, which means that the resources
along that path, such as bandwidth and switch ports, are reserved for the duration
of the communication. This can result in inefficient use of resources, as the
resources may remain unused during periods of low or no communication.

Limited scalability: Circuit switching is not well-suited for large-scale networks

with many nodes, as it requires a dedicated communication path between each pair of
nodes. This can result in a high degree of complexity and difficulty in managing
the network.

Vulnerability to failures: Circuit switching relies on a dedicated communication

path, which can make the network vulnerable to failures, such as cable cuts or
switch failures. In the event of a failure, the communication path must be re-
established, which can result in delays or loss of data.

Delay and latency: Circuit switching requires the establishment of a dedicated

communication path, which can result in delay and latency in establishing the path
and transmitting data. This can impact the real-time performance of applications,
such as voice and video.

High cost: Circuit switching requires the reservation of resources, which can
result in a high cost, particularly in large-scale networks. This can make circuit
switching less practical for some applications.

Lack of flexibility: Circuit switching is not flexible as it only allows one type
of communication at a time, such as voice or data. This can limit the ability of
users to perform multiple tasks simultaneously.

Limited mobility: Circuit switching is not well-suited for mobile devices or nodes
that move frequently, as it requires the establishment of a dedicated communication
path. This can result in communication disruptions or dropped calls.

Limited capacity: Circuit switching can have limited capacity as it requires the
establishment of a dedicated communication path between two nodes. This can limit
the number of simultaneous communications that can occur.

High setup time: Circuit switching requires a significant setup time to establish
the dedicated communication path between two nodes. This can result in delays in
initiating communication.

No prioritization: Circuit switching does not provide any mechanism for

prioritizing certain types of traffic over others. This can result in delays or
poor performance for time-critical applications, such as voice or video.

Advantages of Circuit Switching:

It has the following advantages :

The main advantage of circuit switching is that a committed transmission channel is

established between the computers which give a guaranteed data rate.
In-circuit switching, there is no delay in data flow because of the dedicated
transmission path.
Reliability: Circuit switching provides a high level of reliability since the
dedicated communication path is reserved for the entire duration of the
communication. This ensures that the data will be transmitted without any loss or
corruption.
Quality of service: Circuit switching provides a guaranteed quality of service,
which means that the network can prioritize certain types of traffic, such as voice
and video, over other types of traffic, such as email and web browsing.
Security: Circuit switching provides a higher level of security compared to packet
switching since the dedicated communication path is only accessible to the two
communicating parties. This can help prevent unauthorized access and data breaches.
Ease of management: Circuit switching is relatively easy to manage since the
communication path is pre-established and dedicated to a specific communication.
This can help simplify network management and reduce the risk of errors.
Compatibility: Circuit switching is compatible with a wide range of devices and
protocols, which means that it can be used with different types of networks and
applications. This makes it a versatile technology for various industries and use
cases.
Disadvantages of Circuit Switching:
It has the following disadvantages :

It takes a long time to establish a connection.

More bandwidth is required in setting up dedicated channels.
It cannot be used to transmit any other data even if the channel is free as the
connection is dedicated to circuit switching.
Limited Flexibility: Circuit switching is not flexible as it requires a dedicated
circuit between the communicating devices. The circuit cannot be used Waste of
Resources for any other purpose until the communication is complete, which limits
the flexibility of the network.
Waste of Resources: Circuit switching reserves the bandwidth and network resources
for the duration of the communication, even if there is no data being transmitted.
This results in the wastage of resources and inefficient use of the network.
Expensive: Circuit switching is an expensive technology as it requires dedicated
communication paths, which can be costly to set up and maintain. This makes it less
feasible for small-scale networks and applications.
Susceptible to Failure: Circuit switching is susceptible to failure as it relies on
a dedicated communication path. If the path fails, the entire communication is
disrupted. This makes it less reliable than other networking technologies, such as
packet switching.
Not suitable for bursty traffic: Circuit switching is not suitable for bursty
traffic, where data is transmitted intermittently at irregular intervals. This is
because a dedicated circuit needs to be established for each communication, which
can result in delays and inefficient use of resources.
Formulas in Circuit Switching :

Transmission rate = Link Rate or Bit rate /

no. of slots = R/h bps
Transmission time = size of file /
transmission rate
= x / (R/h) = (x*h)/R second
Total time to send packet to destination =
Transmission time + circuit setup time
Question on Circuit switching –
These questions will help you understand circuit switching

Example 1 : How long it takes to send a file of ‘x bits’ from host A to host B over
a circuit switched network that uses TDM with ‘h slots’ and have a bit rate of ‘R
Mbps’, circuit establish time is k seconds.Find total time?

