X.

25 Raj Jain
Professor of CIS
The Ohio State University
Columbus, OH 43210
These slides are available at
http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/~jain/cis777-99/
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 Overview

q X.25 Overview
q X.25 Protocol Layers
q X.25 Physical Layer
q X.25 Frame Level: LAPB
q X.25 Packet Level
q Call Setup/Disconnection
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 X.25 Overview
q First packet switching interface.
q Issued in 1976 and revised in 1980, 1984,
1988, and 1992.
q Data Terminal Equipment (DTE) to Data
Communication Equipment (DCE) interface
⇒ User to network interface (UNI)
q Used universally for interfacing to packet switched
networks X.25 X.25
DTE DCE DCE DTE
Your Computer
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 Virtual Circuits 24
2, 3 DCE DTE B
A DTE DCE Network
DCE DTE C
35
q Virtual Call
q Two Types of Virtual Circuits:
m Switched virtual circuit (SVC)
Similar to phone call
m Permanent virtual circuit (PVC)
Similar to leased lines
q Up to 4095 VCs on one X.25 interface
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 X.25 Protocol Layers
User Process User Process
Packet Packet
LAP-B
Link Access Link Access
X.21
Physical Physical
DTE DCE
q X.21 often replaced by EIA-232 (RS-232C)
q LAP-B = Link access procedure - Balanced
q Packet layer = Connection-oriented transport over
virtual circuits
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 Protocol Layers (Cont)
q X.25 Packets
q Data is broken into blocks
q 3- or 4-byte packet header
q Packets are broken into LAPB frames

Data

X.25 Level 3 Header

LAP-B Header LAP-B Trailer

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 X.25 Physical Layer

q Electrical and mechanical specifications of the

interface
q X.21 = 15-pin digital recommendation
q X.21bis = X.21 twice = X.21 second
Interim analog specification to allow existing
equipment to be upgraded.
Now more common than X.21 ⇒ X.21 Rev 2
q RS-232-C developed by Electronics Industries
Association of America (EIA) is most common
Uses 25-pin connector. Commonly used in PCs.
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 HDLC Family
q Synchronous Data Link Control (SDLC): IBM
q High-Level Data Link Control (HDLC): ISO
q Link Access Procedure-Balanced (LAPB): X.25
q Link Access Procedure for the D channel (LAPD): ISDN
q Link Access Procedure for modems (LAPM): V.42
q Link Access Procedure for half-duplex links (LAPX): Teletex
q Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP): Internet
q Logical Link Control (LLC): IEEE
q Advanced Data Communications Control Procedures
(ADCCP): ANSI
q V.120 and Frame relay also use HDLC
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 HDLC

q Primary station: Issue commands

q Secondary Station:Issue responses
q Combined Station: Both primary and secondary
q Unbalanced Configuration: One or more secondary
q Balanced Configuration: Two combined station
q Normal Response Mode (NRM): Response from secondary
q Asynchronous Balanced Mode (ABM): Combined Station
q Asynchronous Response Mode (ARM): Secondary may
respond before command
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 LAPB
q Uses balanced mode subset of HDLC between DTE
and DCE
q Uses 01111110 as frame delimiter
Uses bit stuffing to avoid delimiters inside the frames
q Uses HDLC frame format
q Point-to-point: Only two stations - DTE (A), DCE (B)
Addresses: A=00000011, B=00000001
Address = Destination Addresses in Commands
Source Address in Responses,
Flag Address Control Info FCS Flag Address
8b
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8b 8 or 16b nb 16b 8b Raj Jain
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 Control Field Format
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Information 0 N(S) P/F N(R)
Supervisory 1 0 S P/F N(R)
Unnumbered 1 1 M P/F M
q N(S) = Send Sequence Number
q N(R) = Receive Sequence Number = Expected next
q P/F = Poll/Final = Command/Response
q M = Set Async Balanced Mode (SABM), Disconnect,
Unnumbered Ack, …
q S = Supervisory function = Receiver Ready (RR),
Receiver Not Ready (RNR), Reject (Rej)
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 HDLC Frames
q Information Frames: User data
m Piggybacked Acks: Next frame expected
m Poll/Final = Command/Response
q Supervisory Frames: Flow and error control
m Go back N and Selective Reject
m Final ⇒ No more data to send
q Unnumbered Frames: Control
m Mode setting commands and responses
m Information transfer commands and responses
m Recovery commands and responses
m Miscellaneous commands and responses

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 Examples of HDLC Operation
SABM I,0,0 I,3,0
Timeout I,0,1 RNR,4
SABM I,1,1 RR,0,P
UA I,2,1 RNR,4,F
I,1,3 RR,0,P

DISC I,3,2 RR,4,F

I,2,4 I,4,0
UA
I,3,4
RR,4
(a) Line setup and (b) Two-way data (c) Busy condition
disconnect exchange
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 Examples of Operation (Cont)
I,3,0 I,2,0
I,4,0 RR,3
*
I,5,0 I,3,0
*
Rej, 4 Timeout RR,0,P
I,4,0 RR,3,F
I,5,0 I,3,0
I,6,0 RR,4

(d) Reject Recovery (e) Timeout Recovery

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 X.25 Packet Level
q Packet Level = End-to-end
q Packet level procedures:
m Establishment and clearing of virtual calls

m Management of PVCs

m Flow Control

m Recovery from error conditions

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 Call Setup/Disconnection
Call Request Incoming Call

Call Connected Call Accepted

Data Data

Data Data

Clear Request Clear Indication

Clear Confirmation Clear Confirmation
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 Packet Format
4b 4b
General Format Identifier Logical Channel Group #
Logical Channel Number
Packet Type Identifier

q GFI = Type of packet.

Bit 1: Qualifier. Q=1 ⇒ Higher level control
Bit 2: 0⇒End-to-end confirm., 1⇒Local conf.
Bits 3,4: 01⇒ 3-bit or 10 ⇒7-bit sequence #
q LCGN + LCN = 12-bit VC # w 4-bit Group
q PTI = 20 possible packet types
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 Packet Format (Cont)
Q D 0 1 Group # Q D 1 0 Group #
Channel # Channel #
P(R) M P(S) 0 P(S) 0
User Data P(R) M
User Data
Data w 3-bit Seq # Data w 7-bit Seq #
❑ M = More segments
❑ P(R) and P(S) refer to packet sequence #
Different from N(R) and N(S) - frame sequence #

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 Packet Format (Contd)
0 0 0 1 Group # 0 0 1 0 Group #
Channel # Channel #
Packet Type 1 Packet Type 1
Additional Info Additional Info
Control w 3-bit Seq # Control w 7-bit Seq #
0 0 0 1 Group # 0 0 1 0 Group #
Channel # Channel #
P(R) Pkt Type 1 Pkt Type 1
P(R) 0
RR, RNR, and REJ RR, RNR, and REJ
packets with 3-bit seq # packets with 7-bit seq #
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 Summary

q X.21, LAPB
q PVC and virtual call
q VC numbers
q M and D bits

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 Homework
q Read pages 61-65 of Black’s “Emerging
Technologies” book
q Submit answer to the following question:
In X.25 why is the VC number used by one station is
different from the VC number used by the other
station? After all, it is the same full-duplex virtual
circuit.
q Due Date: April 13, 1999

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 Additional References
q N. M. Thorpe and D. Ross, “X.25 Made Easy,”
Prentice Hall, 1992, 192 pp.
q W. Stallings, “Data and Computer Communications,”
5th Edition, Prentice Hall, 1996, Sections 6.4 and 9.4

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