HP Integrity BL890c, Virtual Connect User Manual

HP Virtual Connect Ethernet Cookbook: Single and Multi Enclosure Domain (Stacked) Scenarios

Part number 603028-003 Third edition August 2010

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Intended audience

This document is for the person who installs, administers, and troubleshoots HP BladeSystem servers with Virtual Connect. HP assumes you are qualified in the servicing of computer equipment and trained in recognizing hazards in products with hazardous energy levels.

Contents

Purpose .............................................................................................................................................. 6

Introduction to Virtual Connect ............................................................................................................... 7

Tunneled VLAN and Mapped VLANS ..................................................................................................... 9

Chapter 1: Single Domain/Enclosure Scenarios ..................................................................................... 12

Overview ................................................................................................................................................. 12

Requirements ....................................................................................................................................... 12

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) -

Windows .......................................................................................................................................... 13

Overview ................................................................................................................................................. 13

Requirements ....................................................................................................................................... 13

Installation and configuration ..................................................................................................................... 15

Switch configuration ............................................................................................................................. 15

Optionally Configuring Additional Uplinks to a vNet (LACP) ..................................................................... 20

Switch configuration ............................................................................................................................. 21

Summary............................................................................................................................................. 23

Results ................................................................................................................................................ 23

Scenario 1:2 – Multiple Simple Networks with Active\Active Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad

(LACP) - Windows .............................................................................................................................. 26

Overview ................................................................................................................................................. 26

Requirements ....................................................................................................................................... 26

Installation and configuration ..................................................................................................................... 28

Optionally Configuring Additional Uplinks to a vNet (LACP) ..................................................................... 32

Summary............................................................................................................................................. 38

Results ................................................................................................................................................ 38

Scenario 1:3 – Multiple Simple Networks Providing Redundancy and Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) with VLAN

Tunneling – VMware ESX .................................................................................................................... 40

Overview ................................................................................................................................................. 40

Requirements ....................................................................................................................................... 40

Configuring Uplinks to a vNet (LACP) ..................................................................................................... 40

Installation and configuration ..................................................................................................................... 42

Summary............................................................................................................................................. 49

Results ................................................................................................................................................ 49

Scenario 1:4 – VLAN Tagging (802.1Q) with a Shared Uplink Set (SUS) with Link Aggregation using LACP

(802.3ad) – Windows ........................................................................................................................ 52

Overview ................................................................................................................................................. 52

Requirements ....................................................................................................................................... 52

Configuring Uplinks to a vNet (LACP) ..................................................................................................... 52

Installation and configuration ..................................................................................................................... 54

Summary............................................................................................................................................. 60

Results ................................................................................................................................................ 60

Scenario 1:5 – VLAN Tagging (802.1Q) with a Shared Uplink Set (SUS) with Link Aggregation using LACP

(802.3ad) – VMware ESX ................................................................................................................... 62

Overview ................................................................................................................................................. 62

Requirements ....................................................................................................................................... 62

Contents 3

Configuring Uplinks to a vNet (LACP) ..................................................................................................... 62

Installation and configuration ..................................................................................................................... 64

Summary............................................................................................................................................. 70

Results ................................................................................................................................................ 71

Scenario 1:6 – VLAN Tagging (802.1Q) with Multiple Shared Uplink Sets (SUS) and Link Aggregation using LACP

(802.3ad) – VMware ESX ................................................................................................................... 73

Overview ................................................................................................................................................. 73

Requirements ....................................................................................................................................... 73

Configuring Uplinks to a vNet (LACP) ..................................................................................................... 73

Installation and configuration ..................................................................................................................... 75

Summary............................................................................................................................................. 84

Results ................................................................................................................................................ 85

Scenario 1:7 – Private Networks (Simple vNet) ...................................................................................... 88

Overview ................................................................................................................................................. 88

Requirements ....................................................................................................................................... 88

Installation and configuration ..................................................................................................................... 90

Summary............................................................................................................................................. 95

Results ................................................................................................................................................ 95

Chapter 2: Flex-10 Scenario ................................................................................................................ 98

Overview ................................................................................................................................................. 98

Requirements ....................................................................................................................................... 98

Scenario 2:1 - Flex-10 - VLAN Tagging (802.1Q) with Multiple Shared Uplink Sets (SUS) and Mapped VLANs -

Windows 2003/2008 ..................................................................................................................... 100

Overview ............................................................................................................................................... 100

Requirements ..................................................................................................................................... 100

