Forwarding equivalence class
A forwarding equivalence class is a term used in Multiprotocol Label Switching to describe a set of packets with similar or identical characteristics which may be forwarded the same way; that is, they may be bound to the same MPLS label.
Characteristics determining the FEC of a higher-layer packet depend on the configuration of the router, but typically this is at least the destination IP address. Quality of service class is also often used. Thus, a forward equivalence class tends to correspond to a label switched path. The reverse is not true, however: an LSP may be used for multiple FECs.
