Routers are typically edge devices that connect your LANs to the Frame Relay network. However,
you can use a router as part of the Frame Relay cloud or you can use it to create your own Frame
Relay network. Frame Relay switching is the forwarding of Frame Relay frames based upon their
DLCI assignments. You have seen how to configure a Frame Relay DTE device; now, let’s look
at how to configure a Frame Relay DCE switch. Routers are DTE devices by default; however, by
changing the Frame Relay interface type to a DCE, you can provide switching of frames.
Compare Figure 29.8 to Figure 29.9. Both of these diagrams represent the same network. In
Figure 29.8, you see the Frame Relay cloud without any detail. Each router on the right side will
send traffic to the router on the left by using DLCI 100. Keep in mind that the DLCI is an identifier
and that the DLCIs in this diagram could be the same or different and still communicate.
The router on the left will use DLCIs 101 and 300 to reach each router on the right. This is the
normal way that you should think about the frame cloud. It is typically not your concern what
happens within the Frame Relay network. Figure 29.9 shows that this particular Frame Relay
cloud is a single router configured as a switch.
FIGURE 2 9 . 8 Logical Frame Relay network
DLCI 300
DLCI 100 DLCI 101
DLCI 100
Frame Relay cloud
Physical Frame Relay network
DLCI 101
DLCI 100
Frame Relay cloud
Serial 1
Serial 0
Serial 2