Basic Concepts of Traffic Control

1. Traffic Shaping

Traffic shaping is a technique used to control the rate at which traffic is sent or received on a network. It involves delaying packets to ensure that the traffic flow stays within predefined limits. This is particularly useful in environments where bandwidth is limited or where certain types of traffic need to be prioritized over others.

For example, consider a highway with a speed limit. Traffic shaping is like a traffic officer who monitors the flow of cars and slows down those that are moving too fast, ensuring that the overall traffic flow remains smooth and within the speed limit. In a network, this ensures that critical applications receive the necessary bandwidth without being choked by less important traffic.

2. Quality of Service (QoS)

Quality of Service (QoS) is a mechanism used to manage network resources to ensure that certain types of traffic receive preferential treatment. QoS can prioritize traffic based on various criteria such as bandwidth, latency, jitter, and packet loss. This is crucial in environments where multiple types of traffic compete for the same network resources.

Imagine a restaurant where different customers have different priorities. A VIP customer might receive faster service compared to a regular customer. Similarly, in a network, QoS ensures that high-priority traffic, such as VoIP calls, receives the necessary resources to maintain quality, while less critical traffic, like file transfers, may experience slight delays.