Metro ethernet service enhancements

• US 20050160180A1
• Filed: 06/02/2004
• Published: 07/21/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/20/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: RPX Clearinghouse LLC (RPX Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Inventors: Rabje, Sameh, Magd, Osama Aboul
• Granted Patent: US 7,701,948 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/238
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/13 in a LAN segment, e.g. ring or bus
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/20 Traffic policing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2408 for supporting different services, e.g. a differentiated services [DiffServ] type of service
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2441 relying on flow classification, e.g. using integrated services [IntServ]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/31 by tagging of packets, e.g. using discard eligibility [DE] bits
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/32 by discarding or delaying data units, e.g. packets or frames

Abstract

Numerous enhancements to metro Ethernet network (MEN) services include an enhancement of the overall MEN Quality of Service (QoS) architecture, an enhancement to classification at the provider edge, the use of Ethernet QoS classes, enhancements to policing and marking at ingress provider edge equipment, the provision of traffic management functions at egress provider edge equipment, the use of multiple Ethernet virtual connections (EVCs) and Aggregate EVCs, an enhancement to QoS across an external network-network interface and an enhancement to treatment of Ethernet service frames in a core network.

Claims

1. A traffic management system for a provider edge node in a Metro Ethernet Network comprising:

a classifier operable to determine, based on information recorded in a header of a received Ethernet service frame, a service class for said received Ethernet service frame, where said service class is associated with a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame;

a marker operable to indicate said forwarding treatment for said received Ethernet service frame based on said service class; and

a forwarder operable to transmit said received Ethernet service frame to a node in said metro Ethernet network.

2. The traffic management system of claim 1 wherein said classifier is further operable to determine an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame.

3. The traffic management system of claim 2 wherein said service class is associated with performance targets for said Ethernet service frame.

4. The traffic management system of claim 2 wherein said service class is associated with a policing treatment for said Ethernet service frame.

5. The traffic management system of claim 2 wherein said marker is further operable to modify a header of said Ethernet service frame to indicate said forwarding treatment.

6. The traffic management system of claim 2 wherein said classifier is further operable to determine an identity of a Bandwidth Profile to associate with said received Ethernet service frame.

7. The traffic management system of claim 6 wherein said classifier is further operable to determine a color to associate with said received Ethernet service frame.

8. The traffic management system of claim 7 further comprising a policer operable to:

associate said Bandwidth Profile with said received Ethernet service frame;

determine compliance of said received Ethernet service frame to said Bandwidth Profile; and

generate an indication of said compliance to said Bandwidth Profile.

9. The traffic management system of claim 8 wherein said forwarding treatment indicated by said marker is further based on said indication of said compliance.

10. The traffic management system of claim 9 wherein said forwarding treatment relates to treatment of said received Ethernet service frame within a service provider network.

11. The traffic management system of claim 9 wherein said forwarding treatment relates to treatment of said received Ethernet service frame within a customer network.

12. The traffic management system of claim 1 further comprising a mapper operable to map said service class to a core forwarding treatment for use within a service provider network.

13. The traffic management system of claim 12 wherein said mapper is further operable to select a connection, within said service provider network, on which to transmit said received Ethernet service frame, based on said core forwarding treatment.

14. A traffic management method comprising:

receiving an Ethernet service frame;

determining, based on information in a header of said Ethernet service frame, a service class for said Ethernet service frame, where said service class is associated with a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame;

indicating a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame based on said service class; and

transmitting said Ethernet service frame to a node in a metro Ethernet network.

15. The method of claim 14 further comprising determining an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising determining an identity of a Bandwidth Profile to associate with said Ethernet service frame.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein said determining said identity of said Bandwidth Profile comprises:

selecting a service class map based on said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection, where said service class map associates scheduling treatments with Bandwidth Profile identities;

determining a scheduling treatment for said Ethernet service frame based on said service class; and

determining said identity of said Bandwidth Profile based on an association, in said service class map, between said Bandwidth Profile and said scheduling treatment for said Ethernet service frame.

