Define Switching in Networking. What is the difference between circuits witching and Packet Switching?

Define Switching in Networking. What is the difference between circuits witching and Packet Switching?

Switching is defined a technique that inspects data packets as they are received, and forward them to destination.

A switching system is a collection of switching elements arranged and controlled in such a way as to setup a communication path between any two distant points. A switching center of a telephone network comprising a switching network and its control and support equipment is called a central office.

In computer communication, the switching technique used is known as packet switching or message switch (store and forward switching). In telephone network the switching method used is called circuit switching.

Differences between circuit switching and packet switching:

Circuit Switching	Packet Switching
Circuit switching is scheme in which the network sets up a circuit between nodes and terminals before the communication starts.	Packet switching is a network communication method in which the data get transmitted in blocks, regardless of type and content, called packets.
Required dedicated transmission path	No dedicated path required
The system decides on which route to follow, based on a resource-optimizing algorithm, and transmission goes according to the path.	Each packet has to find its own route to the destination, determined using the source and destination address
Messages are not stored	Packets may be stored until delivered to destination
The route is dedicated and exclusive	There is no dedicated route. Each packet travels independent of each other.
Fixed bandwidth use	Dynamic use of bandwidth
No overhead bits after call setup	Overhead bits in each packet
Once connection is established, communication is fast and less error free	The packet needs to be re-transmitted every time when it gets lost, damaged before it is received in this method
Guaranteed the full bandwidth for the duration of the call. Inefficient.	Efficient, as the whole bandwidth is not reserved.
Guaranteed Quality of Service
More suitable for voice	More suitable for data
Expensive to implement and expand	Cheaper to implement and expand