Installation and configuration ................................................................................................................... 102

Summary........................................................................................................................................... 109

Result ................................................................................................................................................ 109

Adding additional NICs to an existing server Profile ................................................................................... 116

Summary................................................................................................................................................ 119

Result ................................................................................................................................................ 119

Scenario 2:2 - Flex-10 - VLAN Tagging (802.1Q) with Multiple Shared Uplink Sets (SUS) and Mapped VLANs -

Windows 2008 Hyper-V ................................................................................................................... 122

Overview ............................................................................................................................................... 122

Requirements ..................................................................................................................................... 123

Installation and configuration ................................................................................................................... 124

Summary........................................................................................................................................... 133

Result ................................................................................................................................................ 133

Scenario 2:3 - Flex-10 - VLAN Tagging (802.1Q) with Multiple Shared Uplink Sets (SUS) and Mapped VLANs - ESX

4 ................................................................................................................................................... 140

Overview ............................................................................................................................................... 140

Requirements ..................................................................................................................................... 141

Installation and configuration ................................................................................................................... 142

Summary........................................................................................................................................... 151

Result ................................................................................................................................................ 151

Scenario 2:4 - Flex-10 - VLAN Tagging (802.1Q) with Multiple Shared Uplink Sets (SUS) and Tunneled VLANs - ESX

4 ................................................................................................................................................... 155

Overview ............................................................................................................................................... 155

Requirements ..................................................................................................................................... 156

Installation and configuration ................................................................................................................... 157

Contents 4

Summary........................................................................................................................................... 165

Result ................................................................................................................................................ 166

Chapter 3: Multi-Enclosure (Stacking) Scenarios ................................................................................... 170

Overview ............................................................................................................................................... 170

Requirements ..................................................................................................................................... 170

Scenario 3:1 – Multi-Enclosure stacking, with Multiple Simple vNets, Redundant Uplinks and LACP (2 Enclosures)

..................................................................................................................................................... 171

Overview ............................................................................................................................................... 171

Requirements ..................................................................................................................................... 171

Installation and configuration ................................................................................................................... 173

Summary........................................................................................................................................... 180

Results .............................................................................................................................................. 181

Scenario 3:2 - Flex-10 with Multi-Enclosure stacking - VLAN Tagging (802.1Q) with Multiple Shared Uplink Sets

(SUS) - VMware ESX - (4 Enclosures) ................................................................................................... 183

Overview ............................................................................................................................................... 183

Requirements ..................................................................................................................................... 184

Installation and configuration ................................................................................................................... 186

Summary........................................................................................................................................... 199

Result ................................................................................................................................................ 199

Appendix A: Scenario-based Cisco command line reference .................................................................. 203

Appendix B: Scenario-based ProCurve command line reference ............................................................. 214

Appendix C: Acronyms and abbreviations .......................................................................................... 224

Appendix D: Useful VC CLI Command sets .......................................................................................... 226

Contents 5

Purpose

The purpose of this Virtual Connect Cookbook is to provide new users to Virtual Connect with a better understanding of the concepts and steps required when integrating HP BladeSystem and Virtual Connect components into an existing network.

The scenarios in this Cookbook vary from simplistic to more complex while covering a range of typical building blocks to use when designing Virtual Connect solutions. Although these scenarios are shown individually, some scenarios could be combined to create a more complex and versatile Virtual Connect environment, however, keeping in mind the difference between mapped and tunneled VLANs, discussed later in this paper are mutually exclusive.

This is not meant to be a complete or detailed guide to Virtual Connect, but is intended to provide the reader with some valid examples of how Virtual Connect could be deployed. Many additional configurations or scenarios could also be implemented.

Purpose 6

Introduction to Virtual Connect

Virtual Connect is an industry standard-based implementation of server-edge virtualization. It puts an abstraction layer between the servers and the external networks so the LAN and SAN see a pool of servers rather than individual servers (Figure 1 to the pool of servers, the server administrator uses Virtual Connect management tools (Virtual Connect Enterprise Manager or Virtual Connect Manager) to create an Interconnect modules connection profile for each server.

Additional Virtual Connect Reference Material

Link to HP Virtual Connect technology for the HP BladeSystem c-Class, 2nd edition when available

). Once the LAN and SAN connections are physically made

http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bc/docs/support/SupportManual/c00814156/c00814156.pdf

Link to HP Virtual Connect for c-Class BladeSystem Setup and Installation Guide

http://bizsupport1.austin.hp.com/bc/docs/support/SupportManual/c01732252/c01732252.pdf

Link to HP Flex-10 technology

http://bizsupport2.austin.hp.com/bc/docs/support/SupportManual/c01608922/c01608922.pdf

Virtual Connect Fibre Channel Cookbook

Virtual Connect can be used to support both Ethernet and Fibre Channel connections; however, this guide is focused completely on the Ethernet configuration.

