(ATM) Asynchronous Transfer Mode
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) is a type of cell-based networking technology that was designed to provide high-speed communication over wide area networks (WANs) and local area networks (LANs). It is an efficient, high-speed method of transmitting data over a network.
ATM uses a small, fixed-sized cell of 53 bytes to transmit data, as opposed to traditional networking technologies that used variable-sized packets. This makes it well-suited for time-sensitive applications such as video and audio streaming, where lost or delayed packets can result in a noticeable degradation of quality.
ATM is also capable of supporting multiple service types, such as voice, video, and data, on the same network, allowing for more efficient use of network resources. Additionally, ATM's cell-based structure provides built-in quality of service (QoS) guarantees, which are important for ensuring that high-priority traffic is transmitted ahead of lower-priority traffic.
While ATM was once seen as the future of networking technology, its popularity has declined in recent years as other technologies, such as Ethernet and Internet Protocol (IP), have become more widely adopted. However, ATM continues to be used in certain applications where its characteristics make it well-suited, such as in backbone networks and in the telecommunications industry.