Pseudowire Emulation Edge-to-Edge (PWE3) Control Word for Use over an MPLS PSN
RFC 4385
Document | Type |
RFC - Proposed Standard
(February 2006; Errata)
Updated by RFC 5586
Was draft-ietf-pwe3-cw (pwe3 WG)
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Authors | Luca Martini , George Swallow , Stewart Bryant , Danny McPherson | ||
Last updated | 2020-01-21 | ||
Stream | Internent Engineering Task Force (IETF) | ||
Formats | plain text html pdf htmlized (tools) htmlized with errata bibtex | ||
Stream | WG state | (None) | |
Document shepherd | No shepherd assigned | ||
IESG | IESG state | RFC 4385 (Proposed Standard) | |
Action Holders |
(None)
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Consensus Boilerplate | Unknown | ||
Telechat date | |||
Responsible AD | Mark Townsley | ||
Send notices to | (None) |
Network Working Group S. Bryant Request for Comments: 4385 G. Swallow Category: Standards Track L. Martini Cisco Systems D. McPherson Arbor Networks February 2006 Pseudowire Emulation Edge-to-Edge (PWE3) Control Word for Use over an MPLS PSN Status of This Memo This document specifies an Internet standards track protocol for the Internet community, and requests discussion and suggestions for improvements. Please refer to the current edition of the "Internet Official Protocol Standards" (STD 1) for the standardization state and status of this protocol. Distribution of this memo is unlimited. Copyright Notice Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2006). Abstract This document describes the preferred design of a Pseudowire Emulation Edge-to-Edge (PWE3) Control Word to be used over an MPLS packet switched network, and the Pseudowire Associated Channel Header. The design of these fields is chosen so that an MPLS Label Switching Router performing MPLS payload inspection will not confuse a PWE3 payload with an IP payload. 1. Introduction The standard MPLS encapsulations have no explicit protocol identifier. In order for a pseudowire (PW) [RFC3985] to operate correctly over an MPLS packet switched network (PSN) that performs MPLS payload inspection, a PW packet must not appear to a label switching router (LSR) as if it were an IP packet [BCP]. An example of an LSR that performs MPLS payload inspection is one that is performing equal-cost multiple-path load-balancing (ECMP) [RFC2992]. If ECMP were performed on PW packets, the packets in the PW may not all follow the same path through the PSN. This may result in misordered packet delivery to the egress PE. The inability to ensure that all packets belonging to a PW follow the same path may also prevent the PW Operations and Management (OAM) [VCCV] mechanism from correctly monitoring the PW. Bryant, et al. Standards Track [Page 1] RFC 4385 PW3 Control Word for Use over an MPLS PSN February 2006 This document specifies how the PW control word is used to distinguish a PW payload from an IP payload carried over an MPLS PSN. It then describes the preferred design of a PW Control Word to be use over an MPLS PSN, and the Pseudowire Associated Channel Header. 1.1. Conventions Used in This Document The key words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT", "SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and "OPTIONAL" in this document are to be interpreted as described in RFC 2119 [RFC2119]. 2. Avoiding ECMP A PW that is carried over an MPLS PSN that uses the contents of the MPLS payload to select the ECMP path may be subjected to packet misordering [BCP]. In cases where the application using the PW is sensitive to packet misordering, or where packet misordering will disrupt the operation of the PW, it is necessary to prevent the PW being subjected to ECMP. All IP packets [RFC791] [RFC2460] start with a version number that is checked by LSRs performing MPLS payload inspection. To prevent the incorrect processing of packets carried within a PW, PW packets carried over an MPLS PSN MUST NOT start with the value 4 (IPv4) or the value 6 (IPv6) in the first nibble [BCP], as those are assumed to carry normal IP payloads. This document defines a PW header and two general formats of that header. These two formats are the PW MPLS Control Word (PWMCW), which is used for data passing across the PW, and a PW Associated Channel Header (PWACH), which can be used for functions such as OAM. If the first nibble of a PW packet carried over an MPLS PSN has a value of 0, this indicates that the packet starts with a PWMCW. If the first nibble of a packet carried over an MPLS PSN has a value of 1, it starts with a PWACH. The use of any other first nibble value for a PW packet carried over an MPLS PSN is deprecated. If a PW is sensitive to packet misordering and is being carried over an MPLS PSN that uses the contents of the MPLS payload to select the ECMP path, it MUST employ a mechanism that prevents packet misordering. A suitable mechanism is the PWMCW described in Section 3 for data, and the PWACH described in Section 5 for channel- associated traffic. The PWMCW or the PWACH MUST immediately follow the bottom of the MPLS label stack. Bryant, et al. Standards Track [Page 2] RFC 4385 PW3 Control Word for Use over an MPLS PSN February 2006Show full document text