For Fibre Channel connectivity, please refer to the Virtual Connect Fibre Channel Cookbook

http://bizsupport1.austin.hp.com/bc/docs/support/SupportManual/c01702940/c01702940.pdf

(www.hp.com/go/blades

)

Virtual Connect 2.30 Firmware Release

Shared Uplink Sets provide administrators the ability to distribute VLANs into discrete and defined Ethernet Networks (vNet.) These vNets can then be mapped logically to a Server Profile Network Connection allowing only the required VLANs to be associated with the specific server NIC port. This also allows the flexibility to have various network connections for different physical Operating System instances (i.e. VMware ESX host and physical Windows host.)

Virtual Connect firmware 2.30 was released in September 2009 and provided a number of new features. Among those feature enhancements are a couple which are relevant to this paper;

• DCC (Device Control Channel), which adds support for link state, notification and dynamic

bandwidth allocation for Flex-10 NICs.

• DCC provides the ability to dynamically edit or modify a Flex-10 profile, renaming the Flex-10

profile, editing NIC connections within a profile and/or adjusting link speed without the need for a server power down or reboot

Note: in order to obtain the full functionality of DCC, NC532i/m NIC firmware level must be

2.2.3 or later.

Introduction to Virtual Connect 7

The following Shared Uplink Set rules apply per domain:

• 320 Unique VLANs per Virtual Connect Ethernet module

• 128 Unique VLANs per Shared Uplink Set

• 28 Unique Server Mapped VLANs per Server Profile Network Connection

Please see the Virtual Connect 2.30 Release Notes for future details on these and other new features.

Introduction to Virtual Connect 8

Tunneled VLAN and Mapped VLANS

Virtual Connect provides two Ethernet networks connection methods. Both of these connection types are discussed within the following scenarios.

vNet

A vNet is a term used to describe a network within Virtual Connect. A vNet could represent a dedicated network within Virtual Connect, in which case it would operate in one of two modes, the first is a simple vNet that will pass untagged frames. The second is a vNet tunnel which will pass tagged frames for one or many VLANs. An individual “Network” as configured within a Shared Uplink Set, which would define a specific VLAN, is also vNet.

The vNet is a network connection between one or many server NICs to one or many uplink ports. A vNet could also exist without uplink ports, to provide connectivity between server NICs within an enclosure to for local only communications such as, cluster a heartbeat network.

A vNet could be used to connect a single VLAN, no tagging, to one or many server NICs. If this network is part of a VLAN, by configuring the upstream switch port as an access or untagged port, by extension, any server connected to this vNet would reside in that VLAN, but would not need to be configured to interpret the VLAN tags. A tunneled vNet will pass VLAN tagged frames, without the need to interpret or forward those frames based on the VLAN tag. Within a tunneled vNet the VLAN tag is completely ignored by Virtual Connect and the frame is forwarded to the appropriate connection (server NIC[s] or uplinks) depending on frame direction flow. In this case, the end server would need to be configured to interpret the VLAN tags. This could be a server with a local operating system, in which the network stack would need to be configured to understand which VLAN the server was in, or a virtualization host with a vSwitch supporting multiple VLANs.

The tunneled vNet has no limit to the number of VLANs it can support.

Benefits of a vNet

If no VLAN support is required, support for a single specific VLAN being presented as untagged or many VLANs need to be presented to the server a vNet is a very simple network to configure and manage within Virtual Connect.

A vNet can be utilized in one of two ways, a simple vNet, used to pass untagged frames and a tunneled vNet. A tunneled vNet can be used to pass many VLANs without modifying the VLAN tags, functioning as a transparent VLAN Pass-Thru module.

Shared Uplink Set (SUS)

The SUS provides the ability to support VLAN tagging and forward frames based on the VLAN tags of those frames. The SUS connects one or many server NICs to one or many uplink ports. A SUS would be configured for the specific VLANs it will support. If support for additional VLANs is required, those VLANs need to be configured within the SUS.

