[Xen-devel] Xen 4.0 feature request - Brainstorm on Networking and Virtual Switches!

[Thiago Camargo Martins Cordeiro <thiagocmartinsc@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hi!

 Today my open source Xen cluster is missing a very important piece of software, the Virtual Switch.

 Some time ago, I believe that the solution was the VDE2 but, after implementing the Eucalyptus 1.5 and researching why the Eucalyptus team drop the VDE2 from the project, make me think more about this... in fact, I suggest here at the list, that the Xen needs to add support for VDE2 and my suggestion is on the Xen 4.0 roadmap wiki page but... is that right?! I know I need a virtual switch but, what?! There is a jungle out there...

 So I guess we need to talk more about this and here we go...

 First point: I want to be able to connect cross cables between the virtual switchs, I mean, I'll install a virtual switch per client, on each dom0, and connect these virtual switches with the "ssh cross cable", even if the dom0s are arround the world.

 Second point (most important to me): I want to be able to configure my client's VLANs ONLY at his virtual switchs, NOT at the phisical/real switchs!! Gotcha?! Thats because the real switch as a limit of, for example, 256 VLANs but, I'm sure that I will have much more VLANs on my Xen cluster, so, I do not want to configure the client VLAN, which must exists only within his virtual switch, in my real switch.

 VDE is the Virtual Distributed Ethernet, the VDE2 has a cool feature, is the cross cable through ssh, look this page:

 http://wiki.virtualsquare.org/index.php/VDE_Basic_Networking

 At that page, you can see the "ssh cross cable", is there any other virtual switch with a feature like that?!

 But VDE as a performance impact on the networking, that is the reason for the Eucalyptus to drop the VDE...

 Flying Under the Citrix Synergy Radar – A New Virtual Switch:

 http://www.chriswolf.com/?p=362

 Citrix will offer an open source virtual switch for Xen and KVM:

 http://www.virtualization.info/2009/05/citrix-will-offer-open-source-virtual.html

 LISA stands for LInux Switching Appliance:

 http://lisa.ines.ro

 Vyatta:

 http://www.vyatta.com/products/virtualized.php

 Probably the most cool project that I ever seen: The OpenSolaris Crossbow:

 http://www.opensolaris.com/learn/features/networking/networkcrossbow

 The Oracle needs to port ZFS and Crossbow to Linux and forget OpenSolaris, for ever!!   :-D

 Open vSwitch

 http://openvswitch.org

 So, what virtual switch I need?!

Att,

Thiago

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