ATM network available bit rate (ABR) explicit rate flow control system

The present invention relates in general to data processing networks, and in particular to Available Bit Rate (ABR) data flow control in Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) networks. A method of flow control for Available Bit Rate (ABR) sources in an Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) network is implemented. An effective rate for the source is determined by an ATM switch based on a critically damped second order system. The effective rate is damped toward a share value that is based on the source queue length, a target queue length, and the actual cell rates of the connected ABR sources sending traffic through the ATM switch. The resulting feedback loop ensures that the source queue length will not exceed the target queue length.