Optical Burst Switched Networks - Practical OBS Design and QoS

In this review of Optical Burst Switched Networks the authors provide a focused technical overview aimed at engineers and researchers who need a practical reference on optical burst switching. The single biggest reason to buy is the concentrated treatment of design and research issues around quality of service in OBS, making it a useful companion for graduate students and industry practitioners seeking applied explanations rather than broad introductions. Readers will find clear discussions of node architectures, signaling, and contention handling that support real-world study and implementation work.

Key Features

• Comprehensive OBS coverage: Presents the core concepts of optical burst switching across node and network architectures so readers can understand system-level design choices.
• Burst assembly explained: Describes burst assembly mechanisms in a way that helps designers balance latency and efficiency when aggregating packets into bursts.
• Signaling protocols: Reviews signaling approaches that are central to coordinating bursts and controlling resources in wavelength-division multiplexing environments.
• Contention resolution strategies: Surveys contention resolution techniques so practitioners can evaluate trade-offs between complexity and performance.
• Quality of service focus: Explores QoS approaches for OBS networks, useful for those implementing service differentiation in optical WDM systems.

Who It's For

This book targets industry practitioners, researchers, and graduate students working on optical WDM networks and related fields who need a compact, technical reference on OBS networks. It is best for readers who already have foundational knowledge of optical networking and want to deepen their understanding of burst switching mechanisms and QoS solutions.

Those seeking an introductory textbook for general networking or a hands-on lab manual with step-by-step exercises should look elsewhere; this work is geared toward conceptual design, research issues, and comparative approaches rather than beginner tutorials or practical lab recipes.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Clear coverage of node and network architectures aids system-level reasoning for designers.
• Focused chapters on signaling and contention resolution make it practical for research reading.
• Quality of service treatment gives actionable insight for service differentiation in OBS.

Cons

• Not a beginner textbook; readers without prior optical networking basics may need supplementary material.

Specifications

Our Verdict

Optical Burst Switched Networks is a concise, technically oriented reference that delivers useful coverage of OBS architectures, signaling, and QoS strategies. It represents good value for researchers and engineers who need a focused discussion of design and research issues in optical WDM systems, though newcomers should pair it with an introductory text for background.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does this book explain burst assembly?
Yes, it includes a discussion of burst assembly methods and the trade-offs between latency and aggregation efficiency.

Is this suitable for undergraduates learning networking?
It is best for graduate students and professionals; undergraduates may find the material advanced without supplemental introductory resources.

Does it cover quality of service in OBS?
Yes, several chapters focus on QoS approaches and how they apply to optical burst switched networks.