Introduction to PPP on Cisco IOS Router

PPP is one of the WAN protocols that you can configure on Cisco IOS routers. We will take a look at how PPP works and how to configure it. Do you still remember how the OSI model works?

PPP NCP LCP

PPP operates on the data link layer (layer 2), but as you can see, the data link layer has been split into two pieces:

  • NCP: Network Control Protocol
  • LCP: Link Control Protocol

Let’s start with LCP:

PPP LCP

LCP takes care of setting up the link. If you enable authentication for PPP, it will take care of authentication. Once the link has been set up we use NCP.

PPP NCP

NCP will ensure you can run different protocols over our PPP link like IP, IPv6 but also CDP (Cisco Discovery Protocol) and older protocols like IPX or AppleTalk.

So, in short, if you enable PPP on both routers, this is what happens:

  1. LCP: Takes care of setting up the link.
  2. (Optional): Authentication.
  3. NCP: Makes sure we can send IP and other protocols across our PPP link.

Let’s see what authentication is about:

r1 r2 ppp username password

I have two routers; the router on the left side is called R1. If you want to use authentication for PPP, you have two options:

  • PAP (Password Authentication Protocol): This is plaintext! It will send the username and password over the PPP link, and the router on the other side will check it.
  • CHAP (Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol): Instead of sending the password in plaintext, we will send a “challenge,” which is a hash of the password. This is far more secure.

In the example above, we are using PAP:

  • On the left side, we have a router with the hostname R1.
  • On the right side, we have a router without a hostname, but it has the username R1 and password VIDEO configured in a local database.
  • PPP will start setting up the link by using LCP.
  • Since authentication is enabled, our router on the right side will authenticate R1:
    • R1 will send its hostname and password in plaintext.
    • The router on the right side will accept or deny the credentials.
    • If everything is ok, PPP will work, and we will be authenticated.

PAP is very simple but sending a username and password in plaintext is not a very secure method. Let’s see how CHAP works:

We're Sorry, Full Content Access is for Members Only...

If you like to keep on reading, Become a Member Now!

  • Learn any CCNA, CCNP and CCIE R&S Topic. Explained As Simple As Possible.
  • Try for Just $1. The Best Dollar You’ve Ever Spent on Your Cisco Career!
  • Full Access to our 800 Lessons. More Lessons Added Every Week!
  • Content created by Rene Molenaar (CCIE #41726)
522 Sign Ups in the last 30 days
satisfaction-guaranteed

  • 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed!
  • You may cancel your monthly membership at any time.
  • No Questions Asked!

Tags:


Forum Replies

  1. Have you ever encountered this scenario?

    Jan 15 15:23:36.968: Se0/2/0:0 LCP: I PROTREJ [Open] id 1 len 10 protocol CDPCP (0x820701010004)
    Jan 15 15:23:36.968: Se0/2/0:0 CDPCP: State is Closed
    Jan 15 15:23:36.968: Se0/2/0:0 CDPCP: State is Listen
    

    And because of this, interface is not bundling up in a multilink. As you can see that the inbound packet is telling the device that the protocol CDPCP is being rejected.

  2. Hi Ali,

    Do you have the complete debug for this? Normally I only see this when the PPP session is going down, for example when authentication fails or something.

    Rene

  3. Hi Rene,

    Can we sub-interfaces in PPP to establishment more than one PPP connection on the same physical interface ?

    thanks.

  4. Hi Hussein,

    PPP encapsulation on serial interfaces only works on the physical interface. If you want to get creative then you could run PPPoE on Ethernet sub-interfaces or PPP over frame-relay on sub-interfaces though.

    Rene

43 more replies! Ask a question or join the discussion by visiting our Community Forum