Technical Documentation

JUNOS Software Support for VPNs

The JUNOS Software supports several types of virtual private networks (VPNs):

  • Layer 2 VPNs—A Layer 2 VPN links a set of sites that share routing information, and whose connectivity is controlled by a collection of policies. A Layer 2 VPN is not aware of routes within a customer’s network. It simply provides private links between a customer’s sites over the service provider’s existing public Internet backbone.
  • Layer 3 VPNs—A Layer 3 VPN is the same thing as a Layer 2 VPN, but it is aware of routes within a customer’s network, requiring more configuration on the part of the service provider than a Layer 2 VPN. The sites that make up a Layer 3 VPN are connected over a service provider’s existing public Internet backbone.
  • Interprovider VPNs—An interprovider VPN supplies connectivity between two VPNs in separate autonomous systems (ASs). This functionality can be used by a VPN customer with connections to several Internet service providers (ISPs), or different connections to the same ISP in various geographic regions.
  • Carrier-of-carrier VPNs—Carrier-of-carrier VPNs allow a VPN service provider to supply VPN service to a customer who is also a service provider. The latter service provider supplies Internet or VPN service to an end customer.

Published: 2010-04-26