a pe device learns the address of a local ce device by monitoring the control messages , such as address resolution messages , originating from those local devices . in one embodiment , automated configuration of the pe devices participating in a layer 2 vpn is facilitated by permitting a pe device to share the addresses for its locally - attached ce devices with the remote pe devices in the vpn . a pe device may share the addresses of the remote ce devices with the local ce devices by initiating its own control message or responding to an control message issued by one of its local ce devices . this latter mechanism in effect hides the distributed , heterogeneous nature of the network from a local ce device .