IEEE 802.1Q Tunneling (QinQ) is designed for service providers carrying traffic for multiple customers across their networks. QinQ tunneling is used to maintain customer-specific VLAN and Layer 2 protocol configurations even when different customers use the same internal VLAN IDs. This is accomplished by inserting Service Provider VLAN (SPVLAN) tags into the customer‘s frames when they enter the service provider‘s network, and then stripping the tags when the frames leave the network.
Use the VLAN > Tunnel (Configure Global) page to configure the switch to operate in IEEE 802.1Q (QinQ) tunneling mode, which is used for passing Layer 2 traffic across a service providerˇ¦s metropolitan area network. You can also globally set the Tag Protocol Identifier (TPID) value of the tunnel port if the attached client is using a nonstandard 2-byte ethertype to identify 802.1Q tagged frames.
Sets the switch to QinQ mode. (Default: Disabled)
The Tag Protocol Identifier (TPID) specifies the ethertype of incoming packets on a tunnel port. (Range: hexadecimal 800-FFFF; Default: 8100)
Use this field to set a custom 802.1Q ethertype value. This feature allows the switch to interoperate with third-party switches that do not use the standard 0x8100 ethertype to identify 802.1Q-tagged frames. For example, if 0x1234 is set as the custom 802.1Q ethertype on a trunk port, incoming frames containing that ethertype are assigned to the VLAN contained in the tag following the ethertype field, as they would be with a standard 802.1Q trunk. Frames arriving on the port containing any other ethertype are looked upon as untagged frames, and assigned to the native VLAN of that port.
The specified ethertype only applies to ports configured in Uplink mode (as specified on the Configure Interface page). If the port is in normal mode, the TPID is always 8100. If the port is in Access mode, received packets are processes as untagged packets.
Use the VLAN > Tunnel (Configure Service) page to create a CVLAN to SPVLAN mapping entry.
Command Usage
The inner VLAN tag of a customer packet entering the edge router of a service provider's network is mapped to an outer tag indicating the service provider VLAN that will carry this traffic across the 802.1Q tunnel. By default, the outer tag is based on the default VID of the edge router's ingress port. This process is performed in a transparent manner.
When priority bits are found in the inner tag, these are also copied to the outer tag. This allows the service provider to differentiate service based on the indicated priority and appropriate methods of queue management at intermediate nodes across the tunnel.
Rather than relying on standard service paths and priority queuing, QinQ VLAN mapping can be used to further enhance service by defining a set of differentiated service pathways to follow across the service provider's network for traffic arriving from specified inbound customer VLANs.
Note that all customer interfaces should be configured as access interfaces (that is, a user-to-network interface) and service provider interfaces as uplink interfaces (that is, a network-to-network interface). Use the Configure Interface page described in the next section to set an interface to access or uplink mode.
Command Parameters
Port identifier.
VLAN ID for the inner VLAN tag.
VLAN ID for the outer VLAN tag.
Follow the guidelines under "Enabling QinQ Tunneling on the Switch" to set up a QinQ tunnel on the switch. Then use the VLAN > Tunnel (Configure Interface) page to set the tunnel mode for any participating interface.
Command Usage
Use the Configure Global page to set the switch to QinQ mode before configuring a tunnel access port or tunnel uplink port. Also set the Tag Protocol Identifier (TPID) value of the tunnel access port if the attached client is using a nonstandard 2-byte ethertype to identify 802.1Q tagged frames.
Then use the Configure Interface page to set the access interface on the edge switch to Access mode, and set the uplink interface on the switch attached to the service provider network to Uplink mode.
Command Parameters
Displays a list of ports or trunks.
Port Identifier.
Trunk Identifier.
Set the VLAN membership mode of the port.
The port operates in its normal VLAN mode. (This is the default.)
Configures QinQ tunneling for a client access port to segregate and preserve customer VLAN IDs for traffic crossing the service provider network.
Configures QinQ tunneling for an uplink port to another device within the service provider network.