ATM PROTOCOL

Contents Introduction to ATM

Protocol Reference Model

Physical Layer
Functionalities Sublayers Protocol Specifications

ATM Layer
Functionalities Sublayers Protocol Specifications

ATM Adaptation Layer (AAL)

Functionalities Sublayers Protocol Specifications

DCW

ATM-Protocol-1

ASYNCHRONOUS TRANSFER MODE

Asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) is a packet switching transfer mode in which the information is organized into cells. It is asynchronous in the sense that the recurrence of cells containing information from an individual user is not necessarily periodic. ATM is a method of formatting, multiplexing, transporting and switching user information in fixed length (53 bytes) cells. The user information may be voice, data, or video. ATM is a connection-oriented technique. The connection can be set up either using signaling or manually. Signalling and user information are carried on separate ATM layer connections.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-2

WHY SMALL AND FIX-SIZED CELLS?

The choice of small cells is a compromise between the needs of data transfer and voice applications. Data transfer applications are better served with long cells which reduce the overhead and have better bandwidth efficiency. However, long cells take long time to transmit and may suffer larger delay variation. Voice and video applications require low delay and low delay variation (i.e., delay jitter). Thus, voice and video applications prefer small cells. ATM network has to support data transfer applications as well as voice and video applications, and ATM network will operate at high bandwidth. Thus, the choice is small cells. Fix-sized cells provide the following advantages: Less delay variation (i.e., no delay variation due to cell size variation). Better and easier cell synchronization. Easier switch buffer management. Better fit to self-routing switching mechanism.

The choice of 53 byte cells is a standards-body comprise. Europeans wanted a 32-byte cell with header, North Americans wanted a 64-byte cell with a header The compromise is 48 bytes (i.e., (32+64)/2) with a 5-byte header.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-3

ATM TRANSPORT NETWORK MODEL

Broadband-Integrated Service Digital Network (B-ISDN) is a transport network using ATM technology. An ATM end-to-end connection consists of an end device that receives higher layer information and generate ATM cells, ATM switches and cross-connects that switch the ATM cells, another end device that receives the ATM cells and passes the information to the higher layer, and the physical transmission links that connect these devices. The endto-end connection is called a virtual channel connection (VCC), or called a virtual circuit. It is called virtual, because unlike the circuit switching technique where a physical circuit is dedicated to a connection, ATM connections share the networks physical resources Network layering and layer-to-layer relationship are as follows:
Virtual Channel Level Virtual Path Level Virtual Channel Connection VC Link

ATM Layer

Virtual Path Connection VP Link

Transmission Path

Physical Layer

Transmission Path Level Digital Section Level Regeneration Section Level Digital Section

Regeneration Section

End Point Connecting Point

DCW

ATM-Protocol-4

ATM TRANSPORT NETWORK MODEL

(CONTINUE)
The transport network model divides the network into two layers: ATM layer and physical layer. The physical layer provides services to the ATM layer, which in turn provides services to the upper layer, the ATM adaptation layer. Each layer is further subdivided into levels. Each level consists of four transport elements: (1) connection, (2) link, (3) connecting point, and (4) endpoint. Links are concatenated to form a connection. A connection is identified by two end-points. Endpoints are located at the boundary between two levels where information is exchanged and transport service is provided to the next higher layer. An example is terminal equipment corresponding to the endpoint in the VClevel connection. Another example is a VC switch which corresponds to the endpoint in the VP-level connection. A virtual channel identifier (VCI) identifies a particular VC link for a given VP connection. A VC link is originated or terminated by the assignment or removal of the VCI value in the cells. VC routing is performed at the VC connecting point (e.g., VC switch or VC cross-connect), which translates the VCI values of the incoming VC links into the VCI values of the outgoing VC links. A virtual channel connection (VCC) is established by concatenating VC links. At the VCC endpoint, the cell information field is exchanged between the ATM layer and the user of the ATM layer service (i.e., AAL). At the VC connecting point, the VP connection (VPC) supporting the incoming VC links are terminated first and a new VPC is created. A virtual path identifier (VPI) identifies a collection of VC links that share the same VPC. A VP link is originated or terminated by the assignment or removal of the VPI value in the cells. VP routing is performed at the VP connecting point (e.g., VP cross connect, VP switch), which translates the VPI values of the incoming VP links into the VPI values of the outgoing VP links.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-5

A virtual path connection (VPC) is established by concatenating VP links. At the VPC endpoint, the VPC is terminated and the VCIs are originated, translated, or terminated. The physical layer is subdivided into three levels: transmission path level, digital section level, and regeneration section level. A transmission path is defined between points where the ATM layer accesses the physical layer. The end points of a transmission path perform functions, such as cell delineation (i.e., to find out the beginning of the cell), cell header error control, and assembly and disassembly of the payload of the transmission system (e.g., SONET payload). A digital section extends between network elements that assemble and disassemble continuous bit streams. A regeneration section is between two points of signal regeneration. An example is between two repeaters.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-6

ATM PROTOCOL REFERENCE MODEL

In the ATM protocol architecture, three layers are specified. They are (1) physical layer, (2) ATM layer, and (3) ATM adaptation layer.