Explanation :
Transmission rate = Link Rate or Bit rate / no. of slots = R/h bps
Transmission time = size of file/ transmission rate = x / (R/h) = (x*h)/R

Total time = transmission time + circuit setup time = (x*h)/R secs + k secs

Example 2 : If a link transmits F frames/sec and each slot has B bits then find the
transmission rate?

Explanation :
Since it is not mention how many slots in each frame we take one frame has one
slot.
The transmission rate is the amount of data sent in 1 second.
Transmission rate = F * B bits/sec

References :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circuit_switching
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frequency-division_multiplexing
(2)
https://www.techtarget.com/searchnetworking/definition/circuit-switched
What is circuit switching?
Circuit switching is a type of network configuration in which a physical path is
obtained and dedicated to a single connection between two endpoints in the network
for the duration of a dedicated connection. Ordinary voice phone service uses
circuit switching. This reserved circuit is used for the duration of a call. As
long as the call lasts, the circuit cannot be used for anything else.

In circuit switching, the bandwidth and data transmission rate are fixed. Circuit
switching is connection-oriented, meaning a physical connection between hosts is
required for it to work.

What is circuit switching used for?

Examples of where circuit switching is used include the following:
Continuous connections. Circuit switching is used for connections that must be
continuous for long periods of time, such as long-distance communication.
Traditional telephone systems -- i.e., landlines -- are an example of a technology
that uses circuit switching.
Dial-up network connections. When computers connect to the internet via a dial-up
service, it uses the public switched network. With dial-up, Internet Protocol (IP)
data packets are carried over a circuit-switched telephone network.
Optical circuit switching. Data center networks also use circuit switching. Optical
circuit switching is used to scale traditional data centers and meet growing
bandwidth requirements.
What are the phases of circuit switching?
These are the three main phases of circuit switching:

Connection establishment. Also called call setup, this phase establishes a

dedicated circuit between two communicating endpoints. The parties send a message
back and forth acknowledging the established connection. There are usually
intermediate links or switches between the two parties.
Data transfer. Data -- usually voice -- is transmitted from the source to the
destination. The connection remains intact for the length of the interaction.
Connection relinquishment. This is also called the teardown phase. At the end of
the interaction, one of the two endpoints sends a message initiating a
disconnection. The communication path, including the intermediate links, is
terminated.
How do packet-switched and circuit-switched networks differ?
The main difference between packet-switched vs. circuit-switched networks is that
circuit-switched networks are connection-oriented and packet-switched networks are
connectionless. Voice over IP is a telephony protocol that uses packet switching.

In packet switching, information is broken into data packets that are sent through
the network independently of one another. There is no fixed, dedicated channel as
there is in circuit switching. Instead, packets are sent over a network that other
hosts share. Transmission also is not continuous.
Some packet-switched networks, such as X.25, have switched virtual circuits.
Virtual circuit switching establishes a dedicated connection using packet-switching
technology. A virtual circuit-switched connection is a dedicated, logical
connection that enables multiple virtual circuit connections to share a physical
path.

Packet switching does not reserve all the bandwidth for a connection in advance.
Because of that, it is more energy-efficient. One drawback to packet switching is
that transmission quality can be poor because there can be lost or dropped packets.

What are the advantages of circuit-switched networks?

