What You'll Learn

• BGP and the enterprise network
• MPLS and MPLS VPNs, emphasizing PE-to-CE BGP as an access protocol
• Enterprise QoS in an MPLS domain

Course Outline

1. BGP (includes Labs)

Lesson 1:

• BGP Overview
• Introducing BGP
• Establishing BGP Sessions
• Understanding BGP Path Attributes
• Processing BGP Routes
• Configuring Basic BGP
• Monitoring and Troubleshooting BGP

Lesson 2:

• Using Multihomed BGP Networks
• Using AS-Path Filters
• Using Prefix-Lists
• Using Route-Maps
• Implementing Changes

Lesson 3:

• Influencing BGP Route Selection with Weights
• Setting Local Preference
• Using AS-Path Prepend
• Using MED
• Using Communities

Lesson 4:

• Customer-to-Provider Connectivity
• Using Static Routes
• Connecting to Single Service Provider
• Connecting to Multiple Service Providers

Lesson 5:

• Using Peer Groups
• Route Dampening

2. MPLS

Lesson 1:

• Introducing Basic MPLS Concepts
• Introducing MPLS Labels and Label Stacks

Lesson 2:

• Label Distribution

Lesson 3:

• MPLS VPN Architecture
• MPLS VPN Routing
• Forwarding MPLS VPN Packets

Lesson 4:

• Configuring BGP between the PE and CE

Lesson 5:

• Managed MPLS Services

3. QoS

Lesson 1:

• Understanding the Need for QoS
• Understanding IP QoS

Lesson 2:

• QoS Models
• Differentiated Services
• QoS Mechanisms
• High-Priority vs. Low-Priority Packets

Lesson 3:

• Classification and Marking of Packets
• NBAR

Lesson 4:

• Introduction to Queuing
• FIFO and WFQ
• CBWFQ and LLQ

Lesson 5:

• Congestion Avoidance
• Introduction to WRED
• CB-WRED

Lesson 6:

• Policing and Shaping

Labs

This course features select BGP labs. There are no MPLS or QoS labs in the course.

Lab 1: Network Setup

Establish physical connectivity between the student routers, configure IP addressing, enable an Interior Routing Protocol, and verify routing among the student routers.

Lab 2: Configuring EBGP Peerings

Create two EBGP peerings, advertise networks into BGP, and redistribute your IGP into BGP. Additionally, you will notice the effects of BGP auto-summarization and summarize your pod's routes to your external neighbor.

Lab 3: Configuring IBGP Peerings

In this exercise, configure an IBGP peering with the other edge router in your pod, simulating a network with redundancy and giving a backup path in case there are problems with your other external path. Learn peering with loopback interfaces, the effect of BGP synchronization, and BGP next-hop behavior. Examine the effects of multihoming on path selection, both internally and on the external neighbors.

Lab 4: Using AS-Path Filters and Regular Expressions

Prevent your network from becoming a transit autonomous system by filtering updates to the external routers and manipulating path selection between the external peers using a combination of AS-path filters and regular expressions.

Lab 5: Using Prefix Lists

In this exercise, implement a policy about routes your AS accepts and advertises. Filter the routes advertised to your autonomous system by using prefix lists applied to routing updates from your external neighbors.

Lab 6: Soft Reconfiguration and Route Refresh

Explore less disruptive ways to make your BGP policy take effect other than clearing your peer relationships. Monitor and verify the actions of BGP Route Refresh and configure BGP soft inbound reconfiguration.

Lab 7: Configuring the Weight Attribute

In this exercise, you will set a policy on individual routers using the Weight attribute in order to control BGP path selection on those routers. Configure a second BGP peering for each of your BGP routers, then set a weight value for routes received from each EBGP neighbor, and monitor the resulting path choice.

Lab 8: Configuring the Local Preference Attribute

Set a policy that affects your entire autonomous system using the Local Preference attribute to control BGP path selection by all routers with your autonomous system.

Lab 9: AS-Path Prepending

Use AS-Path Prepending to influence the BGP path chosen by other routers in the Internet for traffic bound for your AS. Configure AS-Path Prepending in order to make one path into your AS look more attractive than the other.

Lab 10: Configuring the Multi-Exit Discriminator (MED) Attribute

Use the MED attribute to influence the BGP path selection by routers in neighboring autonomous systems for traffic bound to your autonomous system.

Lab 11: Using the Community Attribute

Explore ways of using the Community attribute to tag routes. Configure the use of that attribute in setting local preference BGP policies within your autonomous system.