Download MPLS PPT

CCUG Meeting
MPLS/L3VPN LAB
What is MPLS?
MPLS is a highly scalable, protocol agnostic, data-carrying
mechanism.
In an MPLS network, data packets are assigned labels. Packetforwarding decisions are made solely on the contents of this label,
without the need to examine the packet itself.
This allows one to create end-to-end circuits across any type of
transport medium, using any protocol.
wikipedia.org
Original goals of MPLS

Scalability of network layer routing

Greater flexibility in delivering routing services

Increased performance

Simplify integration of routers with cell switching
based technologies
MPLS-Enabled Applications
How does MPLS Work?

MPLS works by prefixing packets with an MPLS
header, containing one or more "labels". This is
called a label stack.
wikipedia.org
What is a label?


A label is a short, four-byte, fixed-length, locallysignificant identifier which is used to identify a
Forwarding Equivalence Class (FEC).
The label is imposed between the data link
layer (Layer 2) header and network layer (Layer
3) header. The top of the label stack appears
first in the packet, and the bottom appears last.
The network layer packet immediately follows
the last label in the label stack.
wikipedia.org
How does the Label move
throughout the network?


These MPLS-labeled packets are switched after
a Label Lookup/Switch instead of a lookup into
the IP table.
The entry and exit points of an MPLS network
are called Label Edge Routers (LER), or
Provider Edge Routers which, respectively,
push an MPLS label onto an incoming packet
and pop it off the outgoing packet.
wikipedia.org
How does the Label move
throughout the network?


Routers that perform routing based only on the
label are called Label Switch Routers (LSR) or
Provider Routers.
Labels are distributed between LERs and LSRs
using the “Label Distribution Protocol” (LDP)
wikipedia.org
What platforms and Cisco IOS
support MPLS?

Cisco Series 2691, 3640, 3660, 3725, 3745,
6400-NRP-1, 6400-NRP-2SV, 6400-NSP,
Catalyst 5000 with Route Switch Module
(RSM), 7200, 7301, 7400, 7500, Catalyst
6500/Cisco 7600 Series with WS-SUP720-3B
and WS-SUP720-3BXL, Gigabit Switch Router
(GSR), Route Processor Module (RPM),
Universal Broadband Router (UBR) 7200,
AS5350, and IGX8400-URM all support MPLS.
cisco.com
Lab

MPLS/L3VPN Lab
Sources

http://www.wikipedia.org/

http://www.cisco.com/

MPLS-Enabled Applications: Emerging
Developments and New Technologies

Ina Minei, Julian Lucek

ISBN-10: 0470986441

ISBN-13: 978-0470986448