Question

Explain the basic differences between circuit switching and packet switching for a wide area network (WAN).

Short Essay Question

Answer 1

Switching is the method by which various communicating devices are connected in order to transfer files among these communicating devices.

There are 2 methods of switching:

a) Circuit Switching

b) Packet Switching

The orientation in circuit switching mainly depends on orientation of connection but the orientation in packet switching is connectionless type.

When it was getting designed the main purpose of circuit switching was for communication through voice while the main purpose of packet switching was for transmission of data.

There is no flexibility in the circuit switching. All the components follow the same path which was fixed in the beginning. They cannot create any path by their own. But, the packet switching are of flexible type because a path is getting created for travelling of each packets of datas to reach its destination. Hence, it is flexible type.

The messages which are sent by the sender are received in the same order as it was sent in the circuit switching. But, it is not received in the same order in the case of packet switching. Here the messages are received in random manner and then assembled at the receiving station.

At the physical layer, the implementation of circuit switching is done while the packet switching is done at the network layer.

Most of the bilateral traffic are handled by packet switching while it doesn't depend on traffic but depends upon time and distance of the travelling of data or message in case of circuit switching.