Physical layer provides the physical transport of the ATM cells. Functions performed include cell delineation, header error control, insertion and removal of cells from the physical medium ATM layer is common to all services and provides cell transfer functionalities, such as VC/VP (virtual circuit/ virtual path) routing and multiplexing. ATM adaptation layer (AAL) is service independent and supports higher layer functions of user, control, and management functionalities, such as cell segmentation and reassembly, timing control, flow control. The boundary between the ATM layer and the AAL corresponds to the boundary between functions in the cell header and functions in the cell information field. ATM protocol separates control and information transfer functions. During VCC setup, only the control plane is active, and during the data transfer, only the user plane is active.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-7

Higher Layer

Cell Relay Service

CBR Services

Low Bit Rate Voice

SMDS SIP L3

SNMP ILMI

Video Frame MPEG Relay TS

Q.2931

B-ISUP MTP3

PNNI

ATM Adaptation Layer

AAL3/4

Null

SSCS

AAL5

AAL0

AAL1

AAL2

CS SAR

Null

SSCS CPS

CPCS SAR

SAR

CPCS SAR

ATM Layer

ATM Cell

Physical Layer

Direct Mapping

PLCP T3

Direct Mapping

TAXI Block

Fibre Channel Block

25.6Mb/s Private UNI

PMD

TC

T1

T3

SONET STS-1

SONET STS-3C SDH STM-1

SONET STS-12C SDH STM-3

FDDI PMD

Fibre Channel PMD

Twisted Pair Cable PMD

DCW

ATM-Protocol-8

SAAL

Null SSCS SSCS CPCS

SSCF SSCF SSCF SSCOP

ATM INFORMATION TRANSPORT

User/ Edge switch User/ Edge switch

Switch/Network

Higher Layer AAL ATM Layer Physical Layer ATM Layer Physical Layer

Higher Layer AAL ATM Layer Physical Layer

To achieve high speed transport capability, the ATM network offers minimum functions required to transfer cells. Inside the network, functions performed by the switches for user data transport are limited at ATM layer. AAL functions are provided by the user end devices or the edge switches of the network. In another word, at the user end devices or the edge switches, the higher layer data is adapted into ATM payload by the ATM adaptation layer (AAL) and ATM cells are generated. Inside the network, the switches only examine the ATM cell header and perform ATM layer functions to be discussed later. The information field is transported transparently.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-9

ATM PHYSICAL LAYER

Physical Layer Functionalities Sublayers Protocols SONET DS-3 DS-1

(OC-3, OC-12, OC48, OC192)

DCW

ATM-Protocol-10

PHYSICAL LAYER FUNCTIONALITY

The main function of the physical layer is to transport the ATM cells accurately to the destination. Functions performed by the physical layer include: cell rate decoupling: The transmit side physical layer adapts the cell rate arriving from the ATM layer by inserting unassigned or idle cells when assigned cell are not available from the ATM layer. The receive side receives and filters unassigned and idle cells. header error control (HEC) sequence generation/verification The transmit side physical layer generate the HEC value, and the receive side verifies the header accuracy by using HEC. cell delineation The receive side identifies the boundary of the cells. transmission frame adaptation Mapping ATM cells into and from the transmission frame payload. transmission frame generation/recovery Generation and recovery the transmission frames. bit timing Keeping the bit timing in sync with the timing source. line coding Encoding and decoding the bits according the line code adopted. physical medium (electrical, optical, etc.)

DCW

ATM-Protocol-11

PHYSICAL LAYER - SUBLAYERS

Two Sub-Layers: Transmission Convergence (TC): This sublayer performs physical layer convergence protocol functions, such as mapping of the ATM cells to the transmission systems used, cell delineation. Functions performed by this sublayer vary according to the physical media used. Physical Media Dependent sublayer (PMD): This sublayer is responsible for accurate transmission and reception of bits on the physical medium. Examples of physical media are: SONET (single mode fiber) DS-3 Multimode Fiber Twisted pair wire

DCW

ATM-Protocol-12

SONET STS-3C PHYSICAL LAYER FUNCTIONS

The physical layer consists of the physical media dependent sublayer (PMD) and the transmission convergence sublayer (TC). TC sublayer functions are divided into (1) B-ISDN specific TC sublayer functions and (2) B-ISDN independent functions. B-ISDN independent functions are the SDH (or SONET) related functions.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-13

TC SUBLAYER FUNCTIONS
1. HEC (header error control) generation/verification - HEC is the last octet of the header and protects the header. - At the receiver, there are two modes of operation: - single-bit error correction - multiple-bit error detection, and errored cell discard 2. Cell scrambling and descrambling Cell payload is scrambled before transmission and descrambled by the receiver. Scrambling increases randomization of the cell payload to - avoid continuous non-variable bit pattern - improve the efficiency of the cell delineation algorithm 3. Cell mapping Aligning by row, the byte structure of every cell with the byte structure of the SONET-3C payload capacity (Synchronous Payload Envelope, SPE). The entire STS-3c payload capacity is filled with cells. 4. Cell delineation Identification of cell boundaries. It uses HEC field in the cell header.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-14

CELL MAPPING TO STS-3C SPE

Each STS-3c frame consists of 9 rows and 270 columns, i.e., 9*270=2430 octets. The first 9 columns are the section and line overheads. Each frame is repeated every 125 seconds (i.e., 8000/second). ATM cells are mapped into SONET STS-3c payload directly as following:

STS-3c signal rate: 9 x (9+261) x 8 / 125sec =155.52 Mb/s STS-3c payload rate: 9 x 260 x 8 /125sec = 149.76 Mb/s SONET Efficiency = 149.76/155.52 = 96.3% 149.76 Mb/s x (48/53) 135.63 Mb/s ATM cell payload capacity

