MPLS (Multiprotocol Label Switching)

MPLS (Multiprotocol Label Switching) is a method for forwarding data packets in provider and enterprise networks in which packets are transported over predefined paths on the basis of short labels instead of their destination IP address. The architecture has been described in RFC 3031 of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) since 2001.

At the network entrance, a router assigns each packet to a forwarding class and attaches a label; the following routers evaluate only this label and forward the packet along a label switched path. Services such as MPLS VPNs build on this, via which providers connect enterprise sites in a logically separated manner, as well as traffic engineering and contractually assured service quality for bandwidth and latency. For many organizations, MPLS was the standard for private site connectivity for years.

Disadvantages are comparatively high costs, long provisioning times and a topology geared toward central data centers that fits poorly with strongly cloud-based applications. Many organizations therefore complement or replace MPLS with Software-Defined WAN (SD-WAN), which combines several line types; MPLS often remains as the line for particularly critical applications. With a SASE platform, security inspection is additionally moved to the cloud.