Trends for 1999: Interworking between frame relay and IP networks

In our last few newsletters we've discussed frame relay directions for the new year that include higher-speed backbone and access services. Another hot item will be the interworking of frame relay and IP networks.

Trend 5-Gateway services between frame relay and IP networks will become widespread because of the rise in popularity of IP virtual private networks (VPN) and of course, the Internet. Such services are already offered by a few carriers, such as AT&T, and MCI Worldcom's offering is scheduled to go live this month.

Here's how we envision the interworking actually being put together. Assume that there's an IP service -- either an IP VPN or Internet service -- in use by your company, and that your company also runs vanilla frame relay permanent virtual circuit (PVC) services between a number of sites. In the carrier network, the IP traffic bound for a destination on the frame relay network gets concentrated to one or more sites. At these sites, routers (or a routing function) also know the IP addresses at the ends of the frame relay PVCs. These routers take the IP traffic and put the IP traffic into a PVC. At the other end of the PVC, the IP traffic is like all of the other IP traffic in the router to which the frame relay PVC is attached. Thus, in some ways, the interworking is more of a tunneling effect.

An alternative would be to unpack the IP packets and put the native information into frame relay frames. But this seems useless since most of the frame relay traffic is already IP --- and that percentage certainly isn't decreasing.

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Steven Taylor, consultant and broadband packet evangelist, and Joanie Wexler, an independent networking technology editor and writer, team up to bring you this analysis and commentary. Taylor specializes in education and market analysis, and Wexler adds incisive reporting and research. For more detailed information on most of the topics discussed in this newsletter, connect to www.webtorials.com, the first Web site dedicated exclusively to market studies and technology tutorials in the Broadband Packet areas of Frame Relay, ATM, and IP. Feedback and additional topic ideas are welcome. Please contact taylor@webtorials.com or joanie_wexler@mindspring.com.

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