New Training: Explain Overlay Transport Virtualization (OTV)

In this 7-video skill, CBT Nuggets trainer Jeff Kish explores Overlay Transport Virtualization (OTV), a Data Center Interconnect (DCI) technology that extends Layer 2 connectivity across a Layer 3 transport.

Gain an understanding of topics including Architecture, Control and Data Plane operation, and Design considerations. Watch this new Cisco training.

Learn Cisco with one of these courses:

• Data Center Networking with Cisco Nexus Switches

• Cisco CCNP Data Center

This training includes:

• 7 videos

• 53 minutes of training

You’ll learn these topics in this skill:

• Intro

• OTV Architecture

• OTV Control Plane

• OTV Data Plane

• Multihoming and Authoritative Edge Devices (AEDs)

• OTV Design Considerations

• Review and Quiz

Using Overlay Transport Virtualization to Connect Data Centers

Overlay Transport Virtualization (OTV) is a Cisco technology used to connect data centers in various geographical locations without the use of traditional methods such as creating a mesh network of VPNs. OTV uses MAC address-based routing and IP encapsulation forwarding across a network to provide support for applications that need Layer 2 adjacency. It's an additional fabric layer that sits on top of existing network infrastructure which means it can be implemented into existing, deployed networks.

Since OTV is network agnostic to the core network and transparent to individual sites, it can be incrementally deployed over the top of an existing topology. This provides a method for achieving a data center interconnect without major overhauls. This means that OTV can be used alongside current VPN interconnects (which could then be used as a failover connection) or use the main core between data centers as its transport.

OTV is a great option to build out resilient, highly configurable networks. New enterprise networks can be built from the ground up using it, or OTV can be implemented on top of existing network topologies.