ATM switches
All ATM switches have 2 common goals
- GOAL 1: Drop cells but only in emergencies - 1E-12 cell loss is permissible. This translates to 1 or 2 cells per hour.
- GOAL 2: Cells arriving at a switch in a particular order must leave in that order without exception.
PROBLEM: What does the switch do when the cells arriving at 2 or more input lines want to go to the same output port? (PTO)