Introduction to L2/L3 VPNS

Dave Christophe
MFA Forum Education WG Chair
Global Programs
Alcatel-Lucent

The half-day MPLS Virtual Private Network (VPN) Tutorial discusses MPLS Layer 2 VPN models, the MPLS Layer 3 RFC2547-bis model, and briefly highlights the Virtual Router (VR) model. The tutorial describes and contrasts MPLS VPNs to other types of VPNs in use today. The Layer 2 material gives an overview of the different encapsulation drafts available and the ongoing work in the IETF, ITU, and the MPLS, ATM, and Frame Relay Forums. We briefly highlight the new Ethernet Virtual Private LAN Segment (VPLS) work for Ethernet Transparent LAN Services (TLS). The Layer 3 material describes the reference models for MPLS RFC2547 VPNs and details the set-up and operation of Layer 3 MPLS VPNs.

Overview of MPLS/VPN Security

Thomas Nadeau
Principal Engineer
Cisco

 

Much has been written about the MPLS technology and MPLS VPN architecture with less attention to the security aspects and considerations when deploying MPLS.This MFA Forum tutorial focuses on how the MPLS VPN (RFC 2547bis) architecture can be securely implemented and several risk scenarios with recommendations to help mitigate these risks. An explanation of how to effectively secure an MPLS VPN network against threats from the Internet and other VPNs is provided through a discussion of best-practice guidelines for securing the network at both Layers 2 and Layer 3.

Next Generation Ethernet Transport

Monique Morrow
Distinguished Engineer
Cisco

Santiago Alvarez
Manager, Technical Marketing
Cisco

This tutorial will explore and deconstruct the dynamics and details that define the so called Next Generation Ethernet Transport. We will discuss the candidate technologies that include PBB, PBT, PBB-TE (T-MPLS) and MPLS. The tutorial will highlight where these technologies fir into common network deployments and will explore the applicability of new and existing services within the context of these new and emerging technologies. Along the way, we will provide an overview of these technologies as they emerge within the various standards.
 

Multicast in MPLS Networks

Marc Lasserre
MFA Forum Ambassador
Principal Engineer
Alcatel-Lucent

Yakov Rekhter
MFA Forum Ambassador
Juniper Fellow
Juniper Networks

This half day tutorial focuses on the emerging industry standards/agreements supporting multicast in BGP/MPLS VPN and VPLS networks. Key options, benefits and tradeoffs are explored for solutions supporting several prevalent service provider and enterprise applications. Key existing and emerging industry standards/agreements are referenced.

MPLS Core to Door

Dr. Stuart Elby
VP, Network Architecture
Verizon

Network service providers around the globe have focused on the IP/MPLS network transformation to deliver increased bandwidth to support the demands of advanced applications. That focus is now shifting to the development of customer-facing services that will deliver additional benefits of IP/MPLS. Learn how the IP/MPLS transformation – within business access networks, broadband residential services and core network infrastructure – will drive cost savings, simplify network management, enable "core-to-door" packet delivery, provide single service creation and delivery environments and support bandwidth-on-demand applications.

MFA Update

Andrew Malis
Chairman and President
MFA Forum

This talk discusses the current status of the MFA Forum, including its background, the recent merger with the ATM Forum, and details on its recently completed and ongoing work items.

IPSphere Update

Monique Morrow
Vice-Chair
IPSphere Forum

The IPsphere Forum’s mission is to deliver an enhanced commercial framework - or business layer - for IP services that preserves the fundamental ubiquity of the Internet’s technical framework and is also capable of supporting a full range of business relationships so that participants have true flexibility in how they add value to upstream service outcomes. This presentation will provide an overview and update on the activities of the IPSphere Forum.

Branch Office Trends: What are Enterprises Buying and Why?

Robin Gareiss
Executive Vice President and Founding Partner
Nemertes Research

Nemertes Research recently interviewed approximately 100 companies to benchmark how enterprises are supporting an increasingly virtual and distributed workforce. In this presentation we'll share the result of our findings focusing specifically on WAN services such as MPLS, VPLS, and Metro Ethernet. We'll provide insight into enterprise buying trends, views toward carrier services, and drivers for enterprise purchase.

