ADTRAN ATLAS, User Manual

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61200263L1-1.1 ATLAS Frame Relay User Manual 1-1
Chapter 1
Introducing ATLAS Frame
Relay
FRAME RELAY OVERVIEW
Frame relay is a packet-switched service that allows efficient transfer of
bursty traffic in a wide area network (WAN) environment (see also Frame Re-
lay on page 2-3). It offers lower-cost data transfer, when compared to typical
point-to-point applications, by using virtual connections within the frame
relay network and by combining those connections into a single physical
connection at each location. Frame relay providers use a frame relay switch
to route the data on each virtual circuit to the appropriate destination.
Figure 1-1 and Figure 1-2 illustrate a conversion from a typical point-to-
point application to a frame relay application.
Figure 1-1. Typical Point-to-Point Circuit
Router
Router
Router
Router
PBX
PBX
PBX
PBX
Long Haul DDS
DDS
DDS