DCW

ATM-Protocol-15

SONET OVERHEAD BYTES

Overhead
A1, A2 C1

Coding

Definition

A1:11110110, A2: 00101000 Framing bytes 00000001-0000001000000011 BIP-8 STS-1 identifier (ID)

B1

Section error monitoring (previous STS-3) Line error monitoring New data flag (indicates change in pointer value) Pointer value

B2 H1 (bits 1-4 )

BIP-24 (STS-3c) 0110 (norm), 1001 (act)

H1-H2 (bits 7-16) H1*, H2* B3 C2

0000000000 -1100001110

10010011, 11111111 BIP-8 C2=00010011 if ATM C2=00010101 if FDDI

Concatenation indication Path error monitoring Path signal label

J1

Path trace

In 1996, ITU-T had renamed the three C1 bytes and changed their functions. The first C1 byte is now denoted as J0 byte and is used as section trace. The second and third C1 bytes are denoted as z0 bytes, and the functions are not defined. The J0 byte is used to transmit repetitively a Section Access Point Identifier so that a section receiver can verify its continued connection to the intended transmitter.1

1.

ITU-T G.707, Network node interface for the synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH), March 1996.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-16

CELL DELINEATION
The TC sublayer uses HEC field to identify the cell boundaries. Cell payload is scrambled to improve security and robustness of the HEC cell delineation mechanism. The cell delineation algorithm is as follows:

The Cell Delineation Process is: 1) In the HUNT state, the delineation is performed by checking bit by bit whether the HEC coding law is respected for the assumed header field. Once such an agreement is reached, it is assumed that one header has been found, and the method enters the PRESYNC state. 2) The process repeats until the encoding law has been confirmed DELTA times consecutively. 3) In the SYNC state, the cell delineation will be assumed to be lost if the HEC coding law is recognized incorrectly ALPHA times consecutively. Default value for ALPHA = 7, for DELTA = 6. To increase the robustness of the cell delineation method, the cell payload is scrambled. In the HUNT state, the descrambler is disabled. In the PRESYNC and the SYNC states, the descrambled is enabled for the number of bits equal to the length of the information field (48*8), and disabled for the following assumed header.
DCW ATM-Protocol-17

DS-3 PHYSICAL LAYER FUNCTIONS

Just like STS-3c, the physical layer of using DS3 consists of the physical media dependent sublayer (PMD) and the transmission convergence sublayer (TC). The functions performed by these two sublayers are as follows:
HEC generation/verification

Transmission Convergence Sublayer

PLCP framing and cell delineation Path overhead utilization PLCP timing (125sec clock recovery) Nibble stuffing

Physical Media Dependent Sublayer

Bit timing Line coding Physical medium

DCW

ATM-Protocol-18

DS-3 PLCP FRAME FORMAT

ATM cells are transported in DS-3 using two possible methods: physical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) and direct mapping. The PLCP format is as follows:
PLCP framing A1 A2 A1 A1 A1 A1 A1 A1 A1 A1 A1 A1 A1 Octets 1 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 1 POI POH P11 P10 P9 P8 P7 P6 P5 P4 P3 P2 P1 P0 1 Z6 Z5 Z4 Z3 Z2 Z1 X B1 G1 X X C1 1 PLCP Payload ATM cell ATM cell ATM cell ATM cell ATM cell ATM cell ATM cell ATM cell ATM cell ATM cell ATM cell ATM cell 53 Object of BIP-8 Calculation Trailer 13-14 nibbles

A1, A2: framing bytes (A1=11110110, A2=00101000) B1: Bit interleaved parity C1: Cycle/stuff counter G1: PLCP path status Px: Path overhead identifier Zx: Growth octets

In PLCP, 12 cells per 125sec 96,000 cells per second or 36.864 Mb/s of cell payload

Direct mapping of ATM cells in DS3 is similar to that for DS1.

DCW ATM-Protocol-19

DS-1 PHYSICAL LAYER FUNCTIONS

The transmission convergence (TC) sublayer: HEC generation/verification Cell delineation Transmission frame generation/recovery Physical media dependent (PMD) sublayer: Bit timing Line coding Physical medium The physical layer bit rate at the DS1 ATM UNI is 1.544Mb/s. The bit rate for transport of ATM cells is 1.536Mb/s. The DS1 ATM UNI is symmetric. And the physical medium line code is bipolar 8 zero substitution (B8ZS). The DS1 transport format is the 24 frame multiframe extended superframe (ESF) format. The framing bits of the 24 frame ESF are used for: Detection of loss of frame alignment Performance monitoring (CRC-6) Transmission of remote defect identification (RDI) Performance reporting

DCW

ATM-Protocol-20

DS-1 PHYSICAL LAYER TC SUBLAYER

ATM cells are carried in the DS1 payload (i.e., bits 2 to 193). The cells are directly mapped into the DS1 payload as shown in the following.
193bits/125sec F F F F F F ATM Cell Mapping Field: 24 Octets Cell Header Cell Header Cell Header

At the transmit side and receive side, the DS1 physical layers perform cell rate decoupling. The cell delineation is performed using the HEC mechanism. ATM Forum af-phy-0016.000 specifies that payload scrambling shall not be used.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-21

ATM LAYER
ATM Layer Functionalities ATM Protocol Data Unit Format -- UNI: User Network Interface -- NNI: Network-Node Network Node Interface ATM Layer Management

