This is the ceiling on how many concurrent SCTP associations this device can maintain across all applications, with a value of -1 specifically meaning the limit is dynamic (e.g., bounded only by available memory) rather than a fixed number. It's the number to check first when a signaling gateway starts rejecting new SCTP associations under load, since hitting this cap would explain new-association failures even while existing ones continue operating normally. A device configured with a limit of 5000 that's consistently sitting near that number via cSctpCurrEstab is a candidate for a hardware upgrade or limit increase before it starts refusing new signaling links.