Technical Specification

MEF 6

Ethernet Services Definitions - Phase I

June 2004

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following statement: "Reproduced with permission of the Metro Ethernet Forum." No user of this document is
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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

Disclaimer

The information in this publication is freely available for reproduction and use by any recipient
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The information contained herein is intended to be used without modification by the recipient or
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The receipt or any use of this document or its contents does not in any way create, by implication
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(a) any express or implied license or right to or under any patent, copyright, trademark or
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© The Metro Ethernet Forum 2004. All Rights Reserved.

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following statement: "Reproduced with permission of the Metro Ethernet Forum." No user of this document is
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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

Table of Contents
1. INTRODUCTION .....................................................................................................................................................1

2. TERMINOLOGY (NORMATIVE) .........................................................................................................................2

3. SCOPE ........................................................................................................................................................................5
3.1 SCOPE OF FUTURE PHASES ...................................................................................................................................5

4. COMPLIANCE LEVELS .........................................................................................................................................5

5. ETHERNET SERVICE DEFINITION FRAMEWORK .......................................................................................5

5.1 ETHERNET LINE (E-LINE) SERVICE TYPE (NORMATIVE) ......................................................................................6
5.2 ETHERNET LAN (E-LAN) SERVICE TYPE (NORMATIVE) .....................................................................................8

6. SERVICE DEFINITIONS (NORMATIVE) .........................................................................................................11

6.1 ETHERNET PRIVATE LINE USING E-LINE SERVICE TYPE (NORMATIVE)..............................................................11
6.2 ETHERNET VIRTUAL PRIVATE LINE USING E-LINE SERVICE TYPE (NORMATIVE) ...............................................13

7. LAYER 2 CONTROL PROTOCOL PROCESSING REQUIREMENTS (NORMATIVE) ............................15

8. REFERENCES ........................................................................................................................................................16

List of Figures
Figure 1: Relationship between different MEF Services documents............................................................................1
Figure 2: Ethernet Service Definition Framework........................................................................................................6
Figure 3: E-Line Service type using Point-to-Point EVC.............................................................................................6
Figure 4: E-LAN Service type using Multipoint-to-Multipoint EVC...........................................................................9

List of Tables
Table 1: E-Line Service type UNI service attributes and parameter values .................................................................7
Table 2: E-Line Service type EVC service attributes and parameter values.................................................................8
Table 3 : E-LAN Service type UNI service attributes and parameter values............................................................... 10
Table 4: E-LAN Service type EVC service attributes and parameter values .............................................................. 11
Table 5: UNI service attributes and parameters for the EPL application (Normative) ............................................... 12
Table 6: EVC service attributes and parameters for the EPL application (Normative) .............................................. 13
Table 7: UNI service attributes and parameters for EVPL application (Normative) .................................................. 14
Table 8: EVC service attributes and parameters for the EVPL application (Normative) ........................................... 14
Table 9: Layer 2 Control Protocol Processing Requirements ..................................................................................... 15

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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

1. Introduction
Ethernet has its origins in providing network connectivity and was not originally used to provide
services. With the introduction of Metro Ethernet services, Service Providers started using this
Ethernet “connectivity” technology to provide Ethernet “services”. While the IEEE 802.3
Ethernet protocol is still used, service-related attributes and parameters need to be added in order
to create an Ethernet service.

This document uses service attributes and parameters that are defined in both the Ethernet
Services Model [5] and the Traffic Management [6] specifications. The relationship between
this document and these other two MEF services documents is illustrated in Figure 1 below.
This document applies the service attributes and parameters to create different Ethernet services.

Ethernet
Services
Definitions

Traffic
Ethernet Management
Services Model
Figure 1: Relationship between different MEF Services documents

This document defines two generic service constructs called Ethernet Service types and specifies
their associated service attributes and parameters used to create point-to-point and multipoint-to-
multipoint Ethernet services. This document also defines the requirements for several Ethernet
services that use these generic Ethernet Service types.

The services described in this document are from a Subscriber perspective and are defined based
on the service attributes that might appear in a Service Level Agreement (SLA) or Service Level
Specification (SLS). The services are instantiated at an Ethernet UNI with IEEE 802.3-2002
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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

Ethernet interfaces interconnecting the customer equipment to the service provider network.
These services, however, are agnostic of the underlying network infrastructure within the Metro
Ethernet Network (MEN) and may be supported over different transport technologies in the
Service Provider’s network such as SONET, RPR, WDM, MPLS, etc.

