A framework of architectural concepts for high-speed communication systems

A framework for understanding high-speed communication architectures and protocols is presented. The framework is validated by showing how several concepts fit into it. Two approaches to reduce the number of processing operations required for a single datum, the reduction of control processing and the elimination of unneeded or replicated operations, are discussed. Two other approaches for increasing communication system speed by performing more processing operations per unit time, parallel processing and increased processor utilization, are also discussed.>