Utilizing Cox's Service Provider Backbone to Migrate the IP VPN infrastructure to Support Enterprise VOIP, data and Customer Call Center Virtulization

Greg Griffs
Senior Network Design Engineer
Cox Communications

Cox Communications has 21 primary locations within the enterprise network. Prior to our service provider backbone build-out in late 2001, these sites were connected by a 3rd party frame relay network. The VPN was then migrated to the Cox backbone using IPSec/GRE tunnels between each of the sites at a tremendous cost savings to the company. The VPN has since been migrated to a combination L2 Pseudowire and BGP/MPLS L3VPN to increase redundancy as well as reduce the load on the enterprise CE devices. This VPN not only carries all internal VOIP and data between markets, but also provides connectivity for our Customer Call Center Virtualization initiative.

Simplicity of LAN, Flexibility of IP, Reliability of SONET: VPLS a New Way of Networking

Alla Reznik
Product Marketing Manager for IP & Ethernet Services
Verizon Business

As Verizon launches its VPLS services Ms. Reznik will discuss the key benefits of VPLS, how enterprises can leverage VPLS services for robust, flexible, delivery of voice video and data services while leveraging current Ethernet CPE deployment.

Options to Deliver ELAN Services

Marc Lasserre
Chief Scientist
Alcatel-Lucent

VPLS has been the dominant technology for delivering scalable any-to-any ELAN services so far. New technologies such as PBB (802.1ah) can also be considered as an alternative. Pros and cons of each approach will be highlighted. We will also discuss how these two technologies are actually complementary. We will look at the implications of using different transport technologies for the delivery of Ethernet services.

Delivering Global Ethernet

Tony Hurtado
VP Global Marketing
Masergy

Learn about the challenges and opportunities service providers face when delivering a global VPLS solution, and how companies are benefiting from a secure extension of their Ethernet local-area network (LAN) throughout the entire wide-area network (WAN). During the session: find out how easy it is to implement a profitable VPLS solution; what types of enterprises are deploying VPLS today; and how to determine if you should be considering VPLS for your corporate network.

Evolution of PBB and PBT

Don Fedyk
Sr. Advisor, CTO
Nortel Networks

Because PBB and PBT technologies are backwards compatible, this evolution of Ethernet, toward greater scale and reliability with traffic engineering capabilities, is ready today. A final aspect of this discussion will include some control plane evolutions for Ethernet, and how GMPLS can be effectively used in the Traffic Engineered PBT context.

PBT Service Gateway Functions

Norival Figueira
System Architect, CTO
Hammerhead Systems

Provider Backbone Transport (PBT) allows carriers to provision engineered and protected point-to-point service trunks in a Provider Backbone Bridge (PBB) network (IEEE 802.1ah). With core MPLS/IP networks already in place, the growth of VPLS deployments, and PBB networks being deployed for Metro transport, PBT service gateway functions are required to allow carriers to extend PBT trunks edge-to-edge over core MPLS/IP networks and to interwork PBT with VPLS. PBT service gateway functions are also required for PBT Inter-Carrier Interconnect (ICI), PBT MPLS peering, circuit emulation over PBT, and seamless transport of traffic of all types over PBT. This talk will discuss the above scenarios as use cases that require a PBT service gateway function to address.

T-MPLS: Is it really Different?

Thomas Nadeau
Architect
Cisco

Recently the ITU-T has embarked on defining a variant of MPLS tailored for simplified optical devices. This work was done separately from the IETF's definition of MPLS based on the reasoning that the this work would create a new version of MPLS, named Transport MPLS (T-MPLS). However, in reality this is and inaccurate description of the work that has been done by this group. T-MPLS really defines nothing more than a sub-set of MPLS that has been implemented and deployed for many years on most if not all of the widely deployed MPLS LSRs. This presentation will explain the reality of what T-MPLS truly is by separating the marketing hype around this from the technical details.

Next Generation Multicast in RFC2547 VPNs

Dr. Yakov Rekhter
Juniper Fellow
Juniper

This presentation describes a new solution to supporting multicast in 2547 VPNs. This solution follows the same architecture, and uses the same mechanisms as the unicast 2547 VPNs.