2. Terminology (Normative)
Term Definition
All to One Bundling A UNI service attribute defined in [5].
Bandwidth Profile A term defined in [5].
Bandwidth profile per
A UNI service attribute defined in [5]
CoS ID
Bandwidth profile per
A UNI service attribute defined in [5]
EVC
Bandwidth profile per
A UNI service attribute defined in [5]
ingress UNI
Broadcast Service Frame
An EVC service attribute defined in [5]
Delivery
Bundling A UNI service attribute defined in [5]
CBS Committed Burst Size
CE Customer Edge
CE-VLAN CoS Customer Edge VLAN CoS
CE-VLAN CoS
An EVC service attribute defined in [5]
Preservation
CE-VLAN ID Customer Edge VLAN ID
CE-VLAN ID
An EVC service attribute defined in [5]
Preservation
CE-VLAN ID / EVC Map A UNI service attribute defined in [5]
CE-VLAN Tag Customer Edge VLAN Tag
CE-VLAN tag
A set of EVC service attributes defined in [5]
preservation
CF Coupling Flag
CIR Committed Information Rate
Class of Service A term defined in [5]
Class of Service
A set of EVC-related service attributes defined in [6]
Performance
CM Color Mode
A parameter of the UNI service attribute ‘Bandwidth Profile’
Color Mode
defined in [6]
Committed Burst Size A parameter of the UNI service attribute ‘Bandwidth Profile’
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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

Term Definition
defined in [6]
Committed Information A parameter of the UNI service attribute ‘Bandwidth Profile’
Rate defined in [6]
CoS Class of Service
CoS Identifier An EVC service attribute defined in [5]
A parameter of the UNI service attribute ‘Bandwidth Profile’
Coupling Flag
defined in [6]
Customer Edge A term defined in [5]
Customer Edge VLAN
A term defined in [5]
CoS
Customer Edge VLAN ID A term defined in [5]
Customer Edge VLAN
A term defined in [5]
Tag
Data Link Connection Identifier. A number attached to a data
DLCI
frame that identifies the PVC for the data frame.
Egress Service Frame A term defined in [5]
EIR Excess Information Rate
An Ethernet service type that is based on a Multipoint-to-
E-LAN
Multipoint EVC
E-Line An Ethernet service type that is based on a Point-to-Point EVC
EPL Ethernet Private Line
Ethernet Virtual
A term defined in [5]
Connection
EVPL Ethernet Virtual Private Line
A parameter of the UNI service attribute ‘Bandwidth Profile’
Excess Burst Size
defined in [6]
A parameter of the UNI service attribute ‘Bandwidth Profile’
Excess Information Rate
defined in [6]
EVC Ethernet Virtual Connection
FDX Full Duplex
Frame Short for Ethernet Frame
Frame Delay A parameter defined in [6]
Frame Delay Variation A parameter defined in [6]
Frame Loss A parameter defined in [6]
Ingress Service Frame A term defined in [5]
Layer 2 Control Protocol
An EVC service attribute defined in [5]
Service Frame Delivery
Layer 2 Control Protocol A UNI service attribute and an EVC service attribute defined in

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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

Term Definition
Processing [5]
Maximum number of A UNI service attribute defined in [5]
EVCs
MEN Metro Ethernet Network
Metro Ethernet Network The Service Provider’s network providing Ethernet services
Multicast Service Frame
An EVC service attribute defined in [5]
Delivery
Multipoint-to-Multipoint A parameter of the EVC service attribute ‘EVC Type’ defined in
EVC [5]
N/A Not Applicable
N/S Not Specified
A parameter of the EVC service attribute ‘EVC Type’ defined in
Point-to-Point EVC
[5]
Service Frame A term defined in [5]
Service Frame Delivery A set of EVC service attributes defined in [5]
The contract between the Subscriber and Service Provider
Service Level Agreement
specifying the agreed to service level commitments
The technical specification of the service being offered by the
Service Level Specification
Service Provider to the Subscriber
Service Multiplexing A UNI service attribute defined in [5]
Service Provider The organization providing Ethernet Services
SLA Service Level Agreement
Subscriber The organization purchasing and/or using Ethernet Services
SLS Service Level Specification
A term used to describe that the content of a Service Frame is
Transparency
delivered unaltered across a MEN
UNI User Network Interface
UNI Identifier A UNI service attribute defined in [5]
Unicast Service Frame
An EVC service attribute defined in [5]
Delivery
UNI EVC ID A UNI service attribute defined in [5]
UNI List An EVC service attribute defined in [5]
User Network Interface A term defined in [5]
VLAN Virtual LAN, as defined in [1]