When connecting a server NIC to a network within a SUS, there are two choices provided. The key difference between these two options is the state in which the frame is passed to the server NIC;

1. Select a single network – which would be mapped to a specific VLAN.

Tunneled VLAN and Mapped VLANS 9

If a single network is selected, the frames will be presented to the server NIC WITHOUT a VLAN tag. In this case the host operating system does not need to understand which VLAN it resides in. When the server transmits frames back to VC, those frames will not be tagged, however; Virtual Connect will add the VLAN tag and forward the frame onto the correct VLAN.

2. Select multiple networks – which would provide connectivity to several VLANs.

The Map VLAN Tags feature provides the ability to use a Shared Uplink Set to present multiple networks to a single NIC. If you select Multiple Networks when assigning a Network to a server NIC, you will have the ability to configure multiple Networks (VLANS) on that server NIC. At this point VC tags ALL the packets presented to the NIC — unless the Native check box is selected for one of the networks, in which case packets from this network (VLAN) will be untagged, and any untagged packets leaving the server will be placed on this Network (VLAN).

With Mapped VLAN Tags, you can create a Shared Uplink Set that contains ALL the VLANs you want to present to your servers, then present only ONE network (the one associated with the VLAN we want the server NIC in) to the Windows, LINUX or the ESX Console NIC, then select Multiple Networks for the NIC connected to the ESX vSwitch and select ALL the networks that we want presented to the ESX host vSwitch. The vSwitch will then break out the VLANs and present them to the guests. Using Mapped VLAN Tags minimizes the number of uplinks required.

In order to utilize the Multiple Networks feature of Virtual Connect, the Map VLAN Tags feature, needs to be turned on under the Ethernet Settings/Advanced tab within the Virtual Connect manager or the Virtual Connect CLI.

SUS - Restrictions and limitations

When configuring a Shared Uplink Set the following limitations apply;

• 64 VLANs per uplink (128 VLAN Support is provided in VC firmware 2.30 and later)

• 320 VLANs per module

• 28 VLANs to a server down link

• Every VLAN on every uplink counts towards the 320-VLAN limit. If a Shared Uplink Set is comprised

of multiple uplinks, each VLAN on that Shared Uplink Set is counted multiple times

Benefits of a SUS

A Shared Uplink Set can be configure to support both tagged and un-tagged network traffic to a server NIC, which simplifies the overall configuration and minimizes the number of uplink cables required to support the network connections.

Tunnel vs. Map VLAN tags setting

It is important to note that the behavior of both vNets and Shared Uplink Sets is dependent on whether VLAN Tunnel or Map VLAN Tags is set. Server VLAN Tagging Support, as configured in the “Advanced Ethernet Settings” tab of Virtual Connect is a Domain wide configuration.

If Virtual Connect is set to Tunnel Mode, you can do the following;

• Create a Shared Uplink Set – which can support several VLANs up to the publish limits

• These VLANs can be presented to a Server NIC, one at a time – No multiple VLANS supported,

frames are presented to the NIC untagged

• Create a vNet – which can support both TAGGED or UNTAGGED frames, if tagged the host system

will need to interpret those tags

Tunneled VLAN and Mapped VLANS 10

If Virtual Connect is set to Map VLAN Tags Mode, you can do the following;

• Create a Shared Uplink Set – (the behavior of a SUS changes and now provides the ability to

connect multiple networks to a NIC) which can support several VLANs up to the publish limits.

• These VLANs can be presented to a Server NIC, as either a single Network (where VC will remove

the tags and present an untagged frame to the NIC), or as multiple Networks, where VC will present all frames with their VLAN tags, in which case the host system will need to interpret the tags (one network could be configured as untagged)

• Create a vNet – (the behavior of a vNet also changes) a vNet can now only support UNTAGGED

frames, which means a vNet could then only support ONE VLAN/network

Tunneled VLAN and Mapped VLANS 11

Chapter 1: Single Domain/Enclosure Scenarios

Overview

This chapter will provide several simple configuration scenarios of Virtual Connect, using a Single HP BladeSystem c7000 enclosure with two Virtual Connect Ethernet modules installed in Bays 1 and 2. Each scenario will provide an overview of the configuration, show how to complete that configuration and include both GUI and CLI (scripted) methods. Where possible, examples for Windows and/or VMware will also be provided.

Requirements

This chapter will utilize a single HP BladeSystem c7000 enclosure with TWO Virtual Connect Ethernet modules and a half height BladeSystem Server. The server will connect to the Virtual Connect models with two 1Gb NICs. NIC 1 will connect to the VC module in Bay 1 and NIC 2 will connect to the VC module in Bay 2.

