IP fabrics are Layer 3-centric network designs often used in data centers due to their scalability, efficient routing, and loop-free architecture.
Step-by-Step Breakdown:
Layer 3 Load Balancing:
IP fabrics use Equal-Cost Multipath (ECMP) to distribute traffic across multiple paths, providing effective load balancing and improving bandwidth utilization. This capability is absent in traditional Layer 2 networks, which do not support ECMP for routing decisions.
Layer 2 Loops:
Layer 2 networks are prone to loops because of the lack of TTL (Time-to-Live) mechanisms. Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) is required to prevent loops, but it can introduce inefficiencies by blocking links. In contrast, IP fabrics based on Layer 3 protocols are loop-free and do not need STP. Juniper Reference: IP Fabric: Juniper's IP fabric solutions offer efficient Layer 3 routing with built-in load balancing and loop prevention, making them ideal for modern data center architectures.