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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

3. Scope
This document defines generic service constructs called Ethernet Service Types used to create
Ethernet services over a Metro Ethernet Network (MEN). This document specifies the Ethernet
Service Attributes and parameters that are used with the different Ethernet Service Types but
does not define how the service attributes may be implemented.

This document also defines the service attribute requirements for several Ethernet Services that
utilize the generic Ethernet Service Type constructs. Where possible, recommendations for the
service attributes and associated parameters are made for these particular Ethernet Services.

This document does not define application-based services that may be offered using these
Ethernet Service Types, e.g., IP Telephony service, nor does it define non-Ethernet-based
services that may be offered over the MEN, e.g., Circuit Emulation Services over a TDM (e.g.,
T1) UNI. All services in this document use an Ethernet UNI. This document does not define
how the services may be supported in the MEN using different transport and switching
technologies.

Finally, this document uses service attributes defined in the Metro Ethernet Forum’s Ethernet
Services Model, Phase 1 [5] and Traffic Management – Phase I [6] documents. This document
may be updated as future phases of these other documents become available.

3.1 SCOPE OF FUTURE PHASES

Subsequent phases of this specification may add additional services or augment existing services
with newly defined service attributes or parameters defined in other MEF Technical Committee
specifications.

4. Compliance Levels
The key words “MUST”, “MUST NOT”, “REQUIRED”, “SHALL”, “SHALL NOT”,
“SHOULD”, “SHOULD NOT”, “RECOMMENDED”, “MAY”, and “OPTIONAL” in this
document are to be interpreted as described in RFC 2119 [7]. All key words use upper case, bold
text.

5. Ethernet Service Definition Framework

The Ethernet Service Definition Framework provides a model for specifying Ethernet services.
Ethernet Service Types are generic constructs used to create a broad range of services. Each
Ethernet Service Type has a set of Ethernet Service Attributes that define the service
characteristics. These Ethernet Service Attributes in turn have a set of parameters associated
with them that provide various options for the different Service Attributes. Refer to Figure 2.

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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

Figure 2: Ethernet Service Definition Framework

This document defines two Ethernet Service Type generic constructs, namely, Ethernet Line (E-
Line) Service type (Refer to Section 5.1) and Ethernet LAN (E-LAN) Service type (Refer to
Section 5.2), and their associated Service Attributes and parameters. The UNI and EVC service
attributes and parameters are normatively defined in [5] and [6].

5.1 ETHERNET LINE (E-LINE) SERVICE TYPE (NORMATIVE)

Any Ethernet service that is based on a Point-to-Point Ethernet Virtual Connection SHALL be
designated as an Ethernet Line Service (E-Line) type. The Ethernet Line Service (E-Line
Service) is illustrated in Figure 3. An E-Line Service type can be used to create a broad range of
point-to-point services.

Figure 3: E-Line Service type using Point-to-Point EVC

In its simplest form, an E-Line Service type can provide symmetrical bandwidth for data sent in
either direction with no performance assurances, e.g., best effort service between two 10Mbps
UNIs. In more sophisticated forms, an E-Line Service type may be between two different speed
UNIs and may be defined with performance assurances such as CIR with an associated CBS,
EIR with an associated EBS, delay, delay variation, and loss. Service Multiplexing MAY occur
at 1 or both UNIs in the EVC. For example, more than one point-to-point EVC (E-Line Service)
may be offered on the same physical port at one or both of the UNIs.

The E-Line Service type UNI service attributes, parameters and values can be found in Table 1
below. It should be noted that this table is almost identical to the UNI service attribute table

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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

defined in [5] and that there are no differences in the UNI tables for E-Line and E-LAN. It is
presented here in its entirety to provide context for understanding the E-Line service type.