A pair of managed network switches should also be provided, the switches should also be trunked together.

It is assumed that a Virtual Connect Domain has been created either through the GUI or a CLI script and no VC Networks, uplink sets or Server Profiles have been created.

Figure 1-1 c7000 enclosure with four Half Height G6 BladeSystem servers and two Virtual Connect 1:10 Ethernet modules in Interconnect module bays 1& 2.

Item Description

1 Half Height blades

2 VC Ethernet modules

Chapter 1: Single Domain/Enclosure Scenarios 12

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows

Overview

This simple configuration uses the Virtual Connect vNet. The vNet is the simplest way to connect Virtual Connect to a network and server. In this scenario, the upstream network switch connects a network to a single port on each VC module.

No special upstream switch configuration is required as the switch is in the factory default configuration, typically configured as an Access ports.

When configuring Virtual Connect, we can provide several ways to implement network fail-over or redundancy. One option would be to connect TWO uplinks to a single vNet; those two uplinks would connect from different Virtual Connect modules within the enclosure and could then connect to the same upstream switch or two different upstream switches, depending on your redundancy needs. An alternative would be to configure TWO separate vNets, each with a single uplink configured. Each option has its advantages and disadvantages. We will review the first option in this scenario.

In addition, several vNets can be configured to support the required networks to the servers within the BladeSystem enclosure. These networks could be used to separate the various network traffic, such as iSCSI, backup, VMotion from production network traffic.

Requirements

In order to implement this scenario, an HP BladeSystem c7000 enclosure with one or more server blades and TWO Virtual Connect Ethernet modules, installed in Bays 1& 2 are required. In addition, we will require ONE or TWO external Network switches. As Virtual Connect does not appear to the network as a switch and is transparent to the network, any standard managed switch will work with Virtual Connect.

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 13

Item

Description

Switch Cross Connect

Figure 1-2 Physical View; Shows a single Ethernet uplink from Port 1 on Module 1 to Port 1 on the first network switch and a single uplink from Port 1 on Module 2 to Port 1 on the second network switch.

2 c7000 Enclosure, rear view

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 14

Figure 1-3 Logical View; Shows a single Ethernet uplink from Port 1 on Module 1 on the first network switch and a single uplink from Port 1 on Module 2 to Port 1 on the second network switch.

Installation and configuration

Switch configuration

Appendices A and B provide a summary of the commands required to configure the switch in either a Cisco IOS or a ProCurve network infrastructure. The configuration information provided in the appendices assumes the following information:

• The switch ports are configured as ACCESS ports, either presenting the Default VLAN or a specific

VLAN and will for forwarding untagged frames

• As an alternative, if the switch ports were configured as TRUNK ports and forwarding multiple

VLANS, Virtual Connect would forward those tagged frames to the host NICs configured for this network. The connected host would then need to be configured to interpret those VLAN tags.

This scenario assumes the switch port is configured as an Access port and the frames are presented to Virtual Connect as untagged

VC CLI commands

In addition to the GUI many of the configuration settings within VC can be also be accomplished via a CLI command set. In order to connect to VC via a CLI, open an SSH connection to the IP address of the active VCM. Once logged in, VC provides a CLI with help menus. Throughout this scenario the CLI commands to configure VC for each setting will also be provided.

Configuring the VC module

• Physically connect Port 1 of Network switch 1 to Port 1 on the VC module in Bay 1.

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 15

• Physically connect Port 1 of the second Network switch to Port 1 of the VC module in Bay 2, if you

have only one network switch, connect VC port 1 (Bay 2) to an alternate port on the same switch. This will NOT create a network loop and does not require Spanning Tree to be configured.

Configuring Fast MAC Cache Failover

• When an uplink on a VC Ethernet Module that was previously in standby mode becomes active, it

can take several minutes for external Ethernet switches to recognize that the c-Class server blades can now be reached on this newly active connection.

• Enabling Fast MAC Cache Failover forces Virtual Connect to transmit Ethernet packets on newly

active links, which enables the external Ethernet switches to identify the new connection (and update their MAC caches appropriately). This transmission sequence repeats a few times at the MAC refresh interval (five seconds is the recommended interval) and completes in about one minute.