DCW

ATM-Protocol-22

ATM LAYER SERVICE

The ATM layer provides for the transparent transport of fixed sized ATM layer service data units (ATM_SDUs) between communicating upper layer entities (e.g., ATM Adaptation Layer). This transport occurs on a preestablished ATM connection according to a traffic contract. A traffic contract is comprised of a quality of service (QoS) class, a vector of traffic parameters, a conformance definition, and other information. The ATM layer receives services from the physical layer. Functions performed by ATM layer are: ATM_SDU Encapsulation and Extraction: The transmitting ATM-entity encapsulates an ATM_SDU into an ATM_PDU. The receiving ATM-entity extracts the ATM_SDU form the ATM_PDU received. Cell Multiplexing: The ATM entities will perform cell multiplexing. ATM connections with different QoS requirements are multiplexed. Cell Relaying: The ATM entity will perform cell relaying. Cell Traffic Management: To ensure that all ATM peer-to-peer (APP) connections receive their requested levels of service, ATM entities usage parameter control (UPC) and network parameter control (NPC). These functions monitor individual ATM peer-to-peer (APP) connection for conformance with their negotiated connection parameters. Actions may be taken if these parameters are exceeded in the connection. Cell Copying: ATM entities may need to copy the payload of the received cells and send it to the ATM Management entity for management functions. Connection Assignment and Removal:

DCW

ATM-Protocol-23

Each ATM layer entity will be able to create and remove its local portion of an ATM user-to-user (AUU) connection. Generic Flow Control: Within the customer premises, a specific protocol, called the generic flow control protocol, may be used between CPN equipment. Two modes of operation have been defined: "uncontrolled access" and "controlled access". Cell Rate Decoupling: The cell rate decoupling functions at the sending entity adds unassigned cells to the assigned cell stream (i.e., cells with valid payload) to be transmitted, transforming a non-continuous stream of assigned cells into continuous stream of assigned and unassigned cells. At the receiving entity, the opposite operation is performed.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-24

VIRTUAL CHANNEL AND VIRTUAL PATH

Two levels of virtual connections are supported at the UNI: A point-to-point or point-to-multipoint Virtual Channel Connection (VCC) which consists of a single connection established between two ATM VCC endpoints. A point-to-point or point-to-multipoint Virtual Path Connection (VPC) which consists of a bundle of VCCs carried transparently between two ATM VPC endpoints.

From a single source, the relay of cells within a VPC/VCC in the network will preserve cell sequence integrity. VPCs and VCCs are identified by Virtual Path Identifiers (VPIs) and Virtual Channel Identifiers (VCIs). Cells can be switched at the VP or VC levels. The VPIs and VCIs are only significant link by link. VP switch is analogous to digital cross connect.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-25

ATM CELL FORMAT (UNI)

The format of ATM cells at User Network Interface is as follows:

GFC: Generic Flow Control VPI: Virtual Path Identifier VCI: Virtual Circuit Identifier PTI: Payload Type Indicator CLP: Cell Loss Priority HEC: Header Error Control Number of VPs available = ? Number of VCs available = ?

DCW

ATM-Protocol-26

ATM CELL FORMAT (NNI)

The format of ATM cells in NNI is as follows:

VPI: Virtual Path Identifier VCI: Virtual Circuit Identifier PTI: Payload Type Indicator CLP: Cell Loss Priority HEC: Header Error Control Number of VPs available at NNI = ? Number of VCs available at NNI = ?

DCW

ATM-Protocol-27

CELL STRUCTURE DESCRIPTION

Generic Flow Control (GFC): GFC field has 4 bits. For uncontrolled access, this field is zero. VPI/VCI Field: The VPI/VCI field is used to identify an ATM link. In the UNI format, a 24-bit field is used; while in the NNI format, a 28-bit field is used. Payload Type Identification (PTI) Field: A 3-bit field to identify the payload type. PTI Coding Interpretation 000 User_Data_Cell, Congestion_Experienced=False, SDU_Type=0 001 User_Data_Cell, Congestion_Experienced=False, SDU_Type=1 010 User_Data_Cell, Congestion_Experienced=True, SDU_Type=0 011 User_Data_Cell, Congestion_Experienced=True, SDU_Type=1 100 Segment OAM F5 flow cell 101 End-to-End OAM F5 flow cell 110 ABR RM cell 111 Reserved SDU_Type is used by AAL5 to distinguish between cells which contains the last segment of an AAL5_PDU and those which do not. Cell_Loss_Priority (CLP) field: CLP field is 1 bit long. It is used to indicate the cell loss priority within a ATM peer-to-peer connection. A CLP bit equal to zero indicates higher priority. Upon entering the network, a cell with CLP value equals to 1 may be subject to discard depending on network traffic condition. Header Error Check (HEC) field: The HEC is an 8-bit field. The generator polynomial used is X8+X2+X+1.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-28

ATM CELL TYPES

Cells are identified by (1) their VPIs and VCIs and (2) Payload Type Identification (PTI). Unassigned Cells Assigned cells (VP/VC Traffic Cells) - user data - meta-signaling (VCI=1) used to set up the signaling channel - broadcasting signaling (VCI=2) used to set up the broadcasting channels - point-to-point signaling (VCI=5) used to set up point-to-point channels - OAM cells network operation, administration and maintenance cells