18. The method of claim 16 further comprising determining a color to associate with said Ethernet service frame.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein said determining said color is based on said information in said header of said Ethernet service frame.

20. The method of claim 18 further comprising determining compliance of said Ethernet service frame to said Bandwidth Profile.

21. The method of claim 20 further comprising indicating said compliance of said Ethernet service frame to said Bandwidth Profile.

22. The method of claim 15 further comprising:

determining, from said information in said header, an identity of a virtual local area network with which said Ethernet service frame is associated; and

wherein said determining said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection is based, at least in part, on said identity of said virtual local area network.

23. The method of claim 15 wherein said determining said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection is based, at least in part, on a port on which said Ethernet service frame is received.

24. The method of claim 15 wherein said determining said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection is based, at least in part, on a Medium Access Control address included in a header of said Ethernet service frame.

25. The method of claim 15 wherein said determining said service class is based, at least in part, on said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection.

26. The method of claim 14 wherein said determining said service class is based on information in said Ethernet service frame related to an Open System Interconnect layer.

27. The method of claim 26 wherein said information in said Ethernet service frame is located in a user priority field and said determining said service class is based, at least in part, on values of bits in said user priority field.

28. The method of claim 26 wherein said information in said Ethernet service frame related to said Open System Interconnect layer is an Internet Protocol Differentiated Services Code Point.

29. The method of claim 14 further comprising:

directing said Ethernet service frame to a queue; and

transmitting said Ethernet service frame from said queue as part of a flow of Ethernet service frames, where said flow is limited to a predetermined rate.

30. The method of claim 14 wherein said node in said metro Ethernet network comprises customer edge equipment.

31. The method of claim 14 wherein said node in said metro Ethernet network comprises service provider equipment.

32. The method of claim 14 wherein said receiving said Ethernet service frame is performed over a user-network interface.

33. The method of claim 32 further comprising determining an identity of said user-network interface and basing said determining said service class for said Ethernet service frame on said identity of said user-network interface.

34. The method of claim 14 wherein said receiving said Ethernet service frame is performed over a network-network interface.

35. The method of claim 14 wherein said Ethernet service frame is received from a node in a service provider network.

36. A computer readable medium containing computer-executable instructions which, when performed by processor in provider edge network equipment, cause the processor to:

determine, based on information in a header of a received Ethernet service frame, a service class for said Ethernet service frame, where said service class is associated with a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame;

indicate a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame based on said service class; and

transmit said Ethernet service frame to a node in a metro Ethernet network.

37. A method of handling an Ethernet service frame comprising:

receiving an Ethernet service frame over a user-network interface;

determining an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame;

determining a set of information from indications in said Ethernet service frame; and

determining a service class for said Ethernet service frame based, at least in part, on said set of information.

38. The method of claim 37 further comprising determining a scheduling treatment for said Ethernet service frame based on said service class.

39. The method of claim 38 further comprising:

determining a color to associate with said Ethernet service frame based on said scheduling treatment; and

generating an indication of said color.

40. The method of claim 38 further comprising determining an identity of a Bandwidth Profile to associate with said Ethernet service frame based on said service class.

41. The method of claim 40 further comprising basing said determining of said identity of said Bandwidth Profile on a mapping of service classes to bandwidth profile identities, where said mapping is associated with said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection.

42. The method of claim 37 wherein said determining said service class is based, at least in part, on said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection.

43. The method of claim 37 wherein said indications in said Ethernet service frame relate to aspects of an Open Systems Interconnection layer.

44. The method of claim 43 wherein said set of information includes an Internet Protocol Differentiated Services Code Point.

45. The method of claim 37 wherein said indications in said Ethernet service frame are located in a user priority field and said determining said service class is based, at least in part, on a value of bits in said user priority field.

46. The method of claim 37 further comprising:

determining an identity of said user-network interface; and

determining an identity of a Bandwidth Profile to associate with said Ethernet service frame based on a mapping of service classes to bandwidth profile identities, where said mapping is associated with said identity of said user-network interface.

