What Is Virtual Channel Identifier (VCI)?

Wait, what's a VCI? Well, it's like a phone number. But for your internet connection.You know how when you call someone on their landline, they have to tell you their phone number? And you must remember it and then enter it into your phone so that you can connect with them? Well, that's not how it works for the internet. The telephone company lists all the numbers in its system—that is, all the different houses or businesses in its area. When one of those numbers is called, the telephone company knows who owns that number and connects them to the person who made the call. It doesn't matter where that person is calling from—if they're at home or on vacation abroad—the telephone system will always know who they are and connect them with their family members or coworkers back home. And that's what VCIs do on an IP network! They identify where each connection comes from (just like a phone number) so that even if multiple connections are coming into one place (like multiple homes using one line), each link can still be managed separately without any confusion about which connection belongs to whom (like different) The VCI, or virtual channel identifier. It's the number you need to be able to get your ATM cell through the network. For example, You're sending a packet of data from one place to another, and you want to ensure it is intact. You need to know where it's going. So you give it a destination address (VPI). But what if there's more than one way for your packet to get there? That would be a problem—you don't want your message landing in someone else's inbox!So we also give it an origin address (VCI). Now all our packets are ready for the journey ahead!