Abstract: The present invention concerns a method and a system for the transmission of message traffic in a packet-switched telecommunication system, said system comprising a network element, which comprises a cross-connection part and a control part, said cross-connection part comprising at least one unit computer and said control part comprising at least one unit computer, said system further comprising means for the transmission of internal message traffic within the network element between the unit computers. According to the invention, the system comprises at least one unit computer in the cross-connection part whose message traffic is transmitted by utilizing the universal cross-connections produced by the network element itself, said unit computer of the cross-connection part being disposed on a different plug-in unit than the nearest terminal point of the cross-connection it is using for message traffic. The invention provides the advantage of good scalability of the system.

Abstract: The invention relates to a switch arrangement for a packet-switched telecommunications network. The switch arrangement comprises several input ports and several output ports, a switching fabric (SWN), and an output unit (OUi) between each output port and the switching fabric, the output unit comprising an output buffer (OB) in which outbound packets are stored. In the switch, virtual connections are used for packet switching and serial numbers in packets belonging to each virtual connection are used to identify the relative order of the packets. The output unit (OUi) maintains virtual connection-specific information on the serial number of the currently anticipated packet, and the packets belonging to a given virtual connection are ordered in the correct sequence in accordance with the serial numbers of the packets.

Abstract: The invention relates to a switching fabric arrangement for a packet-switched telecommunications network. Packets arriving at the switching fabric are assigned a time stamp depending on their time of arrival. Time stamp information relating to the packets to be transported is transmitted to at least some of the switching elements, and in at least some of the switching elements, the relative order of the packets to be sent is established on the basis of the received time stamp information in such a way that on each outgoing link (IL) from the switching element, the packets are in the sequence indicated by the time stamps.

Abstract: The present invention concerns a method and a system for the transmission of message traffic in a packet-switched telecommunication system, said system comprising a network element, which comprises a cross-connection part and a control part, said cross-connection part comprising at least one unit computer and said control part comprising at least one unit computer, said system further comprising means for the transmission of internal message traffic within the network element between the unit computers. According to the invention, the system comprises at least one unit computer in the cross-connection part whose message traffic is transmitted by utilizing the universal cross-connections produced by the network element itself, said unit computer of the cross-connection part being disposed on a different plug-in unit than the nearest terminal point of the cross-connection it is using for message traffic. The invention provides the advantage of good scalability of the system.