UNI Service
E-Line Service type Requirement
Attribute
UNI Identifier Arbitrary text string to identify the UNI.
Physical Medium IEEE 802.3-2002 Physical Interface [4]
Speed 10 Mbps, 100 Mbps, 1 Gbps or 10 Gbps
Mode Full Duplex or Auto negotiation.
MAC Layer IEEE 802.3-2002 [4]
Service Multiplexing Yes or No. MUST be No if All to One Bundling is Yes.
Bundling Yes or No. MUST be No if All to One Bundling is Yes
Yes or No. MUST be No if Bundling or Service Multiplexing is
All to One Bundling
Yes.
UNI EVC ID Arbitrary text string to identify each EVC instance at the UNI.
CE-VLAN ID / EVC
Mapping table of CE-VLAN IDs to EVCs at the UNI.
Map
Maximum number of
MUST be an integer >=1
EVCs
Bandwidth Profile OPTIONAL 1. If supported, MUST specify <CIR, CBS, EIR, EBS,
Per Ingress UNI CM, CF> [6]
Bandwidth Profile OPTIONAL. If supported, MUST specify <CIR, CBS, EIR, EBS,
Per EVC CM, CF> [6]
OPTIONAL. If supported, MUST specify <CIR, CBS, EIR, EBS,
Bandwidth Profile
CM, CF> and MUST support <EVC> and <EVC, set of CE-VLAN
Per CoS Identifier
CoS values> CoS Identifiers [5][6]
Bridge Block of protocols with destination MAC addresses
0x0180c2000000 through 0x0180c200000f. For each protocol,
MUST specify one of: Peer, Discard, or Pass to EVC.
GARP Block of protocols with destination MAC addresses
Layer 2 Control
0x0180c2000020 through 0x0180c200002f. For each protocol,
Protocol Processing
MUST specify one of: Peer, Discard, or Pass to EVC.
All LANs Bridge Management Group protocols with destination
MAC address 0x0180c2000010. For each protocol, MUST specify
one of: Peer, Discard, or Pass to EVC.
Table 1: E-Line Service type UNI service attributes and parameter values

1
It is the intent of MEF 1 [5] to recommend, but not require, that a bandwidth profile be applied to Service Frames
on a UNI. So, provisioning a given UNI without any bandwidth profile is allowed.
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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

The E-Line Service type EVC service attributes, parameters and values can be found in Table 2
below. It should be noted that this table is almost identical to the EVC service attribute table
defined in [5]. The only difference between E-Line and E-LAN service types is the ‘EVC Type’
service attribute. The entire table is presented here to provide context.
EVC Service Attribute E-Line Service type Requirement
EVC Type MUST be Point-to-Point
UNI List List the UNI Identifiers for the UNIs associated with the EVC.
CE-VLAN ID
Yes or No
Preservation
CE-VLAN CoS
Yes or No
Preservation
Unicast Service Frame Deliver Unconditionally or Deliver Conditionally. If Delivered
Delivery Conditionally, MUST specify the delivery criteria.
Multicast Service Frame Deliver Unconditionally or Deliver Conditionally. If Delivered
Delivery Conditionally, MUST specify the delivery criteria.
Broadcast Service Frame Deliver Unconditionally or Deliver Conditionally. If Delivered
Delivery Conditionally, MUST specify the delivery criteria.
Bridge Block of protocols with destination MAC addresses
0x0180c2000000 through 0x0180c200000f. For each protocol
passed to the EVC, MUST specify one of: Discard or Tunnel.
Layer 2 Control Protocol
GARP Block of protocols with destination MAC addresses
Processing (only applies
0x0180c2000020 through 0x0180c200002f. For each protocol
for L2CPs passed to the
passed to the EVC, MUST specify one of: Discard or Tunnel
EVC)
All LANs Bridge Management Group protocols with destination
MAC address 0x0180c2000010. For each protocol passed to the
EVC, MUST specify one of: Discard or Tunnel.
For each CoS, MUST specify a CoS Identifier. MAY specify a
Service Performance Frame Delay value, a Frame Delay Variation value and a Frame
Loss value.
Table 2: E-Line Service type EVC service attributes and parameter values

5.2 ETHERNET LAN (E-LAN) SERVICE TYPE (NORMATIVE)

Any Ethernet Service that is based upon a Multipoint-to-Multipoint Ethernet Virtual Connection
SHALL be designated as an Ethernet LAN (E-LAN) Service type. The Ethernet LAN (E-LAN)
service type is illustrated in Figure 4.

