Method to reduce IGP routing information

A method for routing traffic through a network from an ingress provider edge router to an egress provider edge router that eliminates the need to share state information between the ingress provider edge router and a plurality of core routers in a core network, the ingress provider edge router and egress provider edge router each coupled to at least two core routers among the plurality of core routers in the core network, the ingress provider edge router learning routes with a next hop equal to an IP address of the egress provider edge router through an internal border gateway protocol (iBGP), comprising the steps of:

• the ingress provider edge router balancing traffic flows on uplinks between the ingress provider edge router and the at least two core routers coupled to the ingress provider edge router without knowledge of network topology in the core network;
• running an internal gateway protocol (IGP) exclusively on the core routers in the core network to disseminate routing information among the core routers, the IGP not running on the ingress provider edge router;
• and
• imposing a destination routing label for the traffic at the core routers coupled to the ingress provider edge router after receiving the traffic from the ingress provider edge router.

A network in which traffic is routed through a core network from an ingress provider edge router to an egress provider edge router, the network eliminating the need to share state information between the ingress provider edge router and a plurality of core routers in a core network, the ingress provider edge router and egress provider edge router each coupled to at least two core routers among the plurality of core routers in the core network, the ingress provider edge router learning routes with a next hop equal to an IP address of the egress provider edge router through an internal border gateway protocol (iBGP), comprising:

• the ingress provider edge router being adapted to balance traffic flows on uplinks between the ingress provider edge router and the at least two core routers coupled to the ingress provider edge router without knowledge of network topology in the core network;
• the core routers adapted to run an internal gateway protocol (IGP) to disseminate routing information among the core routers, the IGP not running on the ingress provider edge router;
• and
• the core routers adapted to impose a destination routing label for the traffic at the core routers coupled to the ingress provider edge router after receiving the traffic from the ingress provider edge router.