DCW

ATM-Protocol-29

ATM LAYER MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS

Metasignaling The ATM layer management entity manages various types of signaling. Fault Management Functions include alarm surveillance, loop back and continuity check of ATM peer-to-peer connections. Performance Management The ATM layer management performs performance monitoring and reporting. Connection Management The ATM layer management performs the establishment and termination of ATM peer-to-peer connections. Resource Management Used by ABR. Security Management

DCW

ATM-Protocol-30

ATM ADAPTATION LAYER

ATM Adaptation Layer (AAL) Functionalities AAL Classes Supported and AAL Types AAL Protocol Data Unit Formats and Functionalities AAL1 AAL2 AAL3/4 AAL5 SAAL

DCW

ATM-Protocol-31

ATM ADAPTATION LAYER (AAL) FUNCTIONALITIES

According to CCITT I.362, the ATM adaptation layer (AAL) enhances the services provided by the ATM layer to support the functions required by the next higher layer. The AAL performs functions required by the user, control and management planes and support the mapping between the ATM layer and the next higher layer. The functions performed in the AAL depend upon the higher layer requirements. The AAL supports multiple protocols to fit the needs of the different AAL service users. The AAL isolates the higher layer from the specific characteristics of the ATM layer by mapping the higher layer PDUs into the information field of the ATM cell and vice versa. The AAL entities exchange information with the peer AAL entities to support the AAL functions.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-32

ATM ADAPTATION LAYER (AAL) SERVICE CLASSES AND AAL TYPES

Currently, the ATM standards specifications define that AAL supports four classes of services for users. Class A
Timing between source & destination Bit rate Connection Mode Examples of services AAL Type

Class B

Class C

Class D

Related
Constant Connection Oriented Circuit emulation, voice 1 variable bit rate video 2

Not Related
Variable Connectionless

connectionconnectionless oriented data data transfer transfer 3,5 4,5

The purpose of AAL is thus to accommodate all possible services. Thus, the AAL is service dependent. The classes of services and AAL types are specified during call establishment. Once a connection has been setup, its class and type are identified by the VPI/VCI of the connection. AAL type used in a connection is specified during the connection set up.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-33

In general, the services can be categorized into constant bit rate (CBR), variable bit rate (VBR), available bit rate (ABR), unspecified bit rate (UBR), and guaranteed frame rate (GFR) services. The VBR services can be real-time (rt-VBR) and non-real-time (nrt-VBR). In CBR, users are transmitting data periodically to the network and the rate of data transmission is constant. In VBR, users data is bursty. Users may send a large amount of data at one time; while at other time, some users may not send anything at all. When a user is sending a large amount of data, he can not exceed the maximum rate that he has subscribed to. ABR services are similar to VBR services. In ABR, users data is also very bursty. However, unlike VBR, the ABR users do not specify the maximum rate. The network will use whatever bandwidth it has to transmit ABR users data. If the network has little bandwidth, ABR users data may be dropped. The network will guarantee a minimum cell rate for the user. This is also sometimes called the best effort (BE) service. UBR service is similar to ABR service, except there is no guarantee of any minimum cell rate. We can define the following: PCR: peak cell rate (the maximum cell rate a user can send to the network) SCR: sustained cell rate (the average cell rate) LCR: line cell rate (the rate if cells are sent at the line speed, such as 96,000 cells/second for DS-3) ECR: effective cell rate that a user would experience MCR: minimum cell rate Then, for CBR for VBR for ABR for UBR ECR = PCR = SCR LCR ECR SCR < PCR LCR MCR ECR LCR ECR LCR

DCW

ATM-Protocol-34

AAL1 SERVICES AND FUNCTIONS

The services provided by AAL1 to the higher layer are: transfer of service data units (SDUs) with a constant source bit rate and the delivery of them with the same bit rate; transfer of timing information between source and destination; indication of lost or errored information, which is not recovered by AAL1. Functions performed by AAL1 in order to provide the above services are: segmentation and reassembly (SAR) handling of cell delay variation handling of lost and mis-inserted cells source clock frequency recovery at the receiver monitoring of AAL protocol control information (PCI) for bit error handling of AAL1-PCI bit errors Two types of AAL1 user layer data transfer can be supported: - Unstructured Data Transfer (UDT): With this, AAL1 treats AAL1 user information as a bit stream with an associated service clock. Examples are transferring the whole T1 or DS-3. - Structured Data Transfer (SDT): This capability supports the transport of constant bit rate service with octet-based block structure. An example is the transport of N X 64Kb/s (or N X DS0).

DCW

ATM-Protocol-35

AAL1 SUBLAYERS
The functions of AAL1 are grouped into two sublayers: AAL1-SAR (segmentation and reassembly) and AAL1-CS (convergence sublayer). Generation of 47-octect AAL1_SAR_SDUs and the values of convergence sublayer indicator (CSI) subfield and sequence count (SC) subfield at the sending AAL1 entity Detection of missing AAL1_SAR_SDUs at the receiving AAL1 entity Detection of a starvation condition at the receiving AAL1 entity Maintenance of bit-count integrity to the AAL1 user by the receiving entity through the generation of dummy information triggered by the detection of missing AAL1_SAR_SDUs or a starvation condition Recovery of service clock at the receiving entity Generation of 48-octect AAL1_SAR_PDUs at the sending AAL1 entity Transfer of AAL1_SAR_PDUs to the ATM layer and monitoring for the discard of AAL1_SAR_PDUs to relieve congestion Receiving ATM_SDUs at the receiving AAL1 entity Processing of received ATM_SDUs as 48-octect AAL1_SAR_PDUs and passing the results to the AAL1-CS at the receiving AAL1 entity

AAL1-CS

AAL1-SAR

DCW

ATM-Protocol-36

AAL1_SAR_PDU FORMAT (UDT)

The AAL1_SAR_PDU consists of 1-octect header followed by 47octect payload (AAL1_SAR_SDU). The AAL1_SAR_PDU becomes the 48-octect ATM_SDU.

