Traffic Policing

Traffic policing is a network traffic control method that monitors and enforces traffic contracts. It allows users to control the rate of traffic transmitted or received on an interface and to partition traffic into different priority levels.

Here are some ways traffic policing works:

Traffic monitoring:

Traffic policing monitors network traffic to ensure it complies with a traffic contract.

Traffic enforcement:

Traffic policing enforces traffic contracts by taking steps to limit traffic or discard excessive traffic.

Traffic classification:

Traffic policing can classify traffic and take different actions on each packet based on the evaluation result. For example, a packet may be forwarded, dropped, or forwarded with a different precedence.

Traffic shaping:

Traffic shaping is a method traffic sources can use to ensure their output stays within a traffic contract.

Traffic policing is often used to limit traffic into or out of a network, especially at the network's edge. It's also commonly used to police the volume of traffic entering the networks of internet service providers (ISPs).