Single Switch Configuration
Single switch configuration provides a simple topology requiring only a single switch, and two 1GE ports per server. Link or switch redundancy is not provided. Access ports and trunk ports are the two supported network port configurations.
Network Topology
Upstream Network Requirements
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A managed switch with VLAN capability
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Six physical 1GE ports for three HyperFlex nodes
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Jumbo frames are not required to be configured
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Portfast or portfast trunk should be configured on all ports to ensure uninterrupted access to Cisco Integrated Management Controller (CIMC)
Virtual Network Requirements
The recommended configuration for each ESXi host calls for the following networks to be separated:
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Management traffic network
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Data traffic network
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vMotion network
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VM network
The minimum network configuration requires at least two separate networks:
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Management network (includes vMotion and VM network)
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Data network (for storage traffic)
Two vSwitches each carrying different networks are required:
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vswitch-hx-inband-mgmt—ESXi management (vmk0), storage controller management, vMotion (vmk2), VM guest portgroups
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vswitch-hx-storage-data—HyperFlex storage data network, Hypervisor storage interface (vmk1)
Note |
After some HyperFlex Edge deployments using the single switch configuration, it is normal to see the storage data vSwitch and associated portgroup failover order with only a standby adapter populated. The missing active adapter does not cause any functional issue with the cluster and we recommend leaving the failover order as configured by the installation process. |
Port Requirements
Two 1GE ports are required per server:
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Port 1—management (ESXi and CIMC), vMotion traffic, and VM guest traffic
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Port 2—HyperFlex storage traffic
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There are two supported network port configurations: access ports or trunk ports.
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Spanning tree portfast (access ports) or portfast trunk (trunk ports) must be enabled for all network ports connected to HyperFlex servers.
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Failure to configure portfast causes intermittent CIMC disconnects during ESXi bootup and longer than necessary network re-convergence during physical link failure.
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To decide if your deployment will use access ports or trunk ports, see the following section "About Access and Trunk Ports".
Physical network topology guidance:
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Cable both integrated LOM ports to the same ToR switch.
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If desired, cable the dedicated CIMC port to the same switch or to an out-of-band management switch.
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Do no use the 10GE ports on the VIC.
About Access and Trunk Ports
Ethernet interfaces can be configured either as access ports or trunk ports, as follows:
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An access port can have only one VLAN configured on the interface; it can carry traffic for only one VLAN.
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A trunk port can have one or more VLANs configured on the interface; it can carry traffic for several VLANs simultaneously.
The following table summarizes the differences between access and trunk ports. You can use the details described in this table to determine which ports to use for your deployment.
Important |
Trunk ports are assumed in this guide, and is highly recommended for your deployment. |
Trunk Ports |
Access Ports |
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Requires more setup and definition of VLAN tags within CIMC, ESXi, and HX Data Platform Installer. |
Provides a simpler deployment process than trunk ports. |
Provides the ability to logically separate management, vMotion, and VM guest traffic on separate subnets. |
Requires that management, vMotion, and VM guest traffic must share a single subnet. |
Provides flexibility to bring in additional L2 networks to ESXi. |
Requires a managed switch to configure ports 1 and 2 on discrete VLANs; storage traffic must use a dedicated VLAN, no exceptions. |
Note |
Both trunk and access ports require a managed switch to configure ports 1 and 2 on discrete VLANs. |
See Sample Network Configurations for more details.