47. A traffic management system for a provider edge node in a Metro Ethernet Network comprising:

a classifier operable to;

receive an Ethernet service frame over a user-network interface;

determine an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame;

determine a set of information from indications in said Ethernet service frame; and

determine a service class for said Ethernet service frame based, at least in part, on said set of information.

48. A computer readable medium containing computer-executable instructions which, when performed by processor in provider edge network equipment, cause the processor to:

receive an Ethernet service frame over a user-network interface;

determine an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame;

determine a set of information from indications in said Ethernet service frame; and

determine a service class for said Ethernet service frame based, at least in part, on said set of information.

49. A method of classifying an Ethernet service frame comprising:

receiving an Ethernet service frame;

determining an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame; and

determining a forwarding treatment to associate with said Ethernet service frame.

50. The method of claim 49 further comprising determining an identity of a virtual local area network with which said Ethernet service frame is associated and wherein said determining said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection is based, at least in part, on said identity of said virtual local area network.

51. The method of claim 50 further comprising determining a value of bits in a user priority field of said Ethernet service frame and wherein said determining said forwarding treatment is based, at least in part, on said value of said bits in said user priority field.

52. The method of claim 50 further comprising determining a value of an Internet Protocol Differentiated Services Code Point included in said Ethernet service frame and wherein said determining said forwarding treatment is based, at least in part, on said value of said Internet Protocol Differentiated Services Code Point.

53. The method of claim 50 wherein said determining said forwarding treatment is based, at least in part, on said identity of said virtual local area network.

54. The method of claim 49 further comprising determining an identity of a port on which said Ethernet service frame is received and wherein said determining said determining said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection is based, at least in part, on said identity of said port.

55. The method of claim 54 further comprising determining a value of bits in a user priority field of said Ethernet service frame and wherein said determining said forwarding treatment is based, at least in part, on said value of said bits in said user priority field.

56. The method of claim 54 further comprising determining a value of an Internet Protocol Differentiated Services Code Point included in said Ethernet service frame and wherein said determining said forwarding treatment is based, at least in part, on said value of said Internet Protocol Differentiated Services Code Point.

57. The method of claim 49 further comprising determining from header of said Ethernet service frame, a medium access control (MAC) address, wherein said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection is based, at least in part, on said MAC address.

58. A classifier in a traffic management system for an edge node in a Metro Ethernet Network operable to:

receive an Ethernet service frame having a header;

determine an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame; and

determine a forwarding treatment to associate with said Ethernet service frame.

59. A computer readable medium containing computer-executable instructions which, when performed by processor in provider edge network equipment, cause the processor to:

receive an Ethernet service frame having a header;

determine an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame; and

determine a forwarding treatment to associate with said Ethernet service frame.

60. A method of handling an Ethernet service frame comprising:

storing definitions of a plurality of quality of service (QoS) classes;

receiving an Ethernet service frame;

selecting a candidate QoS class, from among said plurality of QoS classes, for said Ethernet service frame;

determining a type and at least one limit for a traffic parameter for said Ethernet service frame, based on said candidate QoS class;

determining a compliance rule for said Ethernet service frame, based on said candidate QoS class;

determining a performance target for said Ethernet service frame, based on said candidate QoS class; and

servicing said Ethernet service frame according to said type and said at least one limit for said traffic parameter, said performance target and said compliance rule.

61. The method of claim 60 wherein said selecting said candidate QoS class is based on an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection associated with said Ethernet service frame.

62. The method of claim 61 wherein said selecting said candidate QoS class is further based on information in said Ethernet service frame related to an Open System Interconnect layer.

63. The method of claim 60 further comprising determining an access forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame, based on said candidate QoS class.

64. The method of claim 60 further comprising:

receiving instruction to modify a definition of said candidate QoS class; and

modifying said definition of said candidate QoS class according to said instructions.

