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<h2><span class="refentrytitle">nm-openvswitch</span></h2>
<p>nm-openvswitch — overview of NetworkManager Open vSwitch support</p>
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<div class="refsect1">
<a name="id-1.2.13.4"></a><h2>Overview</h2>
<p>NetworkManager includes basic Open vSwitch support, good enough
to be capable of setting up simple Open vSwitch configurations. It is not
extensive and does not expose all functionality of Open vSwitch provides.
For large or complicated deployments users are advised to use native tools
shipped with Open vSwitch. This document seeks to provide overview of
functionality currently provided by NetworkManager, its capabilities and
limitations.</p>
<p>First and foremost: NetworkManager applies the configuration by
modifying the OVSDB directly. Its configuration model follows the OVSDB
database model closely and it does not provide the level of abstraction
<span class="command"><strong>ovs-vsctl</strong></span> provides.</p>
<p>In practical terms it means the following:
</p>
<div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" style="list-style-type: disc; ">
<li class="listitem"><p>NetworkManager only ever talks to a single OVSDB instance via an
UNIX domain socket.</p></li>
<li class="listitem"><p>The configuration is made up of Bridges, Ports and
Interfaces. Interfaces are always enslaved to Ports, and Ports are always
enslaved to Bridges.</p></li>
<li class="listitem"><p>NetworkManager only creates Bridges, Ports and Interfaces
you ask it to. Unlike <span class="command"><strong>ovs-vsctl</strong></span>, it doesn't create the
local interface nor its port automatically.</p></li>
<li class="listitem"><p>You can't enslave Interface directly to a Bridge. You
always need a Port, even if it has just one interface.</p></li>
<li class="listitem"><p>There are no VLANs. The VLAN tagging is enabled by setting a
ovs-port.tag
property on a Port.</p></li>
<li class="listitem"><p>There are no bonds either. The bonding is enabled by
enslaving multiple Interfaces to a Port and configured by setting
properties on a port.</p></li>
</ul></div>
<p>
</p>
<div class="refsect2">
<a name="id-1.2.13.4.5"></a><h3>Bridges</h3>
<p>Bridges are represented by connections of ovs-bridge
type.
Due to the limitations of OVSDB, "empty" Bridges (with no Ports) can't exist.
NetworkManager inserts the records for Bridges into OVSDB when a Port is
enslaved.
</p>
</div>
<hr>
<div class="refsect2">
<a name="id-1.2.13.4.6"></a><h3>Ports</h3>
<p>Ports are represented by connections of ovs-port
type.
Due to the limitations of OVSDB, "empty" Ports (with no Interfaces) can't
exist. Ports can also be configured to do VLAN tagging or Bonding.
NetworkManager inserts the records for Ports into OVSDB when an Interface is
enslaved. Ports must be enslaved to a Bridge.</p>
</div>
<hr>
<div class="refsect2">
<a name="id-1.2.13.4.7"></a><h3>Interfaces</h3>
<p>Interfaces are represented by a connections enslaved to a Port. The
system interfaces (that have a corresponding Linux link) have a respective
connection.type
of the link (e.g. "wired", "bond", "dummy", etc.). Other interfaces ("internal"
or "patch" interfaces) are of ovs-interface type. The OVSDB entries are
inserted upon enslavement to a Port.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="refsect1">
<a name="id-1.2.13.5"></a><h2>Examples</h2>
<div class="example">
<a name="id-1.2.13.5.2"></a><p class="title"><b>Example 18. Creating a Bridge with a single internal Interface</b></p>
<div class="example-contents">
<pre class="screen"><code class="prompt">$ </code><strong class="userinput"><code>nmcli conn add type ovs-bridge conn.interface bridge0</code></strong>
Connection 'ovs-bridge-bridge0' (d10fc64d-1d48-4394-a1b8-e1aea72f27d5) successfully added.
<code class="prompt">$ </code><strong class="userinput"><code>nmcli conn add type ovs-port conn.interface port0 master bridge0</code></strong>
Connection 'ovs-port-port0' (5ae22bae-bba4-4815-9ade-7e635633e1f0) successfully added.
<code class="prompt">$ </code><strong class="userinput"><code>nmcli conn add type ovs-interface slave-type ovs-port conn.interface iface0 \
master port0 ipv4.method manual ipv4.address 192.0.2.1/24</code></strong>
Connection 'ovs-interface-iface0' (3640d2a1-a2fd-4718-92f1-cffadb5b6cdc) successfully added.
