What Is MPLS & Why Is It Used?

Multi-Protocol Label Switching is a method to ensure that the packets of data go where they are supposed to in an appropriate way and priority. Every packet is labeled with one or more labels, and these packets pass through the MPLS network; these labels may be added or removed.

Source - Visually

The Various Benefits Of These Networks Are

Uptime Improves

In this network there are fewer downtimes as the data is sent over the alternative path is no time if a path exists. The manual intervention is also reduced significantly that is required to create a WAN. Thus the chances of human errors bringing down the network are reduced significantly.

Scalability

If you want to add the site to the VPN, with MPLS, it is very easy. As against the traditional approaches you don’t need a complex mesh of tunnels which needed to be configured.

User Experience Is Enhanced

With it, you can give priority to the time-sensitive traffic such as VoIP. MPLS offers multiple classes of service, and this enables you to apply separate settings to different types of traffic.

Bandwidth Utilization Is Improved

It allows you to put multiple types of vehicles on the same link. Thus you can let high priority traffic to borrow capacity from the lower priority traffic streams as per the requirement. In the same way, when the lower priority traffic needs additional bandwidth, it can use the bandwidth that’s not being utilized by the high priority traffic services.

Less Complexity

An MPLS connection between two sites may be configured to act as a long Ethernet cable. The hops that are involved are invisible. It is commonly called as Virtual Private LAN Service.

Reduced Congestion

At times the shortest path between the two locations is not the best one to take because of more congestion. When it happens, these paths become less attractive. With MPLS you get the sophisticated traffic engineering that enables traffic to be sent on the non-standard path. It reduces any delay in sending or receiving the packets. Besides with traffic diversion, the congested paths also see a reduction in the congestion.

Where Is It Most Suited?

MPLS is mainly useful in the situations where:

• Many kinds of traffic share a data connection, and there is a priority assigned to certain kind of traffic.
• Where there is high requirement for the uptime
• Where there may some issued of the network congestion
• Where new sites need to be connected to various locations while being invisible to the other sites.

MPLS-Based VPN

It is very useful in VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) that allows the customer of the service provider to connect to geographically different locations. There are three kinds of VPNs:

Layer-3 VPN

In this, the service provider is actively involved in Layer-3 routing. The customer’s CE router uses BGP or OSPF protocol to communicate with vendor’s PE router.  They are attractive to clients who want to take advantage of the service provider’s technical expertise for getting efficient site-to-site routing.

Layer-2 VPN

In this, the provider interconnects the various sites of the customer with the help of the Layer-2 technologies (ATM, Frame Relay or the Ethernet). The client is free to implement any protocol that he wants to run. They are very useful for the customers who want the complete control of the routing.

VPLS

Virtual Private LAN Service makes the service provider’s network look like a single Ethernet switch. The main advantage of this service is that the customers can make their WAN seem like a LAN that makes use of Ethernet.

In the end, as a customer, you have to decide what kind of MPLS Network you want to have to get the maximum benefit for your business.