FAQ:Does retransmitting DCC packets consume all the bandwidth and affect throttles?

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DCC Categories	Beginner, Command Station
Related Articles: Digital Packet Zero Stretching FAQ:Does zero stretching have an effect on normal digital operation?

Although simple low end DCC command stations may provide for control of a limited number of engines and repeatedly cycle through all the addresses in use, higher end systems may use a priority-based scheme, where packets containing values which have changed are prioritised over those that have no changes. Thus, repeating packets does not necessarily impact the effective bandwidth of the system.

More sophisticated command stations use an algorithm to determine packet priority. Packets containing updated commands, such as speed or functions, will be prioritized over those which simply refresh the state of the decoder.

A notable bandwidth hog is Zero Stretching.