Frame-based access to SMDS

Switched multimegabit data service (SMDS) is a connectionless, public, packet-switched data service that provides local area network (LAN) features and performance across wide geographic areas. As initially defined, SMDS provides cell-based customer access to the network supporting SIMDS at access rates of DS1 and DS3. Bellcore has issued technical advisories on two frame-based methods to access the network supporting SIMDS: low speed SMDS access and frame relay access to SMDS. These access methods are used to provide sub-DS1 access to the network. The paper describes the motivation and service definition for both access methods and discusses their support of SMDS features. It also discusses the network architecture to support the access methods, focusing on a near-term network architecture to facilitate early availability.<>