of the results. The figure examines a case of an IP/MPLS router design that implements (in software) an impressive series of protocols. More specifically, it contains Ethernet Digital Intel Xerox (DIX), 802.3, Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) signaling to host, ATM oper- ations, administration, and maintenance (OAM) handling, IPv4 over ATM Adaptation Layer Level 5 (AAL5), IPv6 over AAL5, Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) over Packet over SONET (POS), virtual local area network (VLAN), MPLS, IPv4 and IPv6 routing, Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) to host, multicast, Differentiated Services (DiffServ), packet policing, and packet shaping. As shown in Figure 16.2, the functional/descriptive coding approach has an intriguingly positive impact on the development cost as opposed to the classic approach taken based on coding in languages like C. These specific comparative results are based on the multiplicative scale factor inferred and cal- culated from the work shown in Figure 16.1. It is therefore important for companies and organizations that contemplate developing software on network-processing platforms to realize that this is not business as usual, that it involves many hid- den aspects, and that the choice of a platform and the choice of architecture it entails also implies sev- eral advantages or disadvantages regarding the timely delivery of functional, wire-speed-performance software that can be reused, upgraded, and maintained in the future. This cannot be stressed enough. A REAL-LIFE CASE STUDY: DESIGN ISSUES WITH AN MSR We will conclude this part of the book by looking at a complex real-life case where numerous choices are available. The systems architect who designs a cutting-edge multiservice switch/router is con- fronted with a dazzling array of different component technologies and possible configurations. We attempt to provide a sample of the challenges involved and the trade-offs confronted. This process is extremely complex SO it is impossible to cover all the issues in a few pages, but we will t