SN (Sequence Number) CSI: Convergence Sublayer Indicator (1 bit) CSIs of the odd numbered cells are used to carry the time stamping information for clock recovery. CSIs of the even numbered cells are used to indicate P-format cell (used for SDT). Sequence Count (3 bits) The SC subfield is used for the transport of a binary encoded sequence count value between peer AAL1-CS entities. SNP (Sequence Number Protection) CRC: Cyclic Redundancy Check (3 bits) Parity (1 bit) These SAR_PDUs are called non-P formatted.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-37

AAL1_SAR_PDU FORMAT (SDT)

The structured data transfer (SDT) AAL1_SAR-PDU format is similar to that of the unstructured data transfer (UDT). However, SDT uses both non-P and P-formatted PDUs. The P-formatted AAL1_SAR_PDU is one of the even SAR-PDUs with CSI bit set to 1. (Note that the CSI bits of the odd number cells are used to carry time stamp information.) When the PDU is P-formatted, the first octet in the 47-octet payload is used as a pointer which contains the offset, in octets, between the end of the pointer field and the first start of the structured block in the 93 octet payload (i.e., 46 octets of this SAR_PDU and the 47 octets of the next SAR_PDU). The format of the P-formatted AAL1_SAR-PDU is
SN field SNP field SP field (1 octet) (4 bits) (4 bits) Payload (46 octets)

CSI (1 bit)

Sequence Count (3 bits)

CRC (3 bits)

Parity (1 bit)

Even Parity Bit

Offset field (7 bits)

AAL1_CS_PDU (46 octets)

The P-format is used exactly once in every cycle of eight consecutive SAR-PDUs with sequence count values 0 to 7. The P-format is used at the first available opportunity in the cycle to point to a start of a structure boundary. Since the P-format payload only occurs in the even numbered cell, the offset ranges between 0 and 93 inclusive. The offset value 93 is used to indicate that the end of the 93 octet payload coincides with the end of a structured block. If neither a start nor the end of a structured block is present in a cycle, then the P-format with offset value=127 is used at the cell with sequence count value of 6. The size of the structured block is declared during the connection establishment in the SETUP message of Q.2931. It is one of the AAL1 parameters.

DCW

ATM-Protocol-38

SENDING AAL1 ENTITY PROCESSES

SRTS: Synchronous Residual Time Stamp SN: Sequence Number SNP: Sequence Number Protection

DCW

ATM-Protocol-39

RECEIVING AAL1 ENTITY PROCESSES

DCW

ATM-Protocol-40

AAL 2 OVERVIEW
The AAL type 2 (AAL2) provides for the bandwidth-efficient transmission of low-rate, short, and variable length packets in delay sensitive applications. More than one AAL type 2 user information stream can be supported on a single ATM connection. Examples of applications are cellular telephone, compressed voice, wireless data, etc. The goals for AAL2 are: - To shorten cell-assemble time to reduce delay for the low rate applications, - To increase bandwidth usage efficiency in the network. AAL2 protocol structure is specified in ITU I.363.2. As shown in the following figure, AAL2 consists of two parts: common part sub-layer (CPS) and service specific convergence sub-layer (SSCS). SSCS varies according to the higher layer user data, and may be null. CPS is user data and application independent, and provides common functions to all AAL2 applications. Other elements of AAL2 are AAL2 Negotiation Procedures (ANP) and Operation and Maintenance (OAM) functions.

User Data AAL Service Access Point SSCS (may be null) AAL2 CPS ATM Service Access Point ATM

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ATM-Protocol-41

AAL2 FUNCTIONS AND SERVICES

Issues of low bit rate voice over ATM: The following figure shows cellular phone connections over an ATM network. The voice is encoded at 8Kb/s. Thus, it takes about 50 milliseconds for each voice channel to fill up the ATM cell payload. This is a very long delay.
Base Station
ATM switch

User 3 User 2 User 1

(A) (B)

Leased line (e.g.,T1, DS-3) ATM cell assembler/disassembler

10 ms

(A) Low bit rate voice per channel (e.g., 8Kbps)

10 octets

(B) ATM cells

ATM cell header ATM cell Payload (48 octets)

On the other hand, if the base station does not wait for more voice samples to fill out the whole payload in an ATM cell, then the bandwidth is wasted. In the figure above, it maybe only ten octets of voice are in an ATM cell, the other 38 bytes in the ATM cell payload are not used. The efficiency is 10/53 (=19%).

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ATM-Protocol-42

Issues with low bit rate applications and the solution:

As noted earlier, it takes a long time for a single low-bit-rate application to fill up an ATM cell payload. However, there are usually many users accessing the network at the same time. One way to save bandwidth is to multiplex the data (e.g., voice, data packets) from various users into one ATM cell.
User Data (e.g., voice) User 1 User 2 User 3 User 1 User 3

Header

Payload

ATM Adaptation Layer Type 2 (AAL2) 48 octets ATM Layer ATM cell

CPCS Packet

By doing this, we do not need to wait for one single user to fill up the payload of an ATM cell (which takes a long time), and instead, we fill up the payload with data from several other users. Thus, we can use the bandwidth more efficiently. Since a cell now may contain data from more than one user, data from each individual user needs to be clearly identified, and their boundaries need to be marked. The marking of the data from different users, the delineation of the boundaries, and the multiplexing of the data into 48-byte payload are the functions of AAL2.

