TELEPHONE NETWORK
Telephone networks use circuit switching. The telephone network had its beginnings in the late 1800s. The entire network, which is referred to as the plain old telephone system (POTS), was originally an analog system using analog signals to transmit voice. With the advent of the computer era, the network, in the 1980s, began to carry data inaddition to voice. During the last decade, the telephone network has undergone many technical changes. The network is now digital as well as analog.
Major Components there are three major components these are The telephone network, is made of three major components:
local loops, trunks, and switching offices. The telephone network has several levels of
switching offices such as end offices, tandem offices, and regional offices.
Local Loops
One component of the telephone network is the local loop, a twisted-pair cable that connects the subscriber telephone to the nearest end office or local central office. The local loop, when used for voice, has a bandwidth of 4000 Hz (4 kHz). It is interesting to examine the telephone number associated with each local loop. The first three digits of a local telephone number define the office, and the next four digits define the local loop number.
Trunks
Trunks are transmission media that handle the communication between offices. A trunk normally handles hundreds or thousands of connections through multiplexing. Transmission is usually through optical fibers or satellite links.
Switching Offices
To avoid having a permanent physical link between any two subscribers, the telephone company has switches located in a switching office. A switch connects several local loops or trunks and allows a connection between different subscribers.
LATAs
After the divestiture of 1984 (see Appendix E), the United States was divided into more than 200 local-access transport areas (LATAs). The number of LATAs has increased since then. A LATA can be a small or large metropolitan area. A small state may have one single LATA; a large state may have several LATAs. A LATA boundary may overlap the boundary of a state; part of a LATA can be in one state, part in another state.
Intra-LATA Services
The services offered 'by the common carriers (telephone companies) inside a LATA are called intra-LATA services. The carrier that handles these services is called a local exchange carrier (LEC). Before the Telecommunications Act of 1996 (see Appendix E), intra-LATA services were granted to one single carrier. This was a monopoly. After 1996, more than one carder could provide services inside a LATA. The carder that provided services before 1996 owns the cabling system (local loops) and is called the incumbent local exchange carrier (ILEC). The new carriers that can provide services are called competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs). To avoid the costs of new cabling, it was agreed that the ILECs would continue to provide the main services, and the CLECs would provide other services such as mobile telephone service, toll calls inside a LATA, and so on. Communication inside a LATA is handled by end switches and tandem switches. A call that can be completed by using only end offices is considered toll-free. A call that
has to go through a tandem office (intra-LATA toll office) is charged.Intra-LATA services are provided by local -exchange carriers. Since 1996, there are two types of LECs: incumbent local exchange carriers and competitive local exchange carriers.
switching offices such as end offices, tandem offices, and regional offices.
Local Loops
One component of the telephone network is the local loop, a twisted-pair cable that connects the subscriber telephone to the nearest end office or local central office. The local loop, when used for voice, has a bandwidth of 4000 Hz (4 kHz). It is interesting to examine the telephone number associated with each local loop. The first three digits of a local telephone number define the office, and the next four digits define the local loop number.
Trunks
Trunks are transmission media that handle the communication between offices. A trunk normally handles hundreds or thousands of connections through multiplexing. Transmission is usually through optical fibers or satellite links.
Switching Offices
To avoid having a permanent physical link between any two subscribers, the telephone company has switches located in a switching office. A switch connects several local loops or trunks and allows a connection between different subscribers.
LATAs
After the divestiture of 1984 (see Appendix E), the United States was divided into more than 200 local-access transport areas (LATAs). The number of LATAs has increased since then. A LATA can be a small or large metropolitan area. A small state may have one single LATA; a large state may have several LATAs. A LATA boundary may overlap the boundary of a state; part of a LATA can be in one state, part in another state.