65. The method of claim 60 wherein said performance target is a frame delay.

66. The method of claim 60 wherein said performance target is a frame delay variation.

67. The method of claim 60 wherein said performance target is a frame loss ratio.

68. The method of claim 60 wherein said type of said traffic parameter is a committed information rate.

69. The method of claim 60 wherein said type of said traffic parameter is a committed burst size.

70. The method of claim 60 wherein said type of said traffic parameter is an excess information rate.

71. The method of claim 60 wherein said type of said traffic parameter is an excess burst size.

72. The method of claim 60 wherein said candidate QoS class:

specifies performance targets as lowest frame delay available, lowest frame delay variation available and lowest frame loss available;

specifies said type of traffic parameters to include a committed information rate, a committed burst size, an excess information rate and an excess burst size;

specifies said limits for said types of traffic parameters such that said committed information rate is positive, said committed burst size is positive, said excess information rate is limited to zero and said excess burst size is limited to zero; and

specifies said compliance rule to indicate that non-compliant frames are to be dropped.

73. The method of claim 60 wherein said candidate QoS class:

specifies performance targets as low frame delay, low frame delay variation and low frame loss;

specifies said type of said traffic parameters to include a committed information rate, a committed burst size, a excess information rate and a excess burst size;

specifies said limits for said types of traffic parameters such that said committed information rate is positive, said positive committed burst size is positive, said excess information rate is positive and said excess burst size is positive; and

specifies said compliance rule to indicate that;

non-compliant frames are to be admitted up to said excess information rate; and

excess frames are to be assigned a high drop precedence.

74. The method of claim 60 wherein said candidate QoS class:

specifies said performance target as low frame loss;

specifies said type of said traffic parameters to include a committed information rate, a committed burst size, an excess information rate and an excess burst size;

specifies said limits for said types of traffic parameters such that said committed information rate is positive, said committed burst size is positive, said excess information rate is positive and said excess burst size is positive; and

specifies said compliance rule to indicate that;

non-compliant frames are to be admitted up to said excess information rate; and

excess frames are to be assigned a high drop precedence.

75. The method of claim 60 wherein said candidate QoS class:

specifies said type of said traffic parameters to include a committed information rate, a committed burst size, an excess information rate and an excess burst size;

specifies said limits for said types of traffic parameters such that said committed information rate is limited to zero, said committed burst size is limited to zero, said excess information rate is positive and said excess burst size is large and positive; and

specifies said compliance rule to indicate that all frames are to be admitted and assigned a high drop precedence.

76. A traffic management system for a provider edge node in a Metro Ethernet Network operable to:

store definitions of a plurality of quality of service (QoS) classes;

receive an Ethernet service frame;

select a candidate QoS class, from among said plurality of QoS classes, for said Ethernet service frame;

determine a type and at least one limit for a traffic parameter for said Ethernet service frame, based on said candidate QoS class;

determine a compliance rule for said Ethernet service frame, based on said candidate QoS class;

determine a performance target for said Ethernet service frame, based on said candidate QoS class; and

service said Ethernet service frame according to said type and said at least one limit for said traffic parameter, said performance target and said compliance rule.

77. A computer readable medium containing computer-executable instructions which, when performed by processor in provider edge network equipment, cause the processor to:

store definitions of a plurality of quality of service (QoS) classes;

receive an Ethernet service frame;

select a candidate QoS class, from among said plurality of QoS classes, for said Ethernet service frame;

determine a type and at least one limit for a traffic parameter for said Ethernet service frame, based on said QoS class;

determine a compliance rule for said Ethernet service frame, based on said QoS class;

determine a performance target for said Ethernet service frame, based on said QoS class; and

service said Ethernet service frame according to said type and said at least one limit for said traffic parameter, said performance target and said compliance rule.

78. A method of handling an Ethernet service frame comprising:

receiving an Ethernet service frame over a user-network interface;

determining a marked forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame;

assigning a new forwarding treatment to said Ethernet service frame based on said marked forwarding treatment;

determining a color to associate with said Ethernet service frame based on said new forwarding treatment;

generating an indication of said color;

determining compliance of said Ethernet service frame with a Bandwidth Profile;

generating an indication of said compliance of said Ethernet service frame with said Bandwidth Profile; and

where, based on said indication of said compliance, it is determined that said Ethernet service frame does not comply with said Bandwidth Profile, processing said Ethernet service frame based on said indication of said color.