Wireless Services and the Future of WiMax

Michael Voellinger
VP Analyst, Enterprise Mobility
Telwares

WiMAX is a highly publicized technology with a very bright future. That future, however, is not clear in terms of application and commercial reality. Most important, WiMAX is viewed as a highly efficient option for last mile technology. This will have profound impact on service providers, the consumer, and the global telecom marketplace. We will explore:
o Why is WiMax so highly publicized, and what is the market reality versus the public perception
o How WiMAX fits into the fixed and mobile broadband spectrum
o The impact of WiMAX on the global broadband strategies and business models of service providers, content providers, and hardware manufacturers
o The opportunity in revenue, services and applications that WiMAX will help enable
o Future state from the enterprise and consumer viewpoint

Mobile WIMAX: The Blueprint for Future Wireless Technologies

Jeremy Brayley
Director of Technology Strategy
ECI Telecom

Just like DSL and cable access technologies brought fixed Internet access into the age of broadband a new set of wireless technologies are transitioning mobile Internet services from a narrowband to a broadband era. The WiMAX Forum has developed a network architecture that builds on today’s fixed broadband access networks yet offers mobility, roaming, and newer authentication methods (e.g. EAP). The 3GGP (GSM/UMTS) has just begun to define its future architecture (Service Architecture Evolution) and air interface (Long Term Evolution). This presentation will explain technologies such as Mobile IP, EAP and OFDMA and describe how they will impact future mobile broadband services. We’ll show how the architectural work done by the WiMAX Forum will serve as a blueprint for not only the evolution of WiMAX from a fixed to a mobile service, but also for the next generation of CDMA and UMTS networks.

MPLS/VPLS Integration with regional area networks (RANs)

Douglas Hunt
Director, IP Division
Alcatel-Lucent

As mobile networks roll out next-generation services, a major challenge will be to provide an order of magnitude more bandwidth, at a lower cost per bit, while supporting an increasingly demanding payload. Addressing this challenge will be a major driver in the evolution of mobile backhaul networks. Issues to be addressed in the mobile backhaul include efficient support for a range of legacy access prototols along with the next-generation IP/Ethernet-attached base stations and controllers, synchronization and timing distribution, and meeting the new service demands in what is often a multi-technology and multi-provider infrastructure. This presentation will explain how MPLS pseudo wire technology can be applied to address these challenges in the evolution of mobile backhaul networks.

Wireless over Pseudowires - Ready for Prime Time

Giles Heron
Director, Data Networks Consulting
Tellabs

The challenge for mobile backhaul networks is to efficiently manage traffic migration from TDM, to ATM to IP whilst supporting massive growth in mobile data traffic. MPLS pseudowires decouple service from transport, enabling convergence of all services over a single network using the cheapest available transport, which enables service providers to decouple cost from capacity. This presentation describes issues to be addressed in scaling mobile backhaul deployments including case studies and strategies.

The Role, Value and Challenges of GMPLS in Optical Networks

Robert Au-Yang
Advisory System Engineer
Siemens Communications

In this session, we will examine the role, value and challenges of deploying GMPLS in pure, transparent optical networks. In addition, as technological layers are collapsing, in favoring of convergence, we will discuss the impact to the development of GMPLS for the optical networks under this new converged network.

MPLS VPN Security: Best Practices and Emerging Trends

Monique Morrow
Distinguished Consulting Engineer
Cisco

This presentation defines security and provides an overview of the security pillars - architecture, implementation and operation. The presenters explore potential attack points and provide best practice guidelines in securing these vulnerabilities.

Are They Secure? How to Assess MPLS Providers From a Customer Perspective?

Enno Rey
ERNW GmbH

One of our clients, a multi billion revenue corporation with HQ in New York is currently in the course of a world wide network migration to MPLS based structures. Given the absolute priority of information security at our client and against the background that MPLS-VPNs are not regarded as a "trustworthy technology" in itself an internal evaluation methodology was developed to rate the eligible carriers as for their security/trustworthiness. This methodology consists of detailed questionnaires delivered to the carriers, extensive lab testing together with carrier personnel and on-site reviews. During the talk the methodology and some of the results will be presented and discussed. We will share our experiences and learning curve with the audience. Service providers will learn what security-sensitive customers will expect from them and enterprise people will get an idea how to conduct such an assessment.