Intra-LATA Services
The services offered 'by the common carriers (telephone companies) inside a LATA are called intra-LATA services. The carrier that handles these services is called a local exchange carrier (LEC). Before the Telecommunications Act of 1996 (see Appendix E), intra-LATA services were granted to one single carrier. This was a monopoly. After 1996, more than one carder could provide services inside a LATA. The carder that provided services before 1996 owns the cabling system (local loops) and is called the incumbent local exchange carrier (ILEC). The new carriers that can provide services are called competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs). To avoid the costs of new cabling, it was agreed that the ILECs would continue to provide the main services, and the CLECs would provide other services such as mobile telephone service, toll calls inside a LATA, and so on. Communication inside a LATA is handled by end switches and tandem switches. A call that can be completed by using only end offices is considered toll-free. A call that
has to go through a tandem office (intra-LATA toll office) is charged.Intra-LATA services are provided by local -exchange carriers. Since 1996, there are two types of LECs: incumbent local exchange carriers and competitive local exchange carriers.
Inter-LATA Services
The services between LATAs are handled by interexchange carriers (IXCs). These carders, sometimes called long-distance companies, provide communication services between two customers in different LATAs. After the act of 1996 (see Appendix E), these services can be provided by any carder, including those involved in intra-LATA services. The field is wide open. Carders providing inter-LATA services include AT&T, MCI, WorldCom, Sprint, and Verizon. The IXCs are long-distance carriers that provide general data communications services including telephone service. A telephone call going through an IXC is normally digitized, with the carders using several types of networks to provide service.
Points of Presence
As we discussed, intra-LATA services can be provided by several LECs (one ILEC and possibly more than one CLEC). We also said that inter-LATA services can be provided by several IXCs. How do these carriers interact with one another? The answer is, via a switching office called a point of presence (POP). Each IXC that wants to provide interLATA services in a LATA must have a POP in that LATA. The LECs that provide services inside the LATA must provide connections so that every subscriber can have access to all POPs. Figure 9.3 illustrates the concept. A subscriber who needs to make a connection with another subscriber is connected first to an end switch and then, either directly or through a tandem switch, to a POP. The call now goes from the POP of an IXC (the one the subscriber has chosen) in the source LATA to the POP of the same IXC in the destination LATA. The call is passed through the toll office of the IXC and is carried through the network provided by the IXC.
Signaling
The telephone network, at its beginning, used a circuit-switched network with dedicated links (multiplexing had not yet been invented) to transfer voice communication. As we saw in Chapter 8, a circuit-switched network needs the setup and teardown phases to establish and terminate paths between the two communicating parties. In the beginning, this task was performed by human operators. The operator room was a center to which all subscribers were connected. A subscriber who wished to talk to another subscriber picked up the receiver (off-hook) and rang the operaton The operator, after listening to the caller and getting the identifier of the called party, connected the two by using a wire with two plugs inserted into the corresponding two jacks. A dedicated circuit was created in this way. One of the parties, after the conversation ended, informed the operator to disconnect the circuit. This type of signaling is called in-band signaling because the same circuit can be used for both signaling and voice communication. Later, the signaling system became automatic. Rotary telephones were invented that sent a digital signal defining each digit in a multidigit telephone number. The switches in the telephone companies used the digital signals to create a connection between the caller and the called parties. Both in-band and out-of-band signaling were used. In in-band signaling, the 4-kHz voice channel was also used to provide signaling. In out-of-band signaling, a portion of the voice channel bandwidth was used for signaling; the voice bandwidth and the signaling bandwidth were separate. As telephone networks evolved into a complex network, the functionality of the signaling system increased. The signaling system was required to perform other tasks such as
1. Providing dial tone, ring tone, and busy tone
2. Transferring telephone numbers between offices
3. Maintaining and monitoring the call
4. Keeping billing information
5. Maintaining and monitoring the status of the telephone network equipment
6. Providing other functions such as caller ID, voice mail, and so on These complex tasks resulted in the provision of a separate network for signaling. This means that a telephone network today can be thought of as two networks: a signaling network and a data transfer network. The tasks of data transfer and signaling are separated in modern telephone networks: data transfer is done by one network, signaling by another.
