With reference to Cisco SD-WAN, What is the TLOC Extension?
Cisco SD-WAN is a software-defined WAN solution that helps organizations in deploying and managing a branded network platform with increased network visibility, improved security, and better performance. It offers traffic steering, advanced security, and effective application performance management.
What is the TLOC Extension?
TLOC stands for “Transport Location,” which identifies the location of a router within an SD-WAN fabric. A TLOC extension is a feature that enables routers to communicate over adjacent WAN transports through a TLOC extension. By using TLOC extensions, a router can access other WAN transports at the same location and WAN transports from other sites without disrupting existing network connections. TLOC extensions help in providing site redundancy, load balancing, and the easy addition of new WAN transports.
Use Case of TLOC Extension:
The TLOC extension feature in Cisco SD-WAN helps provide site redundancy by utilizing multiple transports at each site. It also enables load balancing by distributing traffic over multiple transports. The TLOC extension simplifies the deployment of SD-WAN by connecting new transports, making it a flexible and scalable solution.
Advantages of TLOC Extension:
1) Site Redundancy: TLOC extension helps in providing site redundancy by enabling the use of multiple transports at each site. This feature ensures that the network continues to function even if a link or transport fails, ensuring business continuity.
2) Load Balancing: The TLOC extension feature enables load balancing by distributing traffic over multiple transports. This helps in providing better application performance by reducing network congestion.
Easy Addition of New WAN Transports: TLOC extension enables the easy addition of new WAN transports without disrupting existing network connections. This makes it a scalable and flexible solution that can adapt to changes in network requirements.
Disadvantages of TLOC Extension:
1) Additional Overhead: The TLOC extension feature adds an additional overhead of encapsulation, which may decrease performance or bandwidth utilization.
2) Compatibility Issues: Different transports have different requirements for encapsulation, which may lead to compatibility issues if not configured correctly.
Conclusion:
A TLOC extension is a significant feature in Cisco SD-WAN, enabling routers to communicate over adjacent WAN transports through a TLOC extension. It helps in providing site redundancy, load balancing, and easy addition.
Hope this helps provide a clearer understanding of TLOC extensions in Cisco SD-WAN. Let me know if you have any questions or would like to discuss this further.