Tunnel Free Encryption Solution for MPLS/IP VPNs

Sangita Pandya
Technical Marketing Engineer
NSSTG
Cisco Systems

With the advent of large scale MPLS VPNs, adoption of broadband satellite connections to support remote locations, the dramatic increase in VoIP deployments and concerns over latency, as well as the growth of multicast traffic, there is an ever pressing need to improve methods for encryption. Based on RFC3547, Group Domain of Interpretation, a new IPSec VPN paradigm has emerged to address many of the challenges of today’s site-to-site VPNs. This presentation explores GDOI, integration with IPsec, and benefits for use.

The Great Convergence – of Content, Telecommunications and Business

Stuart McIntosh
Strategy Partner
IBM Communications Practice

The study concludes with an assessment of the implications of convergence for a range of established and new business

OSS for MPLS - Delivering on the Promises

Norman Kincl
Solution Manager, Communications and Media Entertainment Services
Hewlett-Packard Company

The presentation addresses two aspects - service offering and instance – and develops a model including case study aspects of the service offering providing true end-to-end service management across its complete lifecycle. The resulting OSS provides greater control over the service while allowing proactive management of delivered service levels.

IPv6 - Design, Deployment and Challenges

Dr. Luyuan Fang
Senior Product Manager
Cisco

As many Service Providers have been rolling out the deployment of IPv6 services in their networks, the focus is now shafted from understanding the basic IPv6 technologies to network design considerations and the challenges in scalable, high performance, and secure IPv6 deployment. This presentation will briefly discuss the market drivers and deployment strategies for IPv6 deployment. Then we will focus on IPv6 over MPLS design considerations: core design, edge design, RR design, address design, and lessons learned. Challenges for IPv6 deployment will include: scaling issues, QoS and performance, MVPNv6 design, and especially, Security considerations.

Route-Flow Fusion - Routing-Aware Traffic Analysis for Accurate Traffic Engineering

Alex Henthorn-Iwane
VP of Product Marketing
Packet Design

This session will introduce a technology called “route-flow fusion” that efficiently delivers network-wide integrated visibility into routing and traffic, allowing simulation and modeling of network changes on the as-running network state; and will include an end-user network manager to present a case study on route-flow fusion applied to solve thorny network engineering and operations problems

A Zero-Packet-Loss Network-Layer IP Protocol, With MPLS Internetworking

Dr. Curtis A. Siller
VP, Network Architecture
Verizon

It is highly scaleable and circumvents limitations of traditional packet prioritization methods. As an “edge solution”, it uses standard routing protocols and commercial DiffServ routers. Link utilizations exceeding 90% are readily attained. Moreover, it is unnecessary to maintain network “state”, or provide centralized traffic engineering. We remark on the limitations of customary prioritization methods, describe the operation of this unique protocol, and show that it is fully interoperable with multiprotocol label switching. Deployment of the technology at two major medical centers in New York City is described.

Lastest Developments in Techniques for Computing Interarea and Interdomain paths for traffic engineered MPLS

Adrian Farrel
Aria Networks

This presentation will examine new techniques are being discussed in the IETF's PCE working group to enable automatic end-to-end computation and provisioning of TE LSPs while preserving administrative confidentiality, security, and policy. The speaker will describe why the options of TE aggregation have been rejected, and show cooperation between path computation engines can produce an optimal inter-domain path.

MPLS Deployment Experience and Perspective On Developing Countries

Gianpietro Lavado Chiarella
Impsat Fiber Networks Inc.

The audience will learn from the developing country experience, which usually is a longer and harder road to the total technology deployment, but with different points of view and interesting approaches.

Shifting the Network Paradigm

Brett Theiss
Director of Product Management
New Edge Networks, An Earthlink Company

The convergence of applications over a network is causing paradigm shifts from traditional carrier approaches and customer expectations from their providers. New networks are increasingly complex and require carriers to coordinate work beyond the “demarc” point. Customers are turning to their network providers to ensure all their LAN applications perform as expected over their new blended WAN; customer and application-centric SLA’s are emerging; truly strategic partnership relationships between enterprise and provider will be imperative in the new network era. How providers respond will help build customer acceptance of networks and overall market growth as well as individual provider success. In this session, both service providers and enterprises will hear about real-life experiences from innovative networking approaches that are stimulating more customer acceptance and value for providers.

MPLS: Why and How?

