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FREE online courses on ECOMMERCE FUNDAMENTALS - Electronic Data
Interchange - Point to point connectivity |
Virtually all EDI is conducted
using what is called point-to-point connectivity. It is rare that EDI
partners will tie their internal networks together. ‘Point-to-point'
connectivity means that the connection between sender and receiver is fixed and
used solely for the purpose of EDI. How long the points are connected depends on
whether the EDI user selects dial-up or dedicated mode.
In dial-up mode, the connection is established by placing a
call through the public switched telephone network. As long as the computers at
opposite ends of the telephone circuit exchange data, the connection will remain
open. The connection ends when one of the computer terminates the call by
hanging up.
In dedicated mode a telephone
circuit is connected constantly. The computers connected to either end of the
circuit may exchange data at any time by entering into a predefined dialogue. No
dialing is required since the telephone circuit is always available.
The dedicated mode level of service is generally not
required. EDI exchanges tend to occur in bursts of file transfer activity at the
beginning and end of a company's batch production cycles. A dedicated circuit is
needed when transactions are volume or time-sensitive as is the case with
‘Just-in-time' programs