Configuring the VC Module for VLAN Tunneling via GUI (Ethernet settings)

Enable Tunnel VLAN Tags within Virtual Connect

• On the Virtual Connect Manager screen, Left pane, click Ethernet Settings, Advanced Settings

• Select Tunnel VLAN Tags

• Select Fast MAC Cache Fail-over with a refresh of 5

• Select Apply

Configuring the VC Module for VLAN Tunneling via CLI (Ethernet settings)

The following command can be copied and pasted into an SSH based CLI session with Virtual Connect;

• # Set Advanced Ethernet Settings to "Tunnel VLAN Tags" and Enable Fast MAC cache fail-over

• set enet-vlan vlantagcontrol=Tunnel

• set mac-cache Enabled=True Refresh=5

Figure 1-4 Ethernet settings.

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 16

Defining a new vNet via GUI

Create a vNet and name it “vNet-PROD”

• Login to Virtual Connect, if a Domain has not been created, create it now, but cancel out of the

network and profile wizards.

• On the Virtual Connect Manager screen, click Define, Ethernet Network to create a vNet

• Ether the Network Name of “vNet-PROD”

a. Note; Do NOT select any of the options (ie; Smart Link, Private Networks etc.)

• Select Add Port, then add the following ports;

a. Enclosure 1, Bay 1, Port 1

b. Enclosure 1, Bay 2, Port 1

• Leave Connection Mode as Auto

• Select Apply

Note: By connecting TWO Uplinks from this vNet we have provided a redundant path to the network. As each uplink originates from a different VC module, one uplink will be Active and the second will be in Standby. This configuration provides the ability to lose an uplink cable, network switch or depending on how the NICs are configured at the server (teamed or un-teamed), even a VC module.

Note: Smart Link – In this configuration Smartlink should NOT be enabled. Smartlink is used to turn off downlink ports within Virtual Connect, if ALL available uplinks to a vNet or SUS are down. We will use Smartlink in a later scenario.

Defining a new vNet via CLI

The following command(s) can be copied and pasted into an SSH based CLI session with Virtual Connect # Create the vNet "vNet-PROD" and configure uplinks as discussed above add Network vNet-PROD add uplinkport enc0:1:1 Network=vNet-PROD speed=auto add uplinkport enc0:2:1 Network=vNet-PROD speed=auto set network vNet-PROD SmartLink=Disabled

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 17

Figure 1-5 Define Ethernet Network (vNet-PROD).

Note: The Port Status and Connected to information. If the connected switch supports LLDP, the connected to information should be displayed as below

Defining a Server Profile with NIC Connections, via GUI

Each server NIC will connect to a specific network.

On the Virtual Connect Manager screen, click Define, Server Profile to create a Server Profile

• Create a server profile called “App-1”

• In the Network Port 1 drop down box, select “vNet-PROD”

• In the Network Port 2 drop down box, select “vNet-PROD”

• In the Assign the Profile to a Server Bay, select Bay 1 and apply

Defining a Server Profile with NIC Connections, via CLI

The following command(s) can be copied and pasted into an SSH based CLI session with Virtual Connect # Create and Assign Server Profile App-1 to server bay 1 add profile App-1 –nodefaultenetconn add enet-connection App-1 pxe=Enabled add enet-connection App-1 pxe=Disabled set enet-connection App-1 1 Network=vNet-PROD set enet-connection App-1 2 Network=vNet-PROD assign profile App-1 enc0:1

Figure 1-6 Define Server Profile (App- 1)

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 18

Figure 1-7 Server Profile View Bay 1.

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 19

Item

Description

Switch Cross Connect

Optionally Configuring Additional Uplinks to a vNet (LACP)

If additional uplink bandwidth or redundancy is required, additional uplinks can be configured for an existing vNet. There are two options available when configuring additional uplinks, when all uplinks configured within a vNet connect a single VC module to a single upstream switch, ALL links will be active, providing additional bandwidth, using Link Aggregation Protocol (LACP 802.3ad), this requires the upstream switch to be configured, on these ports, for link aggregation control protocol (LACP) and be configured in the same link aggregation group. When some of the uplinks configured within a vNet connect a VC module to different upstream switches, or from multiple VC modules to a single or multiple switches, some links will be active and the remaining will be Standby, potentially providing additional bandwidth as well as increase availability, using Link Aggregation Protocol (LACP 802.3.ad).

Figure 1-8 Shows two Ethernet uplinks from Port 1 and 2 on Module 1 to Port 1 and 2 on the first network switch and two uplinks from ports 1 and 2 on Module 2 to Ports 1 and 2 on the second network switch.

2 c7000 Enclosure, rear view

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 20

Figure 1-9 Logical View; Shows two Ethernet uplinks from Ports 1& 2 of each VC module to the network switch.

