RFC 2735 (rfc2735) - Page 1 of 12

NHRP Support for Virtual Private Networks

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Network Working Group                                             B. Fox
Request for Comments: 2735                         Equipe Communications
Category: Standards Track                                       B. Petri
                                                              Siemens AG
                                                           December 1999


               NHRP Support for Virtual Private Networks


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 (1999).  All Rights Reserved.

Abstract

   The NBMA Next Hop Resolution Protocol (NHRP) is used to determine the
   NBMA subnetwork addresses of the "NBMA next hop" towards a public
   internetworking layer address (see [1]).  This document describes the
   enhancements necessary to enable NHRP to perform the same function
   for private internetworking layer addresses available within the
   framework of a Virtual Private Network (VPN) service on a shared NBMA
   network.

1. Introduction

   NHRP is a public internetworking layer based resolution protocol.
   There is an implicit understanding in [1] that a control message
   applies to the public address space.

   Service Providers of Virtual Private Network (VPN) services will
   offer VPN participants specific service level agreements (SLA) which
   may include, for example, dedicated routing functions and/or specific
   QoS levels.  A particularly important feature of a VPN service is the
   ability to use a private address space which may overlap with the
   address space of another VPN or the Public Internet.  Therefore, such
   an internetworking layer address only has meaning within the VPN in
   which it exists.  For this reason, it is necessary to identify the
   VPN in which a particular internetworking layer address has meaning,
   the "scope" of the internetworking layer address.



Fox & Petri                 Standards Track
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