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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

Figure 4: E-LAN Service type using Multipoint-to-Multipoint EVC

An E-LAN Service type can be used to create a broad range of services. In its simplest form, an
E-LAN Service type can provide a best effort service with no performance assurances between
the UNIs. In more sophisticated forms, an E-LAN Service type may be defined with
performance assurances such as CIR with an associated CBS and EIR with an associated EBS
for a given CoS instance. The MEF has not defined service performance (delay, delay variation,
and loss) attributes for the E-LAN Service type.

For an E-LAN service type, Service Multiplexing MAY occur at none, one or more of the UNIs
in the EVC. For example, an E-LAN Service type (Multipoint-to-Multipoint EVC) and an E-
Line Service type (Point-to-Point EVC) may be service multiplexed at the same UNI. In this
example, the E-LAN Service type may be used to interconnect other Subscriber sites while the
E-Line Service type is used to connect to the Internet with both services offered via EVC service
multiplexing at the same UNI.

The E-LAN Service type UNI Service Attributes and requirements can be found in Table 3
below. It should be noted that this table is almost identical to the UNI service attribute table
defined in [5] and that there are no differences in the UNI tables for E-Line and E-LAN. It is
presented here in its entirety to provide context for understanding the E-LAN Service type.

UNI Service
E-LAN Service type Requirement
Attribute
UNI Identifier Arbitrary text string to identify the UNI.
Physical Medium IEEE 802.3-2002 Physical Interface [4]
Speed 10 Mbps, 100 Mbps, 1 Gbps or 10 Gbps
Mode Full Duplex or Auto negotiation.
MAC Layer IEEE 802.3-2002 [4]
Service Multiplexing Yes or No. MUST be No if All to One Bundling is Yes.
Bundling Yes or No. MUST be No if All to One Bundling is Yes

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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

UNI Service
E-LAN Service type Requirement
Attribute
Yes or No. MUST be No if Bundling or Service Multiplexing is
All to One Bundling
Yes.
UNI EVC ID Arbitrary text string to identify each EVC instance at the UNI
CE-VLAN ID / EVC
Mapping table of CE-VLAN IDs to EVCs at the UNI.
Map
Maximum number of
MUST be an integer >= 1
EVCs
Bandwidth Profile Per OPTIONAL. If supported, MUST specify <CIR, CBS, EIR, EBS,
Ingress UNI CM, CF> [6]
Bandwidth Profile Per OPTIONAL. If supported, MUST specify <CIR, CBS, EIR, EBS,
EVC CM, CF> [6]
OPTIONAL. If supported, MUST specify <CIR, CBS, EIR, EBS,
Bandwidth Profile Per
CM, CF> and MUST support <EVC> and <EVC, set of one or
CoS Identifier
more CE-VLAN CoS values> CoS Identifiers [5][6]
Bridge Block of protocols with destination MAC addresses
0x0180c2000000 through 0x0180c200000f. For each protocol,
MUST specify one of: Peer, Discard, or Pass to EVC.
GARP Block of protocols with destination MAC addresses
Layer 2 Control
0x0180c2000020 through 0x0180c200002f. For each protocol,
Protocol Processing
MUST specify one of: Peer, Discard, or Pass to EVC.
All LANs Bridge Management Group protocols with destination
MAC address 0x0180c2000010. For each protocol, MUST specify
one of: Peer, Discard, or Pass to EVC.
Table 3 : E-LAN Service type UNI service attributes and parameter values

The E-LAN Service type EVC service attributes, parameters and values can be found in the table
below. It should be noted that this table is almost identical to the EVC service attribute table
defined in [5]. The only difference between E-Line and E-LAN service types is the ‘EVC Type’
service attribute. The entire table is presented here to provide context.