</pre>
<p>As said above, you need to create a Port even for a single interface.
Also, before you add the Interface, the Bridge and Port devices appear active,
but are not configured in OVSDB yet. You can inspect the results with
<span class="command"><strong>ovs-vsctl show</strong></span>.</p>
</div>
</div>
<br class="example-break"><div class="example">
<a name="id-1.2.13.5.3"></a><p class="title"><b>Example 19. Adding a Linux interface to a Bridge</b></p>
<div class="example-contents">
<pre class="screen"><code class="prompt">$ </code><strong class="userinput"><code>nmcli conn add type ovs-port conn.interface port1 master bridge0</code></strong>
Connection 'ovs-port-port1' (67d041eb-8e7b-4458-afee-a1d07c9c4552) successfully added.
<code class="prompt">$ </code><strong class="userinput"><code>nmcli conn add type ethernet conn.interface eth0 master port1</code></strong>
Connection 'ovs-slave-eth0' (d459c45c-cf78-4c1c-b4b7-505e71379624) successfully added.
</pre>
<p>Again, you need a port.</p>
</div>
</div>
<br class="example-break"><div class="example">
<a name="id-1.2.13.5.4"></a><p class="title"><b>Example 20. Creating a VLAN</b></p>
<div class="example-contents">
<pre class="screen"><code class="prompt">$ </code><strong class="userinput"><code>nmcli conn add type ovs-port conn.interface port2 master bridge0 ovs-port.tag 120</code></strong>
Connection 'ovs-port-port2' (3994c093-4ef7-4549-a4fd-627b831c3cb8) successfully added.
<code class="prompt">$ </code><strong class="userinput"><code>nmcli conn add type ethernet conn.interface eth1 master port2</code></strong>
Connection 'ovs-slave-eth1' (099be06e-71ad-484d-8d5a-fcadc5f207f5) successfully added.
</pre>
<p>It's just a port with a tag.</p>
</div>
</div>
<br class="example-break"><div class="example">
<a name="id-1.2.13.5.5"></a><p class="title"><b>Example 21. Creating a Bond</b></p>
<div class="example-contents">
<pre class="screen"><code class="prompt">$ </code><strong class="userinput"><code>nmcli conn add type ovs-port conn.interface bond0 master bridge0</code></strong>
Connection 'ovs-port-bond0' (d154ebf9-e999-4e1b-a084-a3de53d25d8a) successfully added.
<code class="prompt">$ </code><strong class="userinput"><code>nmcli conn add type ethernet conn.interface eth2 master bond0</code></strong>
Connection 'ovs-slave-eth2' (475ac1bf-30b2-4534-a877-27f33f58b082) successfully added.
<code class="prompt">$ </code><strong class="userinput"><code>nmcli conn add type ethernet conn.interface eth3 master bond0</code></strong>
Connection 'ovs-slave-eth3' (8dedeecb-ed12-482b-b77a-24a4fb835136) successfully added.
</pre>
<p>It's just a Port with multiple interfaces. See nm-settings manual for
Bonding options you can use with "nmcli c add" or "nmcli c modify". You could
even set a VLAN tag on the same Port to do VLAN tagging and bonding at the same
time.</p>
</div>
</div>
<br class="example-break">
</div>
<div class="refsect1">
<a name="id-1.2.13.6"></a><h2>Bugs</h2>
<div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" style="list-style-type: disc; ">
<li class="listitem"><p>Not all Open vSwitch capabilities are supported.</p></li>
<li class="listitem"><p>Open vSwitch devices don't expose many useful properties on D-Bus.</p></li>
</ul></div>
<p>Probably many more.</p>
</div>
<div class="refsect1">
<a name="id-1.2.13.7"></a><h2>See Also</h2>
<p>
<a class="ulink" href="https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc7047.txt" target="_top">RFC 7047: The Open vSwitch Database Management Protocol</a>,
<span class="citerefentry"><span class="refentrytitle">ovs-vsctl</span>(8)</span>,
<span class="citerefentry"><span class="refentrytitle">ovs-vswitchd.conf.db</span>(5)</span>,
<span class="citerefentry"><span class="refentrytitle">nm-settings</span>(5)</span>,
<a class="link" href="nmcli.html" title="nmcli"><span class="citerefentry"><span class="refentrytitle">nmcli</span>(1)</span></a>
</p>
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