In this paper, we consider the performance of optical circuit switching (OCS) systems designed for data center networks by using network-level simulation. Recent proposals have used OCS in data center networks but the relatively slow switching times of OCS-MEMS switches (10–100 ms) and the latencies of control planes in these approaches have limited their use to the largest data center networks with workloads that last several seconds. Herein, we extend the applicability and generality of these studies by considering dynamically changing short-lived circuits in software-controlled OCS switches, using the faster switching technologies that are now available. The modelled switch architecture features fast optical switches in a single hop topology with a centralized, software-defined optical control plane. We model different workloads with various traffic aggregation parameters to investigate the performance of such designs across usage patterns. Our results show that, with suitable choices for the OCS system parameters, delay performance comparable to that of electrical data center networks can be obtained.