virtual circuit

A logical circuit created to ensure reliable communication between two network devices. A virtual circuit is defined by a virtual path identifier/virtual channel identifier (VPI/VCI) pair, and can be either a permanent virtual circuit (PVC) or switched virtual circuit (SVC). Virtual circuits are used in Frame Relay and X.25. In Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), a virtual circuit is called a virtual channel. Sometimes abbreviated VC. See also PVC, SVC, VCI, virtual route, and VPI.