leitungsvermitteltes

Leitungsvermittelt refers to a type of telecommunications network in which a dedicated physical path, or circuit, is established between two endpoints for the duration of a communication session. This circuit remains exclusively allocated to that session, ensuring a consistent and guaranteed quality of service. Once the communication is complete, the circuit is released and can be used by another session. This is in contrast to packet-switched networks, where data is broken into packets and sent independently over shared network resources, with no dedicated path.

The primary advantage of circuit-switching is its predictability. Because a dedicated line is used, there is no contention for bandwidth, leading to low latency and minimal jitter, making it ideal for voice calls and real-time video conferencing. However, this dedicated resource allocation can be inefficient, as the circuit is occupied even when no data is being transmitted. Historically, traditional telephone networks were circuit-switched. While largely superseded by packet-switching technologies like the internet for data transmission, circuit-switching principles are still found in some specialized applications or as a fallback mechanism within modern networks to ensure reliable connections for critical services.