VoIP telephone system using packet switching

Data networks do not use circuit switching. Your Internet connection would be much slower if there was a constant connection between your PC and the Internet sites which you visiting. For this reason a data network sends and receives only the data which you need. And, instead of sending the data over a dedicated line, it is routed over a complex network of paths, which are linked to each other by routers. This method of transport is called Packet Switching.

Whereas circuit switching keeps the connection constantly open and at a certain level, packet switching will open the connection temporarily, exactly long enough to send a part of the data (a packet) from one system to the other.
In other words: the PC chops the data into small pieces (packets) each with an address that allows the network card to know where to send it.

Payload

Every packet is provided with a so-called payload. The payload is a piece of the total data to send. For example, this can be an e-mail or a MP-3 file.

The pc will send the packets to the closest router. This router will send it to another router, which is near to the destination computer, and so on. The routers are 'clever' and will send the data over the lines that have the lowest amount of traffic.

When all packets eventually arrive at the destination PC, that PC will assemble the packets to recreate the original file.

Efficient

In this way, packet switching is very efficient. It does not use a fixed route but calculates the fastest way of going from A to B, taking into account the traffic load on the network and avoiding bottlenecks. In addition, unlike a telephone connection, a computer can receive several pieces of data from different senders at the same time.