# Configuring 6PE Route Reflector on Cisco IOS

DevFeed: [Configuring 6PE Route Reflector on Cisco IOS](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/configuring-6pe-route-reflector-on-cisco-ios-11323.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://blog.ipspace.net/2026/02/ios-6pe-route-reflector/>)

Published: 2026-02-26T07:19:00Z

Content type: tutorial

Language: en

Sources: [ipSpace.net blog](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/ipspace-net-blog.md>)

Topics: [Cisco](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/cisco.md>), [BGP](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/bgp.md>), [configuration](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/configuration.md>), [networking](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/networking.md>), [Ansible](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/ansible.md>), [NETCONF](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/netconf.md>), [REST API](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/rest-api.md>)

Tags: [ansible](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/ansible.md>), [bgp](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/bgp.md>), [cisco](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/cisco.md>), [configuration](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/configuration.md>), [logging](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/logging.md>), [mpls](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/mpls.md>), [netconf](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/netconf.md>), [netlab](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/netlab.md>), [rest-api](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/rest-api.md>)

## AI overview

The article explains a Cisco IOS configuration issue affecting BGP route reflectors for MPLS 6PE and L3VPN. IPv6 labeled-unicast and VPNv6 address-family commands may appear to apply through Ansible's ios_config module but not persist in the BGP configuration unless IPv6 routing is enabled with ipv6 unicast-routing. The article also argues that NETCONF or REST API mechanisms could report configuration failures more consistently than CLI-based automation.

## Source excerpt

Imagine you want to deploy a BGP route reflector for MPLS 6PE or L3VPN service. Both services run over MPLS LSPs, use IPv4 BGP sessions, and use IPv4 next hops for BGP routes. There's absolutely no reason to need IPv6 routing on a node that handles solely the control-plane activity (it never appears as a BGP next hop anywhere), right? Cisco IOS disagrees, as I discovered when running route reflector integration tests for netlab 6PE and (MPLS) L3VPN functionality. Most platforms failed those tests because we forgot to configure route-reflector-clients in labeled IPv6 and VPNv4/VPNv6 address families1. That was easy to fix, but the IOS-based devices were still failing the tests, with nothing in the toolchain ever complaining about configuration problems. Read more ...