However, we need to emphasize a point here. Although the two networks are separate, this does not mean that there are separate physical links everywhere; the two networks may use separate channels of the same link in parts of the system. Data Transfer Network The data transfer network that can carry multimedia information today is, for the most part, a circuit-switched network, although it can also be a packet-switched network. This network follows the same type of protocols and model as other networks discussed in this book.
Signaling Network
The signaling network, which is our main concern in this section, is a packet-switched network involving the layers similar to those in the OSI model or Internet model, nature of signaling makes it more suited to a packet-switching network with different layers. For example, the information needed to convey a telephone address can easily be encapsulated in a packet with all the error control and addressing information.
Signaling System Seven (SS7)
The protocol that is used in the signaling network is called Signaling System Seven (SS7). It is very similar to the five-layer Internet model
Physical Layer: MTP Level 1 The physical layer in SS7 called message transport part (MTP) level 1 uses several physical layer specifications such as T-1 (1.544 Mbps) and DC0 (64 kbps).
Data Link Layer: MTP Level 2 The MTP level 2 layer provides typical data link layer services such as packetizing, using source and destination address in the packet header, and CRC for error checking.
Network Layer: MTP Level 3 The MTP level 3 layer provides end-to-end connectivity by using the datagram approach to switching. Routers and switches route the signal packets from the source to the destination.
Transport Layer: SCCP The signaling connection control point (SCCP) is used for special services such as 800-call processing.
Upper Layers: TUP, TCAP, and ISUP There are three protocols at the upper layers. Telephone user port (TUP) is responsible for setting up voice calls. It receives the dialed digits and routes the calls. Transaction capabilities application port (TCAP) provides remote calls that let an application program on a computer invoke a procedure on another computer. ISDN user port (ISUP) can replace TUP to provide services similar to those of an ISDN network.
Services Provided by Telephone Networks
Telephone companies provide two types of services: analog and digital. Analog Services In the beginning, telephone companies provided their subscribers with analog services. These services still continue today. We can categorize these services as either analog switched services or analog leased services. Analog Switched Services This is the familiar dial-up service most often encountered when a home telephone is used. The signal on a local loop is analog, and the bandwidth is usually between 0 and 4000 Hz. A local call service is normally provided for a flat monthly rate, although in some LATAs, the carder charges for each call or a set of calls. The rationale for a non flat-rate charge is to provide cheaper service for those customers who do not make many calls. A toll call can be intra-LATA or inter-LATA. If the LATA is geographically large, a call may go through a tandem office (toll office) and the subscriber will pay a fee for the call. The inter-LATA calls are long-distance calls and are charged as such. Another service is called 800 service. If a subscriber (normally an organization) needs to provide free connections for other subscribers (normally customers), it can request the 800 service. In this case, the call is free for the caller, but it is paid by the callee. An organization uses this service to encourage customers to call. The rate is less expensive than that for a normal long-distance call. The wide-area telephone service (WATS) is the opposite of the 800 service. The latter are inbound calls paid by the organization; the former are outbound calls paid by the organization. This service is a less expensive alternative to regular toll calls; charges are based on the number of calls. The service can be specified as outbound calls to the same state, to several states, or to the whole country, with rates charged accordingly. The 900 services are like the 800 service, in that they are inbound calls to a sub- scriber. However, unlike the 800 service, the call is paid by the caller and is normally much more expensive than a normal long-distance call. The reason is that the carrier charges two fees: the first is the long-distance toll, and the second is the fee paid to the callee for each call.
Analog Leased Service
An analog leased service offers customers the opportunity to lease a line, sometimes called a dedicated line, that is permanently connected toanother customer. Although the connection still passes through the switches in the telephone network, subscribers experience it as a single line because the switch is always closed; no dialing is needed.