EVC Service Attribute E-LAN Service type Requirement

EVC Type MUST be Multipoint-to-Multipoint
MUST provide the list of UNI Identifiers for the UNIs associated
UNI List
with the EVC.
CE-VLAN ID
Yes or No
Preservation
CE-VLAN CoS
Yes or No
Preservation

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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

EVC Service Attribute E-LAN Service type Requirement

Unicast Service Frame Deliver Unconditionally or Deliver Conditionally. If Delivered
Delivery Conditionally, MUST specify the delivery criteria.
Multicast Service Frame Deliver Unconditionally or Deliver Conditionally. If Delivered
Delivery Conditionally, MUST specify the delivery criteria.
Broadcast Service Frame Deliver Unconditionally or Deliver Conditionally. If Delivered
Delivery Conditionally, MUST specify the delivery criteria.
Bridge Block of protocols with destination MAC addresses
0x0180c2000000 through 0x0180c200000f. For each protocol
passed to the EVC, MUST specify one of: Discard or Tunnel.
Layer 2 Control Protocol
GARP Block of protocols with destination MAC addresses
Processing (only applies
0x0180c2000020 through 0x0180c200002f. For each protocol
for L2CPs passed to the
passed to the EVC, MUST specify one of: Discard or Tunnel.
EVC)
All LANs Bridge Management Group protocols with destination
MAC address 0x0180c2000010. For each protocol passed to the
EVC, MUST specify one of: Discard or Tunnel.
N/S - The MEF has not defined service performance attribute
Service Performance
requirements for the E-LAN service type
Table 4: E-LAN Service type EVC service attributes and parameter values

6. Service Definitions (Normative)

An Ethernet service is defined by specifying service attribute parameter values for a given
Ethernet Service type. This section defines the required service attributes and related parameter
values for several Ethernet Services. If the Ethernet services in this section are offered, the
normative text for each service attribute is applied. Note that other variations of these Ethernet
Services are also possible.

6.1 ETHERNET PRIVATE LINE USING E-LINE SERVICE TYPE (NORMATIVE)

An Ethernet Private Line (EPL) service is specified using an E-Line Service type. EPL uses a
point-to-point EVC between two UNIs and provides a high degree of transparency for Service
Frames between the UNIs it interconnects such that the Service Frame’s header and payload are
identical at both the source and destination UNI. The service also has an expectation of low
Frame Delay, Frame Delay Variation and Frame Loss Ratio. It does not allow for Service
Multiplexing, i.e., a dedicated UNI (physical interface) is used for the service. Because of the
amount of transparency of this service, there is no need for coordination between the Subscriber
and Service Provider on a detailed CE-VLAN ID/EVC Map for each UNI because all Service
Frames are mapped to a single EVC at the UNI. Refer to [5] for more information on CE-VLAN
ID/EVC Map attribute.

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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

The table below provides the UNI service attributes, parameters and values for the Ethernet
Private Line (EPL) Service Level Specification (SLS), using the E-Line Service type.
UNI Service Attribute Service Attribute Parameters and Values
UNI Identifier Arbitrary text string to identify the UNI.
Physical Medium IEEE 802.3-2002 Physical Interface [4]
Speed 10 Mbps, 100 Mbps, 1 Gbps or 10 Gbps
Mode MUST be Full Duplex
MAC Layer IEEE 802.3-2002 [4]
Service Multiplexing MUST be No
Bundling MUST be No
All to One Bundling MUST be Yes
UNI EVC ID Arbitrary text string to identify the EVC instance at the UNI
All Service Frames at the UNI MUST map to a single E-
CE-VLAN ID / EVC Map
Line Service type EVC
Maximum number of EVCs MUST be 1
CIR: MUST be <= UNI Speed
CBS: MUST be > largest Service Frame size
Bandwidth Profile Per Ingress EIR: MUST be 0
UNI EBS: MUST be 0
CM: MUST be ’False’ (color-blind)
CF: Not Specified 2
Layer 2 Control Protocol
See section 7 of this document for these parameters/values.
Processing
Table 5: UNI service attributes and parameters for the EPL application (Normative)

The table below provides the EVC service attributes, parameters and values for the Ethernet
Private Line (EPL) Service Level Specification (SLS), using the E-Line Service type.
EVC Service Attribute Service Attribute Parameters and Values
EVC Type MUST be Point-to-Point
UNI List MUST list the two UNIs associated with the EVC.
CE-VLAN ID Preservation MUST be Yes
CE-VLAN CoS Preservation MUST be Yes
Unicast Service Frame
MUST Deliver Unconditionally
Delivery
Multicast Service Frame
MUST Deliver Unconditionally
Delivery
Broadcast Service Frame
MUST Deliver Unconditionally
Delivery
2
Since the UNI is ‘color blind’ for this service, the ‘CF’ parameter is not specified. See [6]
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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