The advantages of circuit-switched networks include the following:

Dedicated channel. Circuit-switched networks reserve a dedicated communications

channel circuit that only the two endpoints can access.
Reliable. A dedicated circuit between two hosts for the duration of that connection
decreases the potential for data loss or other reliability problems.
Security. Circuit-switched networks are more secure than packet-switched networks
due to having only two communicating parties on a dedicated circuit.
Quality. Once a connection is established, this type of network generally has a
consistent connection quality without delays in data flow.
What are the disadvantages of circuit-switching?
The drawbacks of using a circuit-switched network include the following:

Limited use. Circuit-switched networks can only be used for voice communication and
aren't available for other types of connections.
Inefficient. When a circuit is continuously reserved even when it's not in use,
network bandwidth is wasted.
Inflexible. A dedicated channel can only be used for circuit-switched network
traffic and nothing else. And, if there aren't enough dedicated channels, calls can
fail.
Higher cost. A dedicated channel costs more per use.
Latency. Extra time is required to establish a connection before data is sent.
The takeaway
Circuit switching is the foundation of traditional telecommunication systems and
landlines. Packet switching is the basis of the modern internet. Each has
advantages and disadvantages. And, sometimes, they overlap -- for example, when a
packet switching network emulates circuit-switching technology and establishes a
connection-oriented method of data transfer.

Today, the internet and most phone services rely on packet switching. But most
legacy networks were designed for circuit-switched traffic. New optical routing
architecture could help close this gap.

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Circuit switching is a connection-oriented network switching technique. Here, a
dedicated route is established between the source and the destination and the
entire message is transferred through it.

Phases of Circuit Switch Connection

Circuit Establishment : In this phase, a dedicated circuit is established from the
source to the destination through a number of intermediate switching centres. The
sender and receiver transmits communication signals to request and acknowledge
establishment of circuits.

Data Transfer : Once the circuit has been established, data and voice are
transferred from the source to the destination. The dedicated connection remains as
long as the end parties communicate.

Circuit Disconnection : When data transfer is complete, the connection is

relinquished. The disconnection is initiated by any one of the user. Disconnection
involves removal of all intermediate links from the sender to the receiver.

Diagrammatic Representation of Circuit Switching in Telephone

The following diagram represents circuit established between two telephones
connected by circuit switched connection. The blue boxes represent the switching
offices and their connection with other switching offices. The black lines
connecting the switching offices represents the permanent link between the offices.
When a connection is requested, links are established within the switching offices
as denoted by white dotted lines, in a manner so that a dedicated circuit is
established between the communicating parties. The links remains as long as
communication continues.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Circuit Switching

Advantages
It is suitable for long continuous transmission, since a continuous transmission
route is established, that remains throughout the conversation.

The dedicated path ensures a steady data rate of communication.

No intermediate delays are found once the circuit is established. So, they are
suitable for real time communication of both voice and data transmission.

Disadvantages
Circuit switching establishes a dedicated connection between the end parties. This
dedicated connection cannot be used for transmitting any other data, even if the
data load is very low.

Bandwidth requirement is high even in cases of low data volume.

There is underutilization of system resources. Once resources are allocated to a

particular connection, they cannot be used for other connections.

Time required to establish connection may be high.

(4)
https://byjus.com/physics/circuit-switching/
What Is Circuit Switching?
Circuit switching is defined as

The switching technique is a connection-oriented network that is divided into

pieces and has a dedicated path established between the sender and receiver
providing a guaranteed data rate.
Types of Switches in Circuit Switching
There are two types of switches that are used in circuit switching, and they are:

Space Division Switches

In space division switching, the paths in the circuit are separated from each
other. The main purpose of the space division was for the analog network. However,
it is used for both analog and digital switching. A switch known as a crosspoint is
used in space division switches. It finds applications in digital communication and
uses semiconductor gates.

The advantage of a space-division switch is that it is instantaneous and the

disadvantage is the number of crosspoints is dependent on the blocking.

Time-Division Switches
In the time-division switching method, the number of connections travels along the
same trunk line. The breaking of the streams into segments takes place with the
help of time-division multiplexing, making sure that the segments are sent at
specific intervals. The detection of the elements happens with the help of a de-
multiplexer.
Frequently Asked Questions – FAQs
Q1
What are the methods to move data through a network of links and switches?
The two methods to move data through a network of links and switches are packet
switching and circuit switching. Packet switching is used in conventional LAN
systems, and circuit switching is used in telephonic systems.

Q2
What is switching?
Switching is defined as transferring data packets from the source to the
destination by sending them from one port to another.

Q3
What are different types of switching techniques?
There are three different types of switching techniques:

Circuit switching
Message switching
Packet switching
Q4
Name the switches that are used in circuit switching.
The following are the switches that are used in circuit switching:
Space Division Switches
TDM Bus
Time Domain Switches