Backhaul connects local and major routing systems in telecommunications, broadcasting, and computing. It originated from land transportation and is a software system that uses basic telecommunication protocols. It is used in cell phones, ATMs, corporate networks, and satellite communication systems. The broadcast version focuses on routing speed and cost efficiency, requiring precise organization between different groups.
In a telecommunications system, a backhaul is the portion that connects the backbone and perimeter networks. For example, with a cell phone system, towers connect to local phones and create a large but local network. The towers communicate with a central routing system that can communicate with all towers in the system. The towers LAN is an edge system, the core system is the backbone, and the communication method between them is backhaul. This term has many other meanings in other technical fields, but they all revolve around the same ideas.
The term backhaul has a long history in the fields of telecommunications, computers, and broadcasting. It probably originated as a term used in land transportation to talk about using a secondary route to get to a destination faster. This term has been co-opted to describe moving data from one place to another as efficiently as possible. From there, it entered telecommunications as a segment of the system and broadcasting as a method of getting programming where it needs to be for broadcast.
The definition of telecommunications is the more used of the two. In this case, a backhaul describes a primarily software system that connects two primarily hardware systems together. While the above example uses cell phones, any communication system is likely to have backhaul. The primary requirement is two major hardware-based systems, usually a local system and a major routing system. Either way, these systems need a specialized method of communicating with each other.
These systems are varied, but all use basic telecommunication protocols to communicate with each other. In addition to cell phones, ATMs, multi-location corporate networks, and satellite communication systems all use backhaul systems to communicate. In all of these examples, backhaul is an actual system of software and routing paths.
The broadcast version of backhaul is used less and describes a method for moving information rather than the system for moving it. In this case, the term is used to refer to how information travels from one place to another to reach a central system. The primary focus of this definition is routing speed and cost efficiency. For example, if a TV show needs an uplink at a certain time for broadcast, it’s important that the show arrives on time and intact on the network’s systems.
This form of backhaul dates back to the original version, where the goal was to arrive safely at a specific time. This module requires precise organization between different groups to make sure that data flows as it should. This will often require bypassing common transmission routes in favor of slower, but more reliable means.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