EVC Service Attribute Service Attribute Parameters and Values

Layer 2 Control Protocols
Processing (only applies for See section 7 of this document for these parameters/values.
L2CPs passed to the EVC)
Only one CoS is REQUIRED. A CoS ID of <EVC>
MUST be specified.
Service Performance
Frame Delay, Frame Delay Variation and Frame Loss Ratio
MUST be specified. 3
Table 6: EVC service attributes and parameters for the EPL application (Normative)

6.2 ETHERNET VIRTUAL PRIVATE LINE USING E-LINE SERVICE TYPE (NORMATIVE)

An Ethernet Virtual Private Line (EVPL) is created using an E-Line Service type. An EVPL can
be used to create services similar to the Ethernet Private Line (EPL) with some notable
exceptions. First, an EVPL allows for service multiplexing at the UNI. This capability allows
more than one EVC to be supported at the UNI where the EPL does not allow this. Second, an
EVPL need not provide full transparency of Service Frames as with an EPL. Because service
multiplexing is permitted, some Service Frames may be sent to one EVC while other Service
Frames may be sent to other EVCs.

The table below provides the UNI service attributes, parameters and values for the Ethernet
Virtual Private Line (EVPL) Service Level Specification (SLS) using the E-Line Service type.

UNI Service Attribute Service Attribute Parameters and Values

UNI Identifier Arbitrary text string to identify the UNI.
Physical Medium IEEE 802.3-2002 Physical Interface [4]
Speed 10 Mbps, 100 Mbps, 1 Gbps or 10 Gbps
Mode SHOULD be Full Duplex
MAC Layer IEEE 802.3-2002 [4]
SHOULD be supported. When more than one EVC is
Service Multiplexing
multiplexed at a UNI, All to One Bundling MUST be No.
Yes or No. If Yes, then CE-VLAN ID Preservation MUST
Bundling
be Yes. MUST be No if All to One Bundling is Yes
Yes or No. If Yes, then CE-VLAN ID Preservation MUST
All to One Bundling be Yes. MUST be No if Bundling or Service Multiplexing
is Yes.
UNI EVC ID Arbitrary text string to identify each EVC instance

3
For an EPL service, Frame Delay, Frame Delay Variation and Frame Loss Ratio are typically very low values.
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contain the following statement: "Reproduced with permission of the Metro Ethernet Forum." No user
of this document is authorized to modify any of the information contained herein.
 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

UNI Service Attribute Service Attribute Parameters and Values

Mapping table of CE-VLAN IDs to E-Line Service type UNI
CE-VLAN ID / EVC Map
EVC IDs.
Maximum number of EVCs >= 1
Bandwidth Profile Per Ingress
No or <CIR, CBS, EIR, EBS, CM, CF>
UNI
Bandwidth Profile Per EVC No or <CIR, CBS, EIR, EBS, CM, CF>
Bandwidth Profile Per CoS
No or <CIR, CBS, EIR, EBS, CM, CF>
Identifier
Layer 2 Control Protocol
See section 7 of this document for these parameters/values.
Processing
Table 7: UNI service attributes and parameters for EVPL application (Normative)

The table below provides the EVC service attributes, parameters and values for the Ethernet
Virtual Private Line (EVPL) Service Level Specification (SLS) using the E-Line Service type.
EVC Service Attribute Service Attribute Parameters and Values
EVC Type MUST be Point-to-Point
UNI List MUST list the two UNIs associated with the EVC.
CE-VLAN ID Preservation Yes or No
CE-VLAN CoS Preservation Yes or No
Deliver Unconditionally or Deliver Conditionally. If
Unicast Service Frame
Delivered Conditionally, MUST specify the delivery
Delivery
criteria.
Deliver Unconditionally or Deliver Conditionally. If
Multicast Service Frame
Delivered Conditionally, MUST specify the delivery
Delivery
criteria.
Deliver Unconditionally or Deliver Conditionally. If
Broadcast Service Frame
Delivered Conditionally, MUST specify the delivery
Delivery
criteria.
Layer 2 Control Protocols
Processing (only applies for See section 7 of this document for these parameters/values.
L2CPs passed to the EVC)
MAY support none, one or more CoS. If supported, a CoS
Service Performance ID, Frame Delay and Frame Loss Ratio MUST be specified.
Frame Delay Variation MAY be specified.
Table 8: EVC service attributes and parameters for the EVPL application (Normative)