79. The method of claim 78 wherein said assigning comprises:

selecting a candidate marking map; and

determining a correspondence in said candidate marking map between said marked forwarding treatment and said new forwarding treatment.

80. The method of claim 79 further comprising:

determining an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame; and

wherein said selecting said candidate marking map is based on said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection.

81. The method of claim 79 further comprising:

determining an identity of said user-network interface; and

wherein said selecting said candidate marking map is based on said identity of said user-network interface.

82. A traffic management system for a provider edge node in a Metro Ethernet Network comprising:

a classifier operable to;

receive an Ethernet service frame over a user-network interface;

determine a marked forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame;

assign a new forwarding treatment to said Ethernet service frame based on said marked forwarding treatment;

determine a color to associate with said Ethernet service frame based on said new forwarding treatment; and

generate an indication of said color;

a policer operable to;

determine compliance of said Ethernet service frame with a Bandwidth Profile;

generate an indication of said compliance of said Ethernet service frame with said Bandwidth Profile; and

process said Ethernet service frame based on said indication of said color, where, based on said indication of said compliance, it is determined that said Ethernet service frame does not comply with said Bandwidth Profile.

83. A computer readable medium containing computer-executable instructions which, when performed by processor in provider edge network equipment, cause the processor to:

receive an Ethernet service frame over a user-network interface;

determine a marked forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame;

assign a new forwarding treatment to said Ethernet service frame based on said marked forwarding treatment;

determine a color to associate with said Ethernet service frame based on said new forwarding treatment; and

generate an indication of said color;

determine compliance of said Ethernet service frame with a Bandwidth Profile;

generate an indication of said compliance of said Ethernet service frame with said Bandwidth Profile; and

process said Ethernet service frame based on said indication of said color, where, based on said indication of said compliance, it is determined that said Ethernet service frame does not comply with said Bandwidth Profile.

84. A method of classifying an Ethernet service frame comprising:

receiving an Ethernet service frame over a user-network interface; and

determining a service class to associate with said Ethernet service frame, where said determining is based, at least in part, on an identity of said user-network interface, where said service class is associated with a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame.

85. The method of claim 84 further comprising determining said forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame.

86. The method of claim 85 wherein said determining said forwarding treatment is further based on additional information in said Ethernet service frame.

87. The method of claim 86 wherein said additional information is located in a user priority field of said Ethernet service frame and said determining said service class is based, at least in part, on a value of bits in said user priority field.

88. The method of claim 86 wherein said additional information is related to an Open System Interconnect layer.

89. The method of claim 87 wherein said additional information is an Internet Protocol Differentiated Services Code Point.

90. The method of claim 85 further comprising determining an identity of a virtual local area network with which said Ethernet service frame is associated and wherein said determining said forwarding treatment is further based on said identity of said virtual local area network.

91. The method of claim 84 further comprising:

determining a scheduling treatment for said Ethernet service frame based on said service class;

selecting a service class map based on said identity of said user-network interface; and

determining said identity of said Bandwidth Profile based on an association, in said service class map, between said Bandwidth Profile and said scheduling treatment for said Ethernet service frame.

92. A classifier in a traffic management system for an edge node in a Metro Ethernet Network operable to:

receive an Ethernet service frame over a user-network interface; and

determine a service class to associate with said Ethernet service frame, where said determining is based, at least in part, on an identity of said user-network interface, where said service class is associated with a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame.

93. A computer readable medium containing computer-executable instructions which, when performed by processor in provider edge network equipment, cause the processor to:

receive an Ethernet service frame over a user-network interface; and

determine a service class to associate with said Ethernet service frame, where said determining is based, at least in part, on an identity of said user-network interface, where said service class is associated with a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame.

94. A method of handling an Ethernet service frame comprising:

receiving an Ethernet service frame from a node in a service provider network communicatively coupled to a plurality of customer networks;

determining a service class for said Ethernet service frame, where said service class is associated with a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame;

indicating a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame based on said service class; and

transmitting said Ethernet service frame to customer edge equipment over a user-network interface, where said customer edge equipment is included in a given customer network among said plurality of customer networks.