Digital Services
Recently telephone companies began offering digital services to their subscribers. Digital services are less sensitive than analog services to noise and other forms of interference. The two most common digital services axe switched/56 service and digital data service (DDS). Switched/56 Service Switched/56 service is the digital version of an analog switched line. It is a switched digital service that allows data rates of up to 56 kbps. To communivative through this service, both parties must subscribe. A caller with normal telephone service cannot connect to a telephone or computer with switched/56 service even if the caller is using a modem. On the whole, digital and analog services represent two completely different domains for the telephone companies. Because the line in a switched/ 56 service is already digital, subscribers do not need modems to transmit digital data. However, they do need another device called a digital service unit (DSU). Digital Data Service Digital data service (DDS) is the digital version of an analog
leased line; it is a digital leased line with a maximum data rate of 64 kbps.
Points of Presence
As we discussed, intra-LATA services can be provided by several LECs (one ILEC and possibly more than one CLEC). We also said that inter-LATA services can be provided by several IXCs. How do these carriers interact with one another? The answer is, via a switching office called a point of presence (POP). Each IXC that wants to provide interLATA services in a LATA must have a POP in that LATA. The LECs that provide services inside the LATA must provide connections so that every subscriber can have access to all POPs. Figure 9.3 illustrates the concept. A subscriber who needs to make a connection with another subscriber is connected first to an end switch and then, either directly or through a tandem switch, to a POP. The call now goes from the POP of an IXC (the one the subscriber has chosen) in the source LATA to the POP of the same IXC in the destination LATA. The call is passed through the toll office of the IXC and is carried through the network provided by the IXC.
Signaling
The telephone network, at its beginning, used a circuit-switched network with dedicated links (multiplexing had not yet been invented) to transfer voice communication. As we saw in Chapter 8, a circuit-switched network needs the setup and teardown phases to establish and terminate paths between the two communicating parties. In the beginning, this task was performed by human operators. The operator room was a center to which all subscribers were connected. A subscriber who wished to talk to another subscriber picked up the receiver (off-hook) and rang the operaton The operator, after listening to the caller and getting the identifier of the called party, connected the two by using a wire with two plugs inserted into the corresponding two jacks. A dedicated circuit was created in this way. One of the parties, after the conversation ended, informed the operator to disconnect the circuit. This type of signaling is called in-band signaling because the same circuit can be used for both signaling and voice communication. Later, the signaling system became automatic. Rotary telephones were invented that sent a digital signal defining each digit in a multidigit telephone number. The switches in the telephone companies used the digital signals to create a connection between the caller and the called parties. Both in-band and out-of-band signaling were used. In in-band signaling, the 4-kHz voice channel was also used to provide signaling. In out-of-band signaling, a portion of the voice channel bandwidth was used for signaling; the voice bandwidth and the signaling bandwidth were separate. As telephone networks evolved into a complex network, the functionality of the signaling system increased. The signaling system was required to perform other tasks such as
1. Providing dial tone, ring tone, and busy tone
2. Transferring telephone numbers between offices
3. Maintaining and monitoring the call
4. Keeping billing information
5. Maintaining and monitoring the status of the telephone network equipment
6. Providing other functions such as caller ID, voice mail, and so on These complex tasks resulted in the provision of a separate network for signaling. This means that a telephone network today can be thought of as two networks: a signaling network and a data transfer network. The tasks of data transfer and signaling are separated in modern telephone networks: data transfer is done by one network, signaling by another.
However, we need to emphasize a point here. Although the two networks are separate, this does not mean that there are separate physical links everywhere; the two networks may use separate channels of the same link in parts of the system. Data Transfer Network The data transfer network that can carry multimedia information today is, for the most part, a circuit-switched network, although it can also be a packet-switched network. This network follows the same type of protocols and model as other networks discussed in this book.
Signaling Network
The signaling network, which is our main concern in this section, is a packet-switched network involving the layers similar to those in the OSI model or Internet model, nature of signaling makes it more suited to a packet-switching network with different layers. For example, the information needed to convey a telephone address can easily be encapsulated in a packet with all the error control and addressing information.
