Abstract
Virtual Private Network (VPN) services are widely used in the present corporate world to securely interconnect geographically distributed private network segments through unsecure public networks. Among various VPN techniques, Internet Protocol (IP)-based VPN services are dominating due to the ubiquitous use of IP-based provider networks and the Internet. Over last few decades, the usage of cellular/mobile networks has increased enormously due to the rapid increment of the number of mobile subscribers and the evolvement of telecommunication technologies. Furthermore, cellular network-based broadband services are able to provide the same set of network services as wired Internet services. Thus, mobile broadband services are also becoming popular among corporate customers. Hence, the usage of mobile broadband services in corporate networks demands to implement various broadband services on top of mobile networks, including VPN services. On the other hand, the all- IP-based mobile network architecture, which is proposed for beyond-LTE (Long Term Evolution) networks, is fuel to adapt IP-based VPN services in to cellular networks. This chapter is focused on identifying high-level use cases and scenarios where IP-based VPN services can be implemented on top of cellular networks. Furthermore, the authors predict the future involvement of IP-based VPNs in beyond-LTE cellular networks.
TopVirtual Private Network
A virtual network is a communication network which contains virtual network links. In other terms, it is a collection of virtual links which are established on top of a physical network. These virtual links are implemented by using methods of network virtualization and they are transparent to end users.
There are two commonly used methods of network virtualization; namely protocol based virtual networks and virtual device based virtual networks (Metz, 2003). However, protocol based virtual networks are easy to implement and globally ubiquitous than virtual device based virtual networks. For instance, VPNs, VLANs (Virtual Local Area Networks), VPLSs (Virtual Private LAN Services) are the widely used protocol based virtual network implementations (Rosenbaum et al., 2003).
A virtual network which extends a private network across public networks is called Virtual Private Network (VPN). It allows a remote host or site to be a part of the private network with all the functionality by communicating data across a shared or a public network.
These are several building blocks of a VPN.
Key Terms in this Chapter
LTE (Long Term Evaluation): A telecommunication standard for wireless communication of high speed data for mobile phones and data terminals.
Cellular Network: A radio network that provides wireless network services for mobile users.
Telecommunication: Long distance communication by using technological means such as electrical signals or electromagnetic waves.
MVPN (Mobile Virtual Private Network): A virtualization mechanism that allows mobile devices to access network resources on their home/private network, when they connect via other public mobile networks.
VPN (Virtual Private Network): A virtualization mechanism to extend a private network across a public network, such as the Internet.
Mobile: A device, user, technology, or service that has the ability to move or be moved.