95. The method of claim 94 further comprising determining an identity of a Bandwidth Profile to associate with said Ethernet service frame.

96. The method of claim 95 further comprising:

determining an identity of said user-network interface; and

wherein said determining said identity of said Bandwidth Profile is based on said identity of said user-network interface.

97. The method of claim 95 further comprising:

determining an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame; and

wherein said determining said identity of said Bandwidth Profile is based on said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection.

98. The method of claim 95 further comprising selecting a quality of service class to associate with said Ethernet service frame where said determining said identity of said Bandwidth Profile is based on said quality of service class.

99. The method of claim 98 wherein said selecting said quality of service class is based on said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection.

100. The method of claim 99 wherein said selecting said quality of service class is further based on information in said Ethernet service frame related to an Open System Interconnect layer.

101. The method of claim 95 further comprising:

determining whether said Ethernet service frame is compliant with said Bandwidth Profile; and

where said Ethernet service frame is determined not to be compliant with said Bandwidth Profile, altering a header of said Ethernet service frame to indicate a lack of compliance.

102. The method of claim 95 further comprising:

determining whether said Ethernet service frame is compliant with said Bandwidth Profile; and

where said Ethernet service frame is determined not to be compliant with said Bandwidth Profile, discarding said Ethernet service frame.

103. The method of claim 94 further comprising:

directing said Ethernet service frame to a queue; and

transmitting said Ethernet service frame from said queue as part of a flow of Ethernet service frames, where said flow is limited to a predetermined rate.

104. The method of claim 103 further comprising altering a header of said Ethernet service frame to suit requirements of a network that includes said customer edge equipment.

105. The method of claim 104 wherein said altering said header comprises altering user priority bits in an IEEE 802.1Q tag.

106. The method of claim 103 further comprising:

determining an identity of said user-network interface; and

selecting said predetermined rate based on said identity of said user-network interface.

107. The method of claim 103 further comprising:

determining an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame; and

selecting said predetermined rate based on said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection.

108. The method of claim 94 further comprising:

determining a first service class for said Ethernet service frame;

determining a second service class for said Ethernet service frame based on said first service class; and

altering said Ethernet service frame to include an indication of said second service class.

109. The method of claim 108 wherein said determining second indication of class of service comprises selecting a candidate indication from a set of indications to be used at said customer edge equipment.

110. A traffic management system for a provider edge node in a Metro Ethernet Network operable to:

receive an Ethernet service frame from a node in a service provider network communicatively coupled to a plurality of customer networks;

determine a service class for said Ethernet service frame, where said service class is associated with a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame;

indicate a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame based on said service class; and

transmit said Ethernet service frame to customer edge equipment over a user-network interface, where said customer edge equipment is included in a given customer network among said plurality of customer networks.

111. A computer readable medium containing computer-executable instructions which, when performed by processor in provider edge network equipment, cause the processor to:

receive an Ethernet service frame from a node in a service provider network communicatively coupled to a plurality of customer networks;

determine a service class for said Ethernet service frame, where said service class is associated with a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame;

indicate a forwarding treatment for said Ethernet service frame based on said service class; and

transmit said Ethernet service frame to customer edge equipment over a user-network interface, where said customer edge equipment is included in a given customer network among said plurality of customer networks.

112. A method of configuring a service provider network, where said service provider network includes a plurality of provider edge equipment, where a subset of said plurality of provider edge equipment are in communication with a plurality of customer edge equipment over a plurality of user-network interfaces, said method comprising:

establishing a first Ethernet virtual connection, where said first Ethernet virtual connection associates a first user-network interface of said plurality of user-network interfaces with a second user-network interface of said plurality of user-network interfaces;

establishing a second Ethernet virtual connection, where said second Ethernet virtual connection associates said first user-network interface with said second user-network interface; and

defining a first Ethernet virtual connection group to include said first Ethernet virtual connection and said second Ethernet virtual connection.

113. The method of claim 112 wherein said establishing said first Ethernet virtual connection further comprises configuring said first Ethernet virtual connection to have a performance characteristic of a first service class.