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ATM-Protocol-43

AAL2 PROTOCOL FORMAT

The following figure shows how the user data packet is passing through various sub-layers of the AAL2. In this figure, PDU: Packet data unit SDU: Service data unit CPS-PH: CPS-packet header CPS-PP: CPS-packet payload STF: Start field
User Packet AAL-SDU

SSCS

SSCS-PDU Header (If present)

SSCS-PDU payload CPS-SDU

SSCS-PDU Trailer (If present)

AAL

CPS

CPS-PH

CPS-PP

From other user packet CPS-PDU Payload

CPS-Packet STF CPS-PDU Payload

CPS-PDU (48 octet)

ATM

Cell header

Cell payload ATM cell (53 octet)

The CPS-packet format is as follows:

CID LI UUI HEC CPS-INFO
CPS-Packet Payload (Variable Length) CPCS-Packet

CPS-Packet Header (3 Octets)

Where:

CID: Channel identifier (8 bits) LI: Length indicator (6 bits) UUI: User-to-user indication (5 bits) HEC: Header error control (5 bits) CPS-INFO: Information (1 to 45/64 octets)

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ATM-Protocol-44

CPS-Packet header is 3-octets long and consists of four fields. Channel Identifier (CID) To identify SSCS PDU 0 not used 1 reserved for layer management (e.g. ANP) 2-7 reserved 8-255 identification of SSCS entity

Length Indicator (LI) One less than CPS-packet payload length Maximum CPS-packet payload length Default 45 octets optional 64 octets User-to-User Indication (UUI) - To convey specific information transparently between the CPS users, SSCS entities or layer management - To distinguish between the SSCS entities and layer management users 0 27 for SSCS entities 28-29 reserved for future standardization 30-31 for layer management Header Error Control (HEC) Used for error detection only CPS-INFO CPS-packet payload has a variable length

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ATM-Protocol-45

The CPS-PDU format is as follows:

ATM Cell Header OSF S P N CPSPacket CPSPacket CPSPacket PAD

Start Field (1 oct.)

CPS-PDU Payload (47 oct.) CPS-PDU (48 octets)

The start field consists of three fields: Offset Field (OSF) - To indicate the position in octets of the first CPS-packet - 0 46 first CPS-packet boundary (o means next to OSF) - 47 means no CPS-packet boundary Sequence Number (SN) - modular 2 Parity (P) - Odd parity of STF field - For error detection A CPS-packet may be splitted and carried by two CPS-PDU. Note that if the CPS-packets can not fill the whole 48-octets ATM cell payload, pad is used. Padding field is set to all 0. Error Detection: - CPS-packet HEC error detected, discard the rest of CPS-PDU - CPS-PDU STF parity error detect, discard the whole CPSPDU.

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ATM-Protocol-46

AAL3/4 SUBLAYERS
The AAL type 3/4 (AAL3/4) consists of two parts, a common part (CP) and a service specific part (SSP). The SSP is used to provide those additional capabilities, beyond those provided by the CP, that are necessary to support the user of the AAL3/4. For some applications, the SSP will be null. The functions of the AAL3/4 common part have been grouped into two sublayers, the segmentation and reassembly (CPAAL3/4_SAR) sublayer and the convergence sublayer (CPAAL3/4_CS).

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ATM-Protocol-47

SERVICE PROVIDED TO UPPER LAYER BY AAL3/4

The CPAAL3/4 provides for sequential and transparent transfer of variable length, octet-oriented CPAAL3/4_SDUs from one CPAAL3/4 user to one or more CPAAL3/4 users. AAL3/4 began as two separate AAL types, AAL3 for connectionoriented variable-rate data service and AAL4 connectionless variablerate data service. As the protocol specifications evolved, the same procedures turned to be necessary for both types, and the specifications were merged to become the AAL3/4 type. This layer provides two services: Message Mode Service: In this service mode, the CPAAL3/4_SDU passed across the CPAAL3/4 interface is exactly equal to one CPAAL3/4 Interface Data Unit (CPAAL3/4_IDU). Streaming Mode Service: In this service mode, the CPAAL3/4_SDU passed across the CPAAL3/4/ interface uses one or more CPAAL3/4_IDUs. (In another word, the CPAAL3/4_SDU consists of higher layer SDUs.) The transfer of these CPAAL3/4_IDUs across the CPAAL3/4 interface may occur separated time. This service may pipeline the CPAAL3/4_SDU.

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ATM-Protocol-48

CPAAL3/4 FUNCTIONS
AAL3/4 common part performs the following functions: Data transfer Transfer of CPAAL3/4 user information (CPAAL3/4_SDUs) between CPAAL3/4 users Preservation of CPAAL3/4_SDUs Delineation and transparency of CPAAL3/4_SDUs. CPAAL3/4_SDU segmentation Segmentation of CPAAL3/4_SDU into segments of up to 44 octets. CPAAL3/4_SDU reassembly Construct CPAAL3/4_SDUs from the CPAAL3/4_SAR_PDUs delivered by the ATM layer Error detection Detect and handle bit errors, lost or gained information and incorrectly reassembled CPAAL3/4_SDUs. Multiplexing an demultiplexing Multiplexing and demultiplexing of multiple CPAAL3/4 connections or interleaving of CPAAL3/4_CS_PDUs. The number of connections supported over an AUU connection as well as message identifier is defined at the connection establishment (for SVC) or provisioning (for PVC). CPAAL3/4_SDU abort Abort partially transmitted or received CPAAL3/4_SDU. Pipelining Forward partial PDUs to the next functional unit before the full PDU has been collected.

