Network solutions for client server and video applications

Increasing capabilities of distributed workstations and servers, coupled with new information gathering applications will increase the need for higher speed networks. This paper investigates the impact of system improvements and new applications on network traffic. The performance of switched Ethernet and FDDI is simulated to see if they are capable of handling high volume data and video traffic. The performance of Ethernet switches is compared to FDDI networks using a block oriented network simulation software, called BONeS PlanNet. Both Ethernet switches and the FDDI are capable of handling high volume traffic. Ethernet switches are superior for data traffic having a throughput of 72 Mbps under full load with a delay of 150 to 400 ms in all configurations simulated. For video traffic however, the FDDI ring is superior to the Ethernet switch because FDDI has close to 100 Mbps throughput and nearly zero delay