Signaling System Seven (SS7)
The protocol that is used in the signaling network is called Signaling System Seven (SS7). It is very similar to the five-layer Internet model
Physical Layer: MTP Level 1 The physical layer in SS7 called message transport part (MTP) level 1 uses several physical layer specifications such as T-1 (1.544 Mbps) and DC0 (64 kbps).
Data Link Layer: MTP Level 2 The MTP level 2 layer provides typical data link layer services such as packetizing, using source and destination address in the packet header, and CRC for error checking.
Network Layer: MTP Level 3 The MTP level 3 layer provides end-to-end connectivity by using the datagram approach to switching. Routers and switches route the signal packets from the source to the destination.
Transport Layer: SCCP The signaling connection control point (SCCP) is used for special services such as 800-call processing.
Upper Layers: TUP, TCAP, and ISUP There are three protocols at the upper layers. Telephone user port (TUP) is responsible for setting up voice calls. It receives the dialed digits and routes the calls. Transaction capabilities application port (TCAP) provides remote calls that let an application program on a computer invoke a procedure on another computer. ISDN user port (ISUP) can replace TUP to provide services similar to those of an ISDN network.
Services Provided by Telephone Networks
Telephone companies provide two types of services: analog and digital. Analog Services In the beginning, telephone companies provided their subscribers with analog services. These services still continue today. We can categorize these services as either analog switched services or analog leased services. Analog Switched Services This is the familiar dial-up service most often encountered when a home telephone is used. The signal on a local loop is analog, and the bandwidth is usually between 0 and 4000 Hz. A local call service is normally provided for a flat monthly rate, although in some LATAs, the carder charges for each call or a set of calls. The rationale for a non flat-rate charge is to provide cheaper service for those customers who do not make many calls. A toll call can be intra-LATA or inter-LATA. If the LATA is geographically large, a call may go through a tandem office (toll office) and the subscriber will pay a fee for the call. The inter-LATA calls are long-distance calls and are charged as such. Another service is called 800 service. If a subscriber (normally an organization) needs to provide free connections for other subscribers (normally customers), it can request the 800 service. In this case, the call is free for the caller, but it is paid by the callee. An organization uses this service to encourage customers to call. The rate is less expensive than that for a normal long-distance call. The wide-area telephone service (WATS) is the opposite of the 800 service. The latter are inbound calls paid by the organization; the former are outbound calls paid by the organization. This service is a less expensive alternative to regular toll calls; charges are based on the number of calls. The service can be specified as outbound calls to the same state, to several states, or to the whole country, with rates charged accordingly. The 900 services are like the 800 service, in that they are inbound calls to a sub- scriber. However, unlike the 800 service, the call is paid by the caller and is normally much more expensive than a normal long-distance call. The reason is that the carrier charges two fees: the first is the long-distance toll, and the second is the fee paid to the callee for each call.
Analog Leased Service
An analog leased service offers customers the opportunity to lease a line, sometimes called a dedicated line, that is permanently connected toanother customer. Although the connection still passes through the switches in the telephone network, subscribers experience it as a single line because the switch is always closed; no dialing is needed.
Digital Services
Recently telephone companies began offering digital services to their subscribers. Digital services are less sensitive than analog services to noise and other forms of interference. The two most common digital services axe switched/56 service and digital data service (DDS). Switched/56 Service Switched/56 service is the digital version of an analog switched line. It is a switched digital service that allows data rates of up to 56 kbps. To communivative through this service, both parties must subscribe. A caller with normal telephone service cannot connect to a telephone or computer with switched/56 service even if the caller is using a modem. On the whole, digital and analog services represent two completely different domains for the telephone companies. Because the line in a switched/ 56 service is already digital, subscribers do not need modems to transmit digital data. However, they do need another device called a digital service unit (DSU). Digital Data Service Digital data service (DDS) is the digital version of an analog
leased line; it is a digital leased line with a maximum data rate of 64 kbps.
0 responce(s):
Post a Comment