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Satellite Connectivity with SRv6

As LEO (Low Earth Orbit) satellite constellations become viable for enterprise and telecom transport, SRv6 is emerging as the natural overlay technology for delivering carrier-grade services over satellite links.

The Opportunity

LEO satellites offer low-latency broadband to locations where fiber is impractical — remote sites, maritime, disaster recovery, temporary deployments. The challenge is delivering carrier-grade L2/L3 services reliably over this transport.

Why SRv6 for Satellite?

Challenge SRv6 Solution
IPv6-native transport LEO constellations like Starlink use IPv6 natively — SRv6 fits without protocol translation
Variable latency and jitter SR Policies can steer traffic across satellite + terrestrial paths based on real-time conditions
Service delivery EVPN and L3VPN over SRv6 enable MEF-compliant Ethernet services end-to-end
Resiliency Multiple segment lists provide fast failover between satellite and terrestrial backup paths
Simplified operations No MPLS signaling needed over the satellite link
Edge compute SRv6 service chaining enables MEC (Multi-access Edge Computing) at remote sites

Architecture Concept

A typical SRv6-over-satellite architecture uses SRv6/EVPN as the overlay, with the satellite link as one of potentially multiple underlay transport options:

graph LR
    RS1[Remote Site 1] -->|LEO Satellite| HQ[Head Office / Hub]
    RS2[Remote Site 2] -->|LEO Satellite| HQ
    RS1 -.->|Terrestrial Backup| HQ

    subgraph SRv6/EVPN Overlay
        RS1
        RS2
        HQ
    end

Key Design Elements

  • Dual transport: Satellite as primary, terrestrial (4G/LTE, MPLS, internet) as backup
  • MEF L2 EVCs: Ethernet Virtual Connections with primary and backup paths for resiliency
  • SRv6/EVPN overlay: Unified service delivery regardless of underlay transport type
  • Performance monitoring: Assurance sensors at each site for SLA validation
  • Compact CPE: Low-power routers at remote sites suited for space-constrained deployments

Applicable SRv6 Behaviors

Behavior Use in Satellite Scenario
End.DT4 / End.DT6 VRF termination at hub site
End.DX2 Point-to-point L2 service (E-Line) across satellite
End.DT2 Multipoint L2 service (E-LAN) for branch connectivity
H.Encaps.Red Reduced encapsulation to minimize overhead on bandwidth-constrained satellite links

Industry Validation

Multiple vendors and operators have demonstrated or deployed SRv6 over satellite transport, including validated architectures combining compact router platforms with LEO satellite connectivity for enterprise and telecom use cases. These are typically showcased at industry events such as Cisco Live and Mobile World Congress.

In 2026, Rivada Space Networks and Cisco published a joint whitepaper, "Creating a Blueprint for Advanced Data Networking from Space", outlining a secure, resilient space-based enterprise network built on a LEO constellation with Cisco routing technology — a transport profile where the overlay design principles on this page apply directly.

Overhead matters over satellite

Satellite bandwidth is expensive. SRv6 uSID compression (RFC 9800) is especially valuable here — it reduces SRv6 overhead by up to 83% compared to classic SRv6, making it practical even on bandwidth-constrained satellite links.

Further Reading

References

  1. RFC 9252 - BGP Overlay Services Based on SRv6 - Defines EVPN and L3VPN signaling over SRv6 transport
  2. RFC 9800 - Compressed SRv6 Segment List Encoding - SRv6 uSID compression, critical for bandwidth-constrained links
  3. ETSI ISG IPE: IPv6 Enhanced Innovation - ETSI work on IPv6/SRv6 for diverse transport including non-terrestrial networks
  4. Rivada & Cisco: Creating a Blueprint for Advanced Data Networking from Space - Joint whitepaper on a secure, resilient space-based enterprise network over a LEO constellation