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contain the following statement: "Reproduced with permission of the Metro Ethernet Forum." No user
of this document is authorized to modify any of the information contained herein.
 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

7. Layer 2 Control Protocol Processing Requirements (Normative)

This section provides requirements for the processing of a customer’s Layer 2 Control Protocol
(L2CP) frames on a given UNI for the EPL and EVPL service definitions. Specifically,
requirements are specified by protocol, describing which protocols to tunnel or discard. The
intent of this section is to allow for peering in specific cases, but these specific cases are beyond
the scope of this document. Requirements are specified for the normatively defined services,
EVPL and EPL, where peering is not implemented on the UNI. It is intended to provide
guidance for actual deployments of these Metro Ethernet services, while at the same time
allowing for flexibility among the Service Provider offerings.

The following table provides L2CP processing requirements as to how to handle the customer’s
layer-2 control protocols on a given UNI. The first column identifies the IEEE standard protocol
(or block of protocols). The second column in the table provides requirements for the EVPL
service definition. The third column provides requirements for the EPL service definition. The
Ethernet Services Model (ESM) [5] defines three alternatives for processing customer’s L2CP
frames at the UNI: discard, peer and pass to the EVC. In the table, ‘discard’ means that the
MEN will discard ingress L2CP frames of a given protocol, and will not generate that protocol
on egress from the MEN. ‘Peer’ means that the MEN will actively participate with the Customer
Equipment (CE) and ‘Tunnel’ means that frames associated with a given protocol are
transparently passed to a given EVC for transport across the MEN to the destination UNI.
Protocol EVPL EPL
Spanning Tree Protocol (STP)[1], Rapid SHOULD Discard MUST Tunnel
Spanning Tree Protocol (RSTP)[1], Multiple
Spanning Tree Protocol (MSTP)[2]
PAUSE (802.3x) [4] SHOULD Discard SHOULD Discard
MUST Not Tunnel
Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP) [4] SHOULD Discard SHOULD Tunnel
Marker Protocol [4] SHOULD Discard SHOULD Tunnel
Authentication (802.1x) [8] SHOULD Discard SHOULD Tunnel
All LANs Bridge Management Group Block of SHOULD Discard MUST Tunnel
Protocols [1]
Generic Attribute Registration Protocol (GARP) SHOULD Discard MUST Tunnel
Block of Protocols [1]
Table 9: Layer 2 Control Protocol Processing Requirements

Notes:
1. Note that where ‘tunnel’ is shown, specification of the tunneling method is beyond the scope
of this document.
2. Care needs to be taken in tunneling LACP such that all UNIs involved in the link aggregation
group are the same speed.

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contain the following statement: "Reproduced with permission of the Metro Ethernet Forum." No user
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 Ethernet Services Definitions – Phase I

3. Marker protocol is an optional protocol that is specified as part of link aggregation. As such,
requirements for Marker Protocol and LACP Protocol are aligned.

Some observations relating to the above requirements:

• Pause Frames: For all UNIs and service types, the requirement is to discard these frames,
while allowing for the possibility of peering in some specific cases. Since pause frames
control the flow of all data frames on a UNI – regardless of service class – supporting
pause frames on a UNI can result in poor SLA performance. In addition, not all CEs
support the use of pause frames.

• Ethernet Private Line (EPL): For the EPL case, the requirement is to generally tunnel
L2CP, with the exception of pause frames indicated above. This is due to the nature of
the application – EPL should be the most transparent of the service applications,
providing point-to-point connectivity across the MEN between a pair of non-service
multiplexed UNIs.

8. References
[1] IEEE 802.1D-2004, “Part 3: Media Access Control (MAC) Bridges”
[2] IEEE 802.1s – 2002, “Virtual Bridged Local Area Networks – Amendment 3: Multiple
Spanning Trees”
[3] IEEE 802.1Q – 2003, “Virtual Bridged Local Area Networks”
[4] IEEE 802.3-2002, “Part 3: Carrier sense multiple access with collision detection
(CSMA/CD) access method and physical layer specifications”
[5] Technical Specification MEF 1 “Ethernet Services Model, Phase 1”
[6] MEF “Traffic Management Specification – Phase I”
[7] RFC 2119, “Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate Requirement Levels”, S. Bradner
[8] IEEE 802.1X – 2001, “Port-Based Network Access Control”

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