[c-nsp] Seamless MPLS interacting with flat LDP domains

[Mark Tinka]

On 2/May/19 14:14, adamv0025 at netconsultings.com wrote:

> Though it's interesting that the same people who are afraid of the simple
> bit which is the hop by hop transport are fine with the complex EVPN bit on
> top :)

Which is exactly why the market I was in that was heavily using VPLS at
the time was mostly about bragging than actual function.

Anyone that came to me asking for VPLS, I asked them what l3vpn didn't
do enough. We never deployed a VPLS customer, even if the network itself
was running VPLS for PPPoE backhaul. I mean, I would sort of understand
if your payload was IPX/SPX, DECnet or AppleTalk... but anyone running
such payloads is probably more comfortable building and operating an
X.25, Frame Relay or ATM network!

The constant need to re-invent yourself so that you can appeal to your
customers or employers is what has seen a number of inappropriate
technologies being deployed in Service Provider and Enterprise networks.
In 2014, a customer wanted to nail a 10Gbps EoMPLS service on specific
paths on our IP/MPLS backbone, which meant we'd have had to use RSVP. I
directed them to our EoDWDM service instead. Not every knob needs to be
touched, unless it's the one that rules them all :-).

> But I get it vendors nowadays assume the crowd's networking knowledge is
> subpar hence these nicely pre-packaged click a button solutions for DC
> deployments. 

I was speaking with a friend in the community a few months ago...
perhaps good old fashioned routing workshops at NOG's will make a
glorious come-back, since focus is less on what you can do by hand and
more about what you can click with a mouse (in the process, losing the
basics). But alas, there are no teachers anymore, as we've found. They
are in short supply, busy with day jobs, and the new blood that's coming
up is too far disconnected from the basics of deploying and running an
IP network, they'd rather be fooling around with an app somewhere.

There I go, rambling about the good old days, already :-)...

Mark.