8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This book is the most comprehensive MPLS book I have read., August 22, 2008
This review is from: MPLS-Enabled Applications: Emerging Developments and New Technologies (Wiley Series on Communications Networking & Distributed Systems) (Paperback)
This book is the most complete MPLS book written. All of the content contained in multiple Cisco-press volumes are in this book. It is concise and to the point. Although the authors are Juniper elite engineers, this book is about MPLS and not about Cisco or Juniper.
If you don't have time to gain the same material by reading three 400 page
books, this book is for you. The same material is covered. It is concise and to the point.
No Fluff, editorials, opinions, just the facts! The first edition is excellent. The second
edition brings you right up to date with the latest in standards, and I think it is near a
first where a book has attempted to keep up with the RFC drafts. Normally you need to read
a book on the evolving technology, then refer to RFC's for the latest updates. (Some of us
early adopters have to use the RFC's. However here is your chance to get the most up to date,
complete MPLS material without reading the RFC's and drafts. It is all in here.
As an example, Interdomain Multicast in MPLS has changed. Two new BGP Extended communities have
been added to BGP4 to support it. It is based on the Rosen Draft [MVPN], but is significantly
different enough that it is being called [NG-MVPN], or Next Generation Multicast VPN.
Those looking to migrate their service provider multicast to SSM, eliminating RP's, and
providing greater expandability via NG-Mcast this is in this book (and they cover how it
is different than Rosen-Draft) in a very clear manner.
Besides comprehensive, it is also a well written book, and owning a huge library of very many
technology books, it is indeed rare that a "Well written" book comes along that just delivers
material. This is my new MPLS bible, just as everyone has a copy of the "BGP bible" from Cisco
Press, and TCP/IP (VOl I & II) by Jeff Doyle. We technologists voted these books the bibles
by sales volume alone. I can not make a stronger recommendation. Excellent!
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent coverage of VPLS, and Multicast over Layer 3 VPNs, November 30, 2009
This review is from: MPLS-Enabled Applications: Emerging Developments and New Technologies (Wiley Series on Communications Networking & Distributed Systems) (Paperback)
Recently I had to work on a project which involved demonstrating Multicast over Layer 3 VPN interoperability between Cisco and Juniper. I spent several days reading through all the RFCs and working-group drafts which pertained to this subject matter, after which I still had many unanswered questions. In order to round out my understanding, I decided to order the Second Edition of 'MPLS-Enabled Applications'. Looking back, I wish I had read this book instead of wasting my time reading the various RFCs and working-group drafts. This book answered all of my questions and went above and beyond to give me a solid understanding of the concepts and their application. As other reviewers have pointed out, often one needs to read a book to understand the technology basics, and then refer to RFCs or working-group drafts in order to keep abreast of the latest changes. Not so with this book... In fact, this book is so current that reading the working-group drafts is largely unnecessary. It is incredibly comprehensive, concise, and gives the reader a thorough understanding of the business drivers. Furthermore, it illustrates the various ways in which MPLS services can be offered and outlines the pros and cons of each approach so that the network designer can make intelligent decisions with regards to implementation.
In addition to the great coverage that was provided by the First Edition, the Second Edition has updated the text to reflect newer trends and applications such as the transport of IPv6 over an IPv4 MPLS core, and detailed coverage of end-to-end and local protection schemes in MPLS networks. Likewise, the chapter previously called "Point-to-Multipoint LSPs" has now been renamed to "MPLS Multicast", with much more detailed coverage of the P2MP hierarchy and the forwarding-plane and control-plane operation. The biggest value for me was the addition of a completely new chapter on "Multicast over Layer 3 VPNs" which provided comprehensive coverage of this emerging technology and fully illustrates the full gamut of operation of either the PIM/GRE approach, or the NG-VPN approach utilizing BGP and P2MP LSPs. Finally, the addition of a chapter on "MPLS in Access Networks" was well deserved seeing as Ethernet is quickly becoming the access technology of choice and MPLS will likely be utilized as an overlay in order to realize the full potential of Ethernet in these environments.
This book has earned a spot on my bookshelf as one of my most coveted resources, and I refer to it quite often to refresh my memory on the myriad workings of various functions within MPLS. I wish I could give this book a rating higher than five stars! I can't overemphasize how exceptional this book is. If you are in the market for a book covering MPLS and emerging applications offered on MPLS networks, this single book should be at the top of your list!
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