Danielle Young
Director of MPLS Services
Verizon Business

Customers are deploying MPLS for a variety or reasons and to support a variety of applications. In addition, customers are seeking the right application management tools to help maximize their bandwidth and fine tune application performance. Danellie Young, director for Verizon Business MPLS Services, along with 2 Verizon Business customers, will discuss how enterprises make important networking choices and explore how MPLS supports mission-critical business applications. For example, we will hear details about deploying VoIP along with real-world feedback on the benefits of prioritizing critical applications to ultimately optimize performance. They will also share how they chose their carrier and what critical questions should be answered prior to implementation. Enterprises continue to face many networking challenges but these customers will share their experiences and why they chose Verizon Business’ Private IP service to meet their stringent requirements.

Optimizing Performance and Meeting the Challenges with MPLS Deployments

Matt Gowarty
Sr. Marketing Manager
Fluke Networks

This presentation will provide a discussion of a real-life enterprise MPLS deployment, focused on optimizing performance and minimizing the risks/challenges.

Application-Centric Performance SLAs for MPLS VPNs

Frank Lyonnet, PhD
Director Product Management
Ipanema Technologies

There has been an increasing trend among enterprises to rely on MPLS WANs to deliver business critical applications across their dispersed sites. Accordingly, enterprises are expecting their service providers to offer SLAs based on network performance. Yet setting up such SLAs can be challenging and several factors should be considered. This presentation will show attendees how to set up SLA performance metrics that are meaningful for the enterprise, focus SLAs on the portion of the network that service providers control and implement SLAs that are easily verifiable by enterprises Ensure that MPLS infrastructure is proactively controlling service levels. Most importantly, attendees will learn about a new breed of MPLS SLAs called Application-centric SLAs. Leading telcos and MSPs such as Orange, BT and Vanco have embraced these application-centric SLAs, which are based on quality-of-experience indicators and technology that provides an exhaustive, per packet measurement of network metrics.

MPLS Performance Management

Brian Robertson
NetScout Systems

Deploying MPLS on an enterprise-scale network takes careful preparation and forethought in order to avoid costly mistakes. There are several phases to any well-planned MPLS deployment, including: performing an audit of the existing network, including bandwidth, applications, response time analysis and establishment of a network baseline; making important decisions for successful pilot testing and eventual rollout; and employing real time monitoring and analysis to help mitigate the impact on existing converged networked business services and help troubleshoot issues as they arise. Good network and application performance health depends on an evidence-based management process throughout the MPLS project’s lifecycle. This becomes even more crucial as the number of advanced, mission critical applications added to the MPLS network continues to rise.

What Enterprise Customers Should Know About Service Assurance

Kaynam Hedayat
CTO & VP of Engineering
Brix Networks

The lack of a business-relevant guarantee of service quality has slowed the migration of business-critical operations to hosted services. Many enterprise customers don’t yet have total confidence in the QoS their provider professes to provide. If customers felt secure to make the leap, they would see the value in lower overall support costs and faster deployment. But many providers are not addressing their customers’ primary concern -- the level of service they will receive -- with proactive service assurance. This session will delineate for enterprise IT professionals the difference between partnering with a provider that offers active service assurance versus partnering with one that does not.

Maximizing QoE with Intelligent & Integrated Network & Applications Performance Monitoring

Brian Gottbetter
Global Director of IP Product Management
Global Crossing

A key element of an end user’s perception of Qualify of Experience (QoE) is how challenging it is to personalize an optimal applications mix as the complexity of the multi-factor convergence supporting that experience grows. As rapidly-evolving technology, including Fixed-Mobile Convergence (FMC), begin to impact Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), it becomes even more essential to embed more intelligence in the solution. Hardware and software once categorized as “value-added” are now integral network components for effective and efficient management. VoIP and Video are quickly invading the enterprise and these latency-intolerant applications are driving the need for intuitive monitoring and reporting—literally second-by-second. Users need efficient network and applications performance management capabilities to achieve their desired QoE. Attend this session to learn more about an actual implementation, as well as to obtain a view into some potential future paths this technology can take.

Enterprise Case Studies

Cedric Lockhart
VP, Network Competency Center
Orange Business Services

Amaud Messager
Director Business Development
Orange Business Services

Orange Business Services will share its experience and views in implementing network services on a global basis. The following subject will be addressed: connectivity solutions for large offices, small offices and remote offices; interprovider connectivity (with specific Orange implementation case study). Orange will then show case integration of content-aware technologies (Multicast/XML routing) and how it can be adapted to a specific vertical market.