[c-nsp] MVPN vs. plain-old-multicast

[Jason Lixfeld]

Hi all,

We’ve got an A9K MPLS core that we do all sorts of fun stuff on, including LSM.  Yay for a PIM-free core!

We’ve also got a whack of ME3600 PEs in ring that hang off of the A9Ks.  Also fully MPLS enabled; all L3 ME3600 and A9K core.  While looking to bring multicast out to these ME3600 PEs, which don’t support LSM, we’re faced with whether or not we deploy MVPN or just plain-old-multicast.  In our particular deployment, multicast receivers, which we own and control, would be hanging off of our ME3600 PEs.  As such, all sources (behind the LSM core) and all receivers would all be in the same VRF.

In order to do MVPN, we’d have to enable PIM between the ME3600s and the A9Ks anyway, so since this is all in a common VRF, is there really any benefit to doing MVPN?

Thanks in advance for any insight.