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L3VPN

Layer 3 Virtual Private Network

Layer 3 Virtual Private Networks (l3vpn): L3VPN is a technology based on PE. It uses MPLS to forward VPN packets over service provider backbones.

L3VPN comprises the following types of devices:

Customer edge (CE) device---A CE resides on a customer network and has one or more interfaces directly connected to service provider networks. It can be a router, a switch, or a host.

  • Provider edge (PE) device---A PE resides at the edge of a service provider network and connects one or more CEs. On an MPLS network, all VPN services are processed on the PEs.

  • Provider (P) device---A P device is a core device on a service provider network. It is not directly connected to any CE. It has only basic MPLS forwarding capability.