114. The method of claim 113 wherein said performance characteristic is frame delay variation.

115. The method of claim 113 wherein said performance characteristic is frame delay.

116. The method of claim 113 wherein said performance characteristic is frame loss ratio.

117. A traffic management system for a provider edge node in a Metro Ethernet Network operable to:

establish a first Ethernet virtual connection, where said first Ethernet virtual connection associates a first user-network interface of said plurality of user-network interfaces with a second user-network interface of said plurality of user-network interfaces;

establish a second Ethernet virtual connection, where said second Ethernet virtual connection associates said first user-network interface with said second user-network interface; and

define a first Ethernet virtual connection group to include said first Ethernet virtual connection and said second Ethernet virtual connection.

118. A computer readable medium containing computer-executable instructions which, when performed by processor in provider edge network equipment, cause the processor to:

establish a first Ethernet virtual connection, where said first Ethernet virtual connection associates a first user-network interface of a plurality of user-network interfaces with a second user-network interface of said plurality of user-network interfaces;

establish a second Ethernet virtual connection, where said second Ethernet virtual connection associates said first user-network interface with said second user-network interface; and

define a first Ethernet virtual connection group to include said first Ethernet virtual connection and said second Ethernet virtual connection.

119. A method of handling an Ethernet service frame comprising:

receiving an Ethernet service frame;

determining an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection group to which to associate said Ethernet service frame, said Ethernet virtual connection group including a plurality of Ethernet virtual connections;

associating said Ethernet service frame with said Ethernet virtual connection group;

selecting an Ethernet virtual connection from among said plurality of Ethernet virtual connections in said Ethernet virtual connection group, resulting in a selected Ethernet virtual connection; and

transmitting said Ethernet service frame over said selected Ethernet virtual connection.

120. The method of claim 119 further comprising:

determining an identity of a Bandwidth Profile for said Ethernet service frame based on said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection group; and

generating an indication of said identity of said Bandwidth Profile.

121. The method of claim 119 further comprising:

determining a service class for said Ethernet service frame; and

wherein said selecting is based on said service class.

122. The method of claim 121 wherein said selecting acts to maintain transmission of a predetermined proportion of Ethernet service frames associated with a first service class over each of said plurality of Ethernet virtual connections in said Ethernet virtual connection group.

123. The method of claim 121 wherein said selecting is configured to balance a traffic load transmitted over each Ethernet virtual connection of said plurality of Ethernet virtual connections in said Ethernet virtual connection group.

124. The method of claim 119 further comprising:

recognizing a failure of a given Ethernet virtual connection in said Ethernet virtual connection group; and

excluding said given Ethernet virtual connection from said selecting.

125. A traffic management system for a provider edge node in a Metro Ethernet Network operable to:

receive an Ethernet service frame;

determine an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection group to which to associate said Ethernet service frame, said Ethernet virtual connection group including a plurality of Ethernet virtual connections;

associate said Ethernet service frame with said Ethernet virtual connection group;

select an Ethernet virtual connection from among said plurality of Ethernet virtual connections in said Ethernet virtual connection group, resulting in a selected Ethernet virtual connection; and

transmit said Ethernet service frame over said selected Ethernet virtual connection.

126. A computer readable medium containing computer-executable instructions which, when performed by processor in provider edge network equipment, cause the processor to:

receive an Ethernet service frame;

determine an identity of an Ethernet virtual connection group to which to associate said Ethernet service frame, said Ethernet virtual connection group including a plurality of Ethernet virtual connections;

associate said Ethernet service frame with said Ethernet virtual connection group;

select an Ethernet virtual connection from among said plurality of Ethernet virtual connections in said Ethernet virtual connection group, resulting in a selected Ethernet virtual connection; and

transmit said Ethernet service frame over said selected Ethernet virtual connection.

127. A method of handling an Ethernet service frame comprising:

receiving an Ethernet service frame;

determining an identity of a first Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame, where said first Ethernet virtual connection is defined to traverse a metro Ethernet network;

determining an identity of an aggregate Ethernet virtual connection based on said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection, where said aggregate Ethernet virtual connection includes said first Ethernet virtual connection among a plurality of Ethernet virtual connections that associate a plurality of user-network interfaces at the same provider edge equipment; and

transmitting said Ethernet service frame over said Ethernet virtual connection.