Switch configuration

Note: when adding the additional uplinks, the switch ports connected to Virtual Connect will need to be configured for LACP and in the same Link Aggregation Group.

Adding uplinks to an existing vNet via GUI

Edit the vNet named “vNet-PROD”

• In the left pane of the Virtual Connect Manager screen, click on the Network “vNet-Prod”

• Select Add Port, then add the following ports;

a. Enclosure 1, Bay 1, Port 2

b. Enclosure 1, Bay 2, Port 2

• Leave Connection Mode as Auto

• Select Apply

Note: By connecting FOUR Uplinks from this vNet we have provided additional bandwidth and a redundant path to the network as two uplinks will be active and two will be in standby.

Adding uplinks to an existing vNet via CLI

The following command(s) can be copied and pasted into an SSH based CLI session with Virtual Connect

# Edit the vNet "vNet-PROD" and configure uplinks as discussed above

add uplinkport enc0:1:2 Network=vNet-PROD speed=auto add uplinkport enc0:2:2 Network=vNet-PROD speed=auto

set network vNet-PROD SmartLink=Disabled

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 21

Figure 1-10 Adding uplinks to an existing vNet (vNet-PROD). Note: The Port Status and Connected to information. If the connected switch supports LLDP, the connected to

information should be displayed as below

Figure 1-11 Link aggregation confirmed – Bay 1. Note: All connections within an active/active LACP group will have the same LAG ID. To view this, go to the

Interconnect bay and view Uplink Port Information. If you are having trouble establishing an active/active connection, confirm the LAG ID.

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 22

Figure 1-12 Link aggregation confirmed - Bay 2.

Summary

We created a couple different Virtual Connect Network solutions; base initially for availability, one link was active while the second was in standby mode. We later added two additional links; this increased the network bandwidth to the Virtual Connect network, while still maintaining availability.

When VC profile App-1 is applied to the server in bay1 and is powered up, it has one NIC through each module connected to “vNet-PROD”, which connects to the network infrastructure through a pair of 1Gb uplinks. These NICs could now be configured as individual NICs (Figure 1-8 as a pair of TEAMED NICs (Figure 1-9 the network through either NIC or either uplink cable, depending on which is active at the time.

When additional bandwidth was required, additional uplinks were added to the existing vNet, this process had no effect on the server profile.

As additional servers are added to the enclosure, simply create additional profiles, or copy existing profiles, configure the NICs for vNet-PROD and apply them to the appropriate server bays.

Results

The following graphic provides an example of a Windows 2003 server with TWO NICs connected to the network, each NIC has its own TCP/IP address, either or both NICs could be actively working on the network.

) with their own IP address or

). Either NIC could be active. As a result, this server could access

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 23

Figure 1-13 Both NICs for Profile App-1are connected to the network through vNet-PROD.

The following graphics provide an example of a Windows 2003 server with TWO NICs teamed and connected to the network. One NIC will be active while the other is in standby. In the event of an Uplink or switch failure, VC will fail-over to the standby uplinks.

Figure 1-14 Both NICs, using the HP Network Configuration Utility.

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 24

Figure 1-15 Both NICs for Profile App-1are teamed and connected to the network through vNet-PROD.

Scenario 1:1 – Simple vNet with Active/Standby Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows 25

Scenario 1:2 – Multiple Simple Networks with Active\Active Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows

Overview

No special upstream switch configuration is required as the switch is in the factory default configuration.

As discussed in scenario 1:1, when configuring Virtual Connect, we can provide several ways to implement network fail-over or redundancy. In this scenario we will configure TWO separate vNets, each with a single uplink configured from each VC module. We will later connect additional uplinks, to provide additional bandwidth.

Requirements

Scenario 1:2 – Multiple Simple Networks with Active\Active Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows

Figure 1-16 Physical View; Shows a single Ethernet uplink from Port 1 on Module 1 to Port 1 on the first network switch and a single uplink from Port 1 on Module 2 to Port 1 on the second network switch.

Item Description

1 Switch Cross Connect

2 c7000 Enclosure, rear view

Scenario 1:2 – Multiple Simple Networks with Active\Active Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows

Figure 1-17 Logical View; Shows a single Ethernet uplink from Port 1 on Module 1 to Port 1 on the first network switch and a single uplink from Port 1 on Module 2 to Port 1 on the second network switch. The Uplink from Module 1 is associated with vNet-PROD-1 and the Uplink from Module 2 is associated with vNet-PROD-2. Both of these connections, in this example, connect to the same network.

