Interfaces and Hardware Component Configuration Guide for Cisco 8000 Series Routers, Cisco IOS XR Releases

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Interfaces and Hardware Component Configuration Guide for Cisco 8000 Series Routers, Cisco IOS XR Releases

GRE encapsulation and decapsulation over BVI

Updated: July 31, 2026

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This topic describes GRE encapsulation and decapsulation over a Bridge-Group Virtual Interface (BVI) on the Cisco 8000 Series Router.

Bridge-Group Virtual Interface (BVI) is a virtual interface that

acts like a normal routed interface
serves as a gateway for the corresponding bridge-domain to a routed interface, and
represents the link between the bridging and the routing domains on the router.

Table 1. Feature History Table
Feature Name	Release Information	Description
GRE encapsulation and decapsulation over BVI	Release 24.4.1	Introduced in this release on: Fixed Systems (8200 [ASIC: P100], 8700 [ASIC: P100, K100])(select variants only); Modular Systems (8800 [LC ASIC: P100])(select variants only) *This feature is now supported on: 8212-48FH-M 8711-32FH-M 8712-MOD-M 88-LC1-12TH24FH-E 88-LC1-36EH+A8:B12 88-LC1-52Y8H-EM
GRE encapsulation and decapsulation over BVI	Release 7.5.4	You can now transport packets using the GRE protocol over Bridge-Group Virtual Interfaces (BVI). This feature uses GRE to encapsulate packets between two endpoints and transmit the encapsulated packets over a BVI interface. At the destination, the GRE packet is decapsulated. GRE encapsulation and decapsulation over BVI allows transmitting packets securely using network layer protocols while maintaining Layer 2 connectivity between the physical interfaces.

How GRE encapsulation and decapsulation over BVI works

The BVI processes GRE traffic through these steps:

The system adds the GRE header to the original IP packet before it sends the packet to the BVI.
The BVI bridges the encapsulated packet to the destination interface.
The destination interface removes the GRE header from the original IP packet.
The interface forwards the resulting IP packet to the final destination.

For information on BVI, see the Integrated Routing and Bridging section in the L2VPN Configuration Guide for Cisco 8000 Series Routers.

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