Your software release may not support all the features documented in this module. For the latest caveats and feature information, see Bug Search Tool and the release notes for your platform and software release. To find information about the features documented in this module, and to see a list of the releases in which each feature is supported, see the feature information table at the end of this module.

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• Configure MPLS TE tunnels.
• Enable Cisco Express Forwarding in global configuration mode.
• Enable RSVP.
• Configure EtherChannel.
• Configure MLP.

• Traffic engineering over Service Virtual Interfaces (SVIs) is not supported unless the SVI consists of a bundle of links that represent a single point-to-point interface.
• There must be a valid IP address configuration on the bundled interface and there must not be an IP address configuration on the member links.
• To ensure that the Fast Reroute feature functions correctly in MLP, enter the multilinkmin-links command (to specify the preferred minimum number of links) along with the mandatory keyword (to deactivate the MLP bundle if the minimum number of links is not present).

Cisco Express Forwarding --A means for accelerating the forwarding of packets within a router, by storing route lookup information in several data structures instead of in a route cache.

CLNS --Connectionless Network Services. The Open System Interconnection (OSI) network layer service that does not require a circuit to be established before the data is transmitted. CLNS routes messages to their destination independently of any other messages.

CSPF --Constrained Shortest Path First. A routing protocol that calculates the shortest path based on a set of constraints, such as a minimum bandwidth requirement, maximum number of nodes, or nodes to include or exclude.

enterprise network --A large and diverse network connecting most major points in a company or other organization.

headend --The endpoint of a broadband network. All stations send toward the headend; the headend then sends toward the destination stations.

IGP --Interior Gateway Protocol. An Internet protocol used to exchange routing information within an autonomous system. Examples of common Internet IGPs include Interior Gateway Routing protocol (IGRP), Open Shortest Path First (OSPF), and Routing Information Protocol (RIP).

interface --A network connection.

IS-IS --Intermediate System-to-Intermediate System. OSI link-state hierarchical routing protocol based on DECnet Phase V routing, where ISs (routers) exchange routing information based on a single metric, to determine the network topology.

LSP --label switched path.A sequence of hops (R0...Rn) in which a packet travels from R0 to Rn through label switching mechanisms. A label switched path can be chosen dynamically, based on normal routing mechanisms, or through configuration.

message-pacing --The former name of the rate limiting feature.

MPLS --Multiprotocol Label Switching (formerly known as tag switching). A method for directing packets primarily through Layer 2 switching rather than Layer 3 routing. In MPLS, packets are assigned short fixed-length labels at the ingress to an MPLS cloud by using the concept of forwarding equivalence classes. Within the MPLS domain, the labels are used to make forwarding decisions mostly without recourse to the original packet headers.

OSPF --Open Shortest Path First. A link-state, hierarchical Interior Gateway Protocol (IGP) routing protocol. derived from the Intermediate System-Intermediate System (IS-IS) protocol. OSPF features are least-cost routing, multipath routing, and load balancing.

router --A network layer device that uses one or more metrics to determine the optimal path along which network traffic should be forwarded. Routers forward packets from one network to another based on network layer information.

RSVP --Resource Reservation Protocol. A protocol that supports the reservation of resources across an IP network.

scalability --An indicator showing how quickly some measure of resource usage increases as a network gets larger.

TLV --type, length, value objects. TLVs are used in data communication to provide optional information. The type field indicates the type of items in the value field. The length field indicates the length of the value field. The value field is the data portion of the packet.

topology --The physical arrangement of network nodes and media within an enterprise networking structure.

traffic engineering --Techniques and processes that cause routed traffic to travel through the network on a path other than the one that would have been chosen if standard routing methods were used.

traffic engineering tunnel --A label-switched tunnel that is used for traffic engineering. Such a tunnel is set up through means other than normal Layer 3 routing; it is used to direct traffic over a path different from the one that Layer 3 routing would cause the tunnel to take.