virtual circuit (networking) A connection-oriented network service which is implemented on top of a network which may be either connection-oriented or connectionless (packet switching).
The term "switched virtual circuit" was coined needlessly to distinguish an ordinary virtual circuit from a permanent virtual circuit. (One of the perpetrators of this confusion appears to be ["Networking Essentials", 1996, Microsoft Press, ISBN 1-55615-806-8], a book aimed at people preparing for the MCSE exam on LANs and WANs). Not to be confused with switched virtual connection. Last updated: 2001-10-26
