JumpStart: a just-in-time signaling architecture for WDM burst-switched networks

We present an overview of an architecture and a signaling protocol for a cored WDM network. The architecture is based on wavelength routing and burst switching. Burst switching, as opposed to circuit or packet switching, implies that the network is capable of switching data in variable-sized parcels. Signaling is "just-in-time" indicating that signaling messages travel slightly ahead of the data they are describing. Signaling is out of band, with signaling packets undergoing electro-optical conversion at every hop. Data, on the other hand, travels transparently.