Datasheet

Data Sheet
© 2008 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. This document is Cisco Public Information. Page 7 of 18
IP Service Level Agreement (IP SLA)
Cisco IOS Software IP SLAs help enable customers to assure new business-critical IP
applications, as well as IP services that utilize data, voice, and video. With Cisco IOS Software IP
SLAs, users can verify service guarantees, increase network reliability by validating network
performance, proactively identify network issues, and increase return on investment (ROI) by
easing the deployment of new IP services. Cisco IOS Software IP SLAs use active monitoring to
generate traffic in a continuous, reliable, and predictable manner, thus facilitating the
measurement of network performance and health.
The IP SLA for Metro-Ethernet feature provides the capability to gather Ethernet layer network
performance metrics. This feature integrates Cisco IOS Software IP SLAs with the Ethernet
Connectivity Fault Management (CFM) feature. Available statistical measurements for the IP SLAs
Ethernet operation include round-trip time, jitter (interpacket delay variance), and packet loss.
Resilient Ethernet Protocol
Resilient Ethernet Protocol (REP) is a Cisco proprietary protocol that provides an alternative to
Spanning Tree Protocol to control network loops, handle link failures, and improve convergence
time. REP is designed to meet service providers’ requirement for a fast and predicable
reconvergence solution for Layer 2 networks. In addition, REP also supports VLAN load balancing
to provide efficient utilization of redundant links.
Applications
VPNs allow customers at different locations to exchange information through a service provider
network, without requiring private connections. The Cisco Catalyst 3750 Metro Series is ideal for
service provider Metro Ethernet access deployments, allowing providers to offer Layer 2 or Layer 3
VPN services to their enterprise or commercial customers. Typically, Cisco Catalyst 3750 Metro
Series Switches are installed in a building basement serving many customers in the building or at
the customer premises as the customer-located equipment (CLE).
Figure 2 shows a deployment example using the Cisco Catalyst 3750 Metro Series for Layer 2
VPN service.
Figure 2. Layer 2 VPN on the Cisco Catalyst 3750 Metro Series
Figure 3 shows a network example of using the Cisco Catalyst 3750 Metro Series for Layer 3
MPLS VPN service.