An apparatus comprising a first interface capable of sponsoring a first
protocol, a first service translation layer converting data formatted in
the first protocol into streams, the first service translation layer
extracting and appending a first path identifier to the streams, a core
responsive to the first service translator for obtaining the streams and
determining a second path identifier therefrom, the core transferring the
streams according to the second path identifier, a second service
translation layer accepting the transferred streams, the second service
translation layer converting the transferred streams into data formatted
according to a second protocol, and a second interface for asserting the
data formatted into the second protocol. A system comprising a virtual
omni-user switching (VOSR) network device, a first network coupled to the
VOSR, the VOSR accepting data from the first network, and a second network
coupled to the VOSR, the VOSR converting the accepted data into a format
compatible with the second network, the VOSR capable of switching data
among the first and second networks and other networks coupled to the
VOSR. A method comprising creating tunnel segments in a public network
supplied data pipe, maintaining a tunnel mapping in private networks
bridged by the data pipe, and switching data between devices in one of the
private networks with devices in another of the private networks bridged
by the data pipe, the tunnel mapping determining the switching, the
switching performed over the data pipe in the tunnels in a fashion
transparent to the public network.