MPLS Layer 2 VPNs

MPLS Layer 2 VPNs

Service to allow Layer 2 connectivity between customer sites.
  • VPWS - Virtual Private Wire Service
    • Point-to-point connection
    • Can use L2TPv3 over an IP network
    • Can use MPLS for the transport (AToM)
  • AToM - Any Transport over MPLS
 
Advantages to the customer,
  • Identical to traditional WAN services - engineers familiar with this model
  • Can have its own routing and service polices
  • Allows a single infrastructure for both IP and traditional services
  • Optimizes data center solution - same broadcast domain
  • Maintains enterprise autonomy
Advantages for the service provider
  • Migration path to MPLS or IP Core
  • Service continuity
  • Lower cost due to single infrastructure
  • Maintains customer autonomy
 
MPLS transport uses two labels in the stack
  • Top label (Tunnel Label) is used to transport the packet from the ingress PE to the egress PE
  • Second label (VC Label) is used on the egress PE to identify the egress interface

L2 VPN components

  • AC - Attachment Circuit - circuit between the CE and PE, mapped to the VC for transport
  • PW - Pseudowire - emulates the operation of a virtual wire
  • Underlying transport - MPLS with targeted LDP or IP with L2TPv3

L2 VPN Types

Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF)
IETF
Cisco
E-Line (P-to-P)
Ethernet Private Line (EPL) Ethernet Virtual Private Line (EVPL)
Virtual Private Wire Service (VPWS)
Ethernet Wire Service (EWS) Ethernet Relay Service (ERS)
E-LAN (Multipoint)
Transparent LAN Service (TLS) Ethernet Virtual Connection Service (EVCS)
Virtual Private LAN Service (VPLS)
Ethernet Multipoint Service (EMS) Ethernet Relay Multipoint Service (ERMS)
Cisco specific names not commonly used anymore.
 

Flexible Ethernet Mapping

  • Processes and classifies various Ethernet frame types (Ethertype, VLAN tag, CoS)
  • Cisco ASR 9000 used the Ethernet Flow Point (EFP) concept
  • Each Ethernet flow from the access side is mapped or connected to a service on the trunk side.
 

point-to-point (E-line)

Local connect
  • Two EFPs on the same platform
  • Uses native Ethernet
EoMPLS
  • Two EFPs on diffrent platforms
  • Connected with Pseudowires (PW)

Multipoint (E-LAN)

Local bridging
  • Two or more EFPs on the same platform
  • Uses native Ethernet in a bridge domain
VPLS bridging
  • Two or more EFPs on different platforms in a bridge domain
  • Connected with a full mesh of Pseudowires (PW)
 
VPLS
VPLS
EoMPLS
EoMPLS