Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) is an International Telecommunication Union-Telecommunications Standards Section (ITU-T) standard for cell relay wherein information for multiple service types (ie: voice, video, or data), is conveyed in small, fixed-size (53 byte) cells via connection-oriented Virtual Circuits (VCs). ATM technology supported in Cisco IOS Software deals with platform-independent router functionality, including Cisco 1700, 2600, 3600, 3700, 7100, 7200, 7300, 7500, and 12000 Series Routers. This connects to standards-based ATM Switching networks.
The Cisco ATM implementation allows the design and deployment of ATM links in a variety of network applications: high-speed network access, ATM aggregation of leased lines, ATM as a transport for Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) networks, and core ATM links. The Cisco ATM implementation is based upon standards defined in the ATM Forum, ITU-T, and IETF.