128. The method of claim 127 further comprising:

determining an identity of a Bandwidth Profile to associate with said Ethernet service frame based on said identity of said aggregate Ethernet virtual connection; and

generating an indication of said identity of said Bandwidth Profile.

129. The method of claim 128 further comprising:

determining a set of compliance rules for said Ethernet service frame based on said identity of said aggregate Ethernet virtual connection; and

generating an indication of said set of compliance rules.

130. The method of claim 127 wherein each user-network interface of said plurality of user-network interfaces has a medium access control address that is unique throughout said metro Ethernet network.

131. The method of claim 127 further comprising defining said Ethernet virtual connection to employ a tunneling technology within said metro Ethernet network, where said tunneling technology assigns a unique label to each Ethernet service frame associated with a given Ethernet virtual connection among said plurality of Ethernet virtual connections in said aggregate Ethernet virtual connection.

132. The method of claim 127 further comprising associating said aggregate Ethernet virtual connection with a single customer.

133. The method of claim 127 further comprising associating said aggregate Ethernet virtual connection with multiple customers.

134. A traffic management system for a provider edge node in a Metro Ethernet Network operable to:

receive an Ethernet service frame;

determine an identity of a first Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame, where said first Ethernet virtual connection is defined to traverse a metro Ethernet network;

determine an identity of an aggregate Ethernet virtual connection based on said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection, where said aggregate Ethernet virtual connection includes said first Ethernet virtual connection among a plurality of Ethernet virtual connections that associate a plurality of user-network interfaces at the same provider edge equipment; and

transmit said Ethernet service frame over said Ethernet virtual connection.

135. A computer readable medium containing computer-executable instructions which, when performed by processor in provider edge network equipment, cause the processor to:

receive an Ethernet service frame;

determine an identity of a first Ethernet virtual connection to associate with said Ethernet service frame, where said first Ethernet virtual connection is defined to traverse a metro Ethernet network;

determine an identity of an aggregate Ethernet virtual connection based on said identity of said Ethernet virtual connection, where said aggregate Ethernet virtual connection includes said first Ethernet virtual connection among a plurality of Ethernet virtual connections that associate a plurality of user-network interfaces at the same provider edge equipment; and

transmit said Ethernet service frame over said Ethernet virtual connection.

136. At a provider edge equipment in a core network, a method of handling an Ethernet service frame comprising:

receiving an Ethernet service frame over a user-network interface;

determining an access service class for said Ethernet service frame;

determining a core service class for said Ethernet service frame based on said access service class;

selecting a core connection in said core network based on said access service class;

encapsulating said Ethernet service frame in a core protocol data unit, said core protocol data unit having a core header;

including in said core header an indication of said core service class; and

transmitting said core protocol data unit on said core connection.

137. The method of claim 136 wherein said determining said core service class based on said access service class comprises consulting a mapping of access service classes to core service classes.

138. The method of claim 136 further comprising configuring said core connection to carry more than one Ethernet virtual connection.

139. A provider edge equipment in a core network operable to:

receive an Ethernet service frame over a user-network interface;

determine an access service class for said Ethernet service frame;

determine a core service class for said Ethernet service frame based on said access service class;

select a core connection in said core network based on said access service class;

encapsulate said Ethernet service frame in a core protocol data unit, said core protocol data unit having a core header;

include in said core header an indication of said core service class; and

transmit said core protocol data unit on said core connection.

140. A computer readable medium containing computer-executable instructions which, when performed by processor in provider edge network equipment, cause the processor to:

receive an Ethernet service frame over a user-network interface;

determine an access service class for said Ethernet service frame;

determine a core service class for said Ethernet service frame based on said access service class;

select a core connection in said core network based on said access service class;

encapsulate said Ethernet service frame in a core protocol data unit, said core protocol data unit having a core header;

include in said core header an indication of said core service class; and

transmit said core protocol data unit on said core connection.