The network core is a mesh of interconnected routers
Hosts break application-layer messages into packets (this is packet switching)
- Forward packets from one router to the next across multiple links to get from source to destination
- Each packet transmitted at full link capacity
Two key network core functions:
- Routing: Determines source-to-destination route taken by packets
- Forwarding: Move packets from router’s input to appropriate router output
Around the network core is the network edge
