6.8. The Future of Source Routing
By the late 1990s, Token Ring networks were rapidly declining in popularity. Few users were installing new enterprise-wide networks based on Token Ring technology. While there is still a large installed base of legacy Token Rings, many users are migrating to higher-speed, lower-cost Ethernet technology. The Token Ring marketplace has become a maintenance business; manufacturers are supplying products to support the installed base and to ease the migration to other technologies.
Because source routing is intimately tied to the deployment of Token Ring technology, its use will similarly decline in volume and importance over time. In many cases, it is easier to migrate existing Token Ring LANs to Ethernet technology than to deal with the problems of intercommunication between source routed and transparently bridged catenets.
Get The All-New Switch Book: The Complete Guide to LAN Switching Technology, Second Edition now with the O’Reilly learning platform.
O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.
