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To: Honor First who wrote (8976)	8/3/1998 10:22:00 PM
From: John Rieman	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 12559

ATM can't make it to the edge of the network, it costs too much. How long will that be the case???????????????????????????????? networkcomputing.com Building a Faster Network Is your current ATM network suffering from performance problems? A single OC-3 uplink will provide little more than 100 Mbps of LAN-based traffic capacity once you factor in overhead. At the least, your next ATM purchase should provide for multiple OC-3 or OC-12 links. Look for vendors offering trunking capabilities and OC-12 uplinks so you have an upgrade path. Cisco Systems, FORE Systems and 3Com Corp. now offer OC-12 modules for their ATM edge devices. At the same time, evaluate capacity versus cost. There are essentially two types of edge switches on the market: fixed-configuration, low-port-density devices, and modular, high-port-density devices. Fixed-configuration switches will generally beat out modular switches in price, and sometimes performance. On the other hand, you sacrifice expandability and management features with most low-density boxes. A high-density modular solution may be a wise choice for the future. Many of these modular systems allow for multiple media types, redundant power supplies and other resilient features. Devices such as the Cisco Catalyst 5500 and the 3Com CoreBuilder 7000 fit the bill, along with many other devices as documented in our interactive charts online. Such devices open the door for other migration paths, should you change your mind about ATM down the road. Put Your Money Down Perhaps the biggest disappointment in ATM networking has been its price. The situation isn't much better for ATM edge devices. Add MPOA to the picture, and the scenario gets more grim. Estimates suggest that MPOA devices may be outpriced by nearly five to one when you factor in the cost of an MPOA server and necessary hardware to do the job using ATM. Compare the price of a 24-port Ethernet switch with that of a 24-port ATM edge device, and you should expect a difference of no more than $1,500. A Layer 3 switch and an MPOA device should share the same cost differential. This is based on current prices for OC-3 and OC-12 devices, and on a reasonable per-port price given current market prices. You shouldn't have to pay $400 per port when switched Ethernet is available for less than $100. Although no vendors are abandoning ATM, it seems clear that ATM faces a tough battle with Layer 3 switching and high-speed, low-cost Ethernet switching. As your network grows, think of ways to pocketize ATM, moving toward more cost-effective solutions for edge devices. If you stick with ATM, you'll need to pick either LANE or MPOA and decide how to distribute bandwidth across your network. You'll also want to anticipate the need for more bandwidth and evaluate your current Layer 3 architecture. Above all, be a bargain shopper. Don't buy ATM features you won't use, adding to an already high price tag. Joel Conover can be reached at jconover@nwc.com.