Frame relay interworking with asynchronous transfer mode

FR/ATM interworking is expected to play a significant role in the evolution of frame relay (FR) and asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) services. Two separate phases for the evolution of FR to ATM anticipated are: (a) frame relay carriage over ATM infrastructure (b) FR/ATM service interworking to carriers, the first phase represents economic savings in deploying frame relay services, and the second phase, a business opportunity in offering new services in support of the emerging applications. To address both phases, a common interworking architecture is being standardized in CCITT, ANSI and industry FR and ATM. The specifications agreed to so far are described in the second half of the paper. To ensure carriers can offer end-to-end FR/ATM services in a multi-vendor environment, additional specifications are still required, notably in OA&M (i.e: support for the FR local management interface) and traffic descriptor/enforcement relationship mapping. These technical issues have been identified by standards bodies and resolution is expected by the end of 1993