Installation and configuration

Switch configuration

• The switch ports are configured as ACCESS ports, either presenting the Default VLAN or a specific

VLAN and will for forwarding untagged frames

• As an alternative, if the switch ports were configured as TRUNK ports and forwarding multiple

VLANS, Virtual Connect would forward those tagged frames to the host NICs configured for this network. The connected host would then need to be configured to interpret those VLAN tags.

This scenario assumes the switch port is configured as an Access port and the frames are presented to Virtual Connect as untagged

VC CLI commands

Configuring the VC module

• Physically connect port 1 of the Network switch to port 1 on the VC module in Bay 1.

Scenario 1:2 – Multiple Simple Networks with Active\Active Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows

• Connect Port 1 of the second Network switch to Port 1 of the VC module in Bay 2, if you have only

one network switch, connect the second VC module, port 1 to an alternate port on the same switch. This will NOT create a network loop and does not require Spanning Tree to be configured.

Configuring Fast MAC Cache Failover

• When an uplink on a VC Ethernet Module that was previously in standby mode becomes active, it

can take several minutes for external Ethernet switches to recognize that the c-Class server blades can now be reached on this newly active connection.

• Enabling Fast MAC Cache Failover forces Virtual Connect to transmit Ethernet packets on newly

Configuring the VC Module for VLAN Tunneling via GUI (Ethernet settings)

Enable Tunnel VLAN Tags within Virtual Connect

• On the Virtual Connect Manager screen, Left pane, click Ethernet Settings, Advanced Settings

• Select Tunnel VLAN Tags

• Select Fast MAC Cache Fail-over with a refresh of 5

• Select Apply

Configuring the VC Module VLAN Tunneling via CLI (Ethernet settings)

The following command can be copied and pasted into an SSH based CLI session with Virtual Connect

# Set Advanced Ethernet Settings to "Tunnel VLAN Tags" and Enable Fast MAC cache fail-over

set enet-vlan vlantagcontrol=Tunnel

set mac-cache Enabled=True Refresh=5

Figure 1-18 Ethernet Settings.

Scenario 1:2 – Multiple Simple Networks with Active\Active Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows

Defining two new vNet via GUI

Create a vNet and name it “vNet-PROD-1”

• On the Virtual Connect Manager screen, click Define, Ethernet Network to create a vNet

• Ether the Network Name of “vNet-PROD-1”

a. Optionally select Smart Link, but, do NOT select any of the other options (ie; Private

Networks etc.)

• Select Add Port, then add the following ports;

a. Enclosure 1, Bay 1, Port 1

• Leave Connection Mode as Auto

• Select Apply

Create a vNet and name it “vNet-PROD-2”

• On the Virtual Connect Manager screen, click Define, Ethernet Network to create a vNet

• Ether the Network Name of “vNet-PROD-2”

a. Select Smart Link, but, do NOT select any of the other options (ie; Private Networks etc.)

• Select Add Port, then add the following ports;

a. Enclosure 1, Bay 2, Port 1

• Leave Connection Mode as Auto

• Select Apply

Note: By creating TWO vNets we have provided a redundant path to the network. As each uplink originates from a different VC module and vNet both, uplinks will be active. This configuration provides the ability to lose an uplink cable, network switch or depending on how the NICs are configured at the server (teamed or un-teamed), even a VC module.

Note: Smart Link – In this configuration Smartlink SHOULD be enabled. Smartlink is used to turn off downlink ports within Virtual Connect if ALL available uplinks to a vNet or SUS are down. In this scenario if an upstream switch or all cables to a vNet were to fail on a specific vNet, VC would turn off the downlink ports connect to that vNet, which would then force the NIC Teaming software to fail-over to the alternate NIC.

Defining a new vNet via CLI

The following command(s) can be copied and pasted into an SSH based CLI session with Virtual Connect

# Create the vNet "vNet-PROD" and configure uplinks as discussed above add Network vNet-PROD-1 add uplinkport enc0:1:1 Network=vNet-PROD-1 speed=auto set network vNet-PROD-1 SmartLink=Enabled add Network vNet-PROD-2 add uplinkport enc0:2:1 Network=vNet-PROD-2 speed=auto set network vNet-PROD-2 SmartLink=Enabled

Scenario 1:2 – Multiple Simple Networks with Active\Active Uplinks and Optional Link Aggregation 802.3ad (LACP) - Windows

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