Patent ID: 8625465

Claim:
A method comprising: automatically discovering virtual private network (VPN) memberships for a plurality of routers within a network, wherein each of the plurality of routers is coupled to one or more customer networks and belongs to at least one of a plurality of different VPNs, and wherein automatically discovering the VPN memberships of the routers includes exchanging Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) advertisements between the routers that encode virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) instances configured on the routers for the different VPNs to which the routers belong; in response to discovering the VPN memberships, establishing one or more label switched paths (LSPs) through the network for the routers that are members of at least one of the discovered VPNs, each of the LSPs forming a tunnel for transporting data packets from a source router providing an ingress to the LSP to at least one destination router providing an egress from the LSP; allocating, with the source router of each LSP, an multi-protocol label switching (MPLS) label to identify control information for the VPN and sending a BGP advertisement from the source router to the destination router to advertise the label to the destination router; receiving BGP advertisements that encode control information for the VPN using the label allocated by the source router; and transmitting data packets for the VPN from the source router through the LSP to the destination router in accordance with the control information.