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Networking : Multiprotocol Label Switching [MPLS] Overviews ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) is a type of data-carrying technique for high-performance telecommunications networks. MPLS directs data from one network node to the next based on short path labels rather than long network addresses, avoiding complex lookups in a routing table. The labels identify virtual links (paths) between distant nodes rather than endpoints. MPLS can encapsulate packets of various network protocols, hence its name "multiprotocol". MPLS supports a range of access technologies, including T1/E1, ATM, Frame Relay, and DSL. MPLS allows most data packets to be forwarded at Layer 2 -- the switching level -- rather than having to be passed up to Layer 3 -- the routing level. For this reason, it is often informally described as operating at Layer 2.5. MPLS was created in the late 1990s as a more efficient alternative to traditional IP routing, which requires each router to independently determine a packet's next hop by inspecting the packet's destination IP address before consulting its own routing table. This process consumes time and hardware resources, potentially resulting in degraded performance for real-time applications such as voice and video. Components of MPLS One of the defining features of MPLS is its use of labels -- the L in MPLS. Sandwiched between Layers 2 and 3, a label is a four-byte -- 32-bit -- identifier that conveys the packet's predetermined forwarding path in an MPLS network. Labels can also contain information related to quality of service (QoS), indicating a packet's priority level. MPLS labels consist of four parts: Label value: 20 bits Experimental: 3 bits Bottom of stack: 1 bit Time to live: 8 bits For More Details https://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/definition/Multiprotocol-Label-Switching-MPLS https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiprotocol_Label_Switching