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ATM-Protocol-49

COMMON PART AAL3/4_SAR_PDU FORMAT

ST:

Segment Type (2 bits) Indicates whether a CPAAL3/4_SAR_PDU is the beginning of a message (BOM), the continuation of a message (COM), the end of a message (EOM) or a single segment message (SSM). ST BOM COM EOM SSM Encoding 10 00 01 11

SN:

Sequence Number (modulo 16) (4 bits) Used to identify the sequential position of the CPAAL3/4_SAR_PDU.

MID: Message Identifier (10 bits) Used to identify CPAAL3/4_SAR_PDUs on a given AUU connection that are part of the same CPAAL3/4_CS_PDU. User Information FILL: Padding to make the CPAAL3/4_SAR_PDU payload field equal to 44 octets.

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ATM-Protocol-50

LI:

Length Indicator (6 bits) Used to indicate the length of the user information field. In the message mode service, if CPAAL3/4_SAR_PDU ST=BOM or COM, the value of the length indicator (LI) field is always 44. In the streaming mode service, the value of LI could be less than 44 for ST=BOM or COM CPAAL3/4_SAR_PDUs.

CRC: Cyclic Redundancy Check (10 bits) CRC calculation performed over the entire CPAAL3/4_SAR_PDU.

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ATM-Protocol-51

COMMON PART AAL3/4_CS_PDU FORMAT

CPI (Common Part Indicator) Used to identify the message type (i.e., to interpret the subsequent fields in the header and trailer) and to indicate the counting unit for the values specified in BASize and Length. Btag: Used to detect misassembling error conditions through correlation with the Btag in the trailer. BASize: Used to indicate the maximum buffering requirements to receive a CPAAL3/4_CS_PDU. This field value shall be greater or equal to the length of the user information. User Information: The maximum length of this field is 65,535 octets. Pad: Used to force the CPAAL3/4_CS_PDU payload field to be 32-bit aligned. AL: Used as a filler to achieve 32-bit alignment in CPAAL3/4_CS_PDU trailer. Length: Used to indicate the length of the user information contained in the CPAAL3/4_CS_PDU payload field. Used by the receiver to detect the loss or gain of information.

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ATM-Protocol-52

AAL5 SERVICES AND FUNCTIONS

The services provided by AAL type 5 (AAL5) to the higher layer are similar to those by AAL3/4. It provides for sequential and transparent transfer of variable length, octet-oriented CPAAL5_SDUs from one CPAAL5 user to one or more CPAAL5 users. However, it does not perform multiplexing/demultiplexing as AAL3/4 does. Like AAL3/4, AAL type 5 provides both message mode service and streaming mode service. Both modes of service may offer the following peer-to-peer operational procedures: Assured operation: Every assured AAL5_SDU is delivered with exactly the data content that the user sent. Non-assured operation: Integral AAL_SDUs may be lost or corrupted.

The functions performed by AAL5 are also the same of those performed by AAL3/4.

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ATM-Protocol-53

AAL5 SUBLAYERS
AAL type 5 is called simple efficient adaptation layer (SEAL). The AAL type 5 (AAL5) consists of two parts, a common part (CP) and a service specific convergence sublayer (SSCS). The SSCS is used to provide those additional capabilities, beyond those provided by the CP, that are necessary to support the user of the AAL5. For some applications, the SSP will be null. The functions of the AAL5 common part have been grouped into two sublayers, the segmentation and reassembly (CPAAL5_SAR) sublayer and the convergence sublayer (CPAAL5_CPCS).

AAL5 Primitive

SSCS

Null SSCS Common Part Primitive Convergence Sublayer (CPCS)

AAL5

Common Part Segmentation & Reassembly (SAR)

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ATM-Protocol-54

COMMON PART AAL5_PDU FORMAT

The CPAAL_CS_PDU consists of the payload and the trailer.

UU: CPI: Length:

User-User field Common Part Indicator Length of CPAAL5_SDU

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ATM-Protocol-55

COMMON PART AAL5_PDU FORMAT

User Data: This field carries the CPAAL5_SDU. This field is octet-aligned and can range from 0 to 65535 octets in length. Pad: This field is used to align the entire CPAAL5_PDU (including the trailer) on 48-octet boundary. User-User: This field contains one octet user-user information. CPI: This common part indicator (CPI) is 1 octet and is reserved for supporting future CPAAL5 functions. Length: This field indicates the length of the CPAAL5_SDU in the CPAAL5_PDU. The receiver uses this field to determine the boundary between the user data and the PAD field. CRC32: CRC32 calculation is performed over the entire CPAAL5_CS_PDU.

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ATM-Protocol-56

CPAAL5_SAR_PDU FORMAT
The sending AAL5 entity segments the CPAAL5_PDU into 48 segment units and transmits them to the ATM layer. The receiving AAL5 entity reassembles the CPAAL5_SAR_PDUs into the CPAAL5_PDU. The CPAAL5_SAR_PDU format is as follows:

AAL-user Information (48 octets)

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ATM-Protocol-57