Defining a Logical Device

About Device Clusters

A device cluster (also known as a logical device) is one or more concrete devices that act as a single device. A device cluster has cluster (logical) interfaces, which describe the interface information for the device cluster. During service graph template rendering, function node connectors are associated with cluster (logical) interfaces. The Application Policy Infrastructure Controller (APIC) allocates the network resources (VLAN or Virtual Extensible Local Area Network [VXLAN]) for a function node connector during service graph template instantiation and rendering and programs the network resources onto the cluster (logical) interfaces.

The service graph template uses a specific device that is based on a device selection policy (called a logical device context) that an administrator defines.

An administrator can set up a maximum of two concrete devices in active-standby mode.

To set up a device cluster, you must perform the following tasks:

  1. Connect the concrete devices to the fabric.

  2. Assign the management IP address to the device cluster.

  3. Register the device cluster with the APIC. The APIC validates the device using the device specifications from the device package.

About Managed Device Clusters

A device cluster can be configured as a managed device cluster. In managed mode, the Application Policy Infrastructure Controller (APIC) programs the devices during graph instantiation using the configuration provided to the APIC by an APIC administrator. For a managed device cluster, the APIC requires the device package for managing the devices in the device cluster.

By default, a device cluster is configured as a managed device cluster.

The following settings are needed when a device cluster is configured as managed:

  • Device package

  • Connectivity information for the logical device (vnsLDevViP) and devices (CDev)-management IP address, credentials, and in-band connectivity information

  • Information about supported function types (go-through, go-to)

  • Information about context awareness (single context or multi-context)

The APIC needs to know the topology information (logical interface and concrete interface) for the device cluster and devices. This information is needed so that the APIC can program the appropriate ports on the leaf, and the APIC can also use this information for troubleshooting wizard purposes. The APIC also needs to know the relation to DomP, which is used for allocating the encapsulation.

About Unmanaged Device Clusters

A device cluster can be configured as an unmanaged device cluster. For an unmanaged device cluster, the Application Policy Infrastructure Controller (APIC) allocates only the network resources for the service graph and program on only the fabric side during graph instantiation. This might be useful if your environment already has an existing orchestrator or a dev-op tool that programs the devices in a device cluster. In some other cases, the device package for the service appliance is not available. Unmanaged mode enables the APIC to work with service devices without needing to have a device package.

The APIC needs to know the topology information (logical interface and concrete interface) for the device cluster and devices. This information is needed so that the APIC can program the appropriate ports on the leaf, and the APIC can also use this information for troubleshooting wizard purposes. The APIC also needs to know the relation to DomP, which is used for allocating the encapsulation.

About Concrete Devices

A concrete device has concrete interfaces. When a concrete device is added to a logical device, concrete interfaces are mapped to the logical interfaces. During service graph template instantiation, VLANs and VXLANs are programmed on concrete interfaces that are based on their association with logical interfaces.

Creating a Device Using the GUI

You can connect to either a physical device or a virtual machine. The fields are slightly different depending on the type to which you are connecting. When you connect to a physical device, you specify the physical interface. When you connect to a virtual machine, you specify the VMM domain, the virtual machine, and the virtual interfaces. Additionally, you can select an unknown model, which allows you to manually configure the connections.

Before You Begin

  • You must have configured a tenant.

    Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Tenants > All Tenants.
    Step 2   In the Work pane, double click the tenant's name.
    Step 3   In the Navigation pane, choose tenant_name > L4-L7 Services > L4-L7 Devices.
    Step 4   In the Work pane, choose Actions > Create L4-L7 Devices.
    Step 5   In the Create L4-L7 Devices dialog box, in the General section, complete the following fields:

    Name

    Description

    Managed check box

    Put a check in the box to create a managed device, or remove the check from the box to create an unmanaged device.

    Name field

    Enter a name for the device.

    Service Type drop-down list

    Choose the service type.

    Device Type buttons

    Choose the device type.

    Physical Domain or VMM Domain drop-down list

    Choose the physical domain or VMM domain.

    Mode radio buttons

    Choose the mode for the device.

    Device Package drop-down list

    (Only for managed devices) Choose the vendor-provided device package that you will use.

    Model drop-down list

    (Only for managed devices) Choose the model of the device.

    Step 6   (Only for managed devices) In the Connectivity section, complete the following fields:

    Name

    Description

    APIC to Device Management Connectivity radio buttons

    Choose the type of connectivity. Choose Out-of-Band when you are connecting to a device that is outside of the fabric or In-Band when you are connecting to a device through the fabric.

    Step 7   (Only for managed devices) In the Credentials section, complete the following fields:

    Name

    Description

    User Name field

    Enter your user name.

    Password field

    Enter your password.

    Confirm Password field

    Enter your password again.

    Step 8   In the Device 1 section, complete the following fields:

    Name

    Description

    Management IP Address field

    (Only for managed devices) Enter the management IP address of the device to which you are connecting.

    Management Port field and drop-down list

    (Only for managed devices) Enter the management port or choose a value from the drop-down list.

    VM drop-down list

    (Only for the virtual device type) Choose a virtual machine.

    Chassis drop-down list

    (Only for managed devices) Choose a chassis.

    Step 9   In the Device Interfaces table, click the + button to add an interface and complete the following fields:

    Name

    Description

    Name drop-down list

    Choose the interface name.

    VNIC drop-down list

    (Only for the virtual device type) Choose a vNIC.

    Path drop-down list

    Choose a port, port channel, or virtual port channel to which the interface will connect.

    Step 10   Click Update.
    Step 11   (Only for an HA cluster) Complete the fields for each device.
    Step 12   Complete the fields for the Cluster section.

    For an HA cluster, make sure that the cluster interfaces are mapped to the corresponding interfaces on both concrete devices in the cluster.

    Step 13   Click Next.

    The Device Configuration page displays a list of possible features and parameters for the package you are using. You see a tab with the Basic parameters displayed and another tab All Parameters that displays all the available parameters with your device package. The basic parameters are included under All Parameters.

    Step 14   In the Features section, choose the set of features that you want to use. The set of parameters changes depending on the specific package you are using and the specific feature you select.
    Step 15   For the parameters of the chosen features, supply the values as follows:
    1. Double-click in the field you want to modify.
    2. Enter the required information in the fields that appear.
    3. Click Update.
    Step 16   Click Finish.

    Creating a Device Using the NX-OS-Style CLI

    You can connect to either a physical device or a virtual machine. When you connecting to a physical device, you specify the physical interface. When you connect to a virtual machine, you specify the VMM domain, the virtual machine, and the virtual interfaces.

    Before You Begin

    • You must have configured a tenant.

      Step 1   Enter the configure mode.

      Example: 
      apic1# configure
      Step 2   Enter the configure mode for a tenant. 
      tenant tenant_name


      Example: 
      apic1(config)# tenant t1
      Step 3   Add a Layer 4 to Layer 7 device cluster. 
      l4l7 cluster name cluster_name type cluster_type vlan-domain domain_name
  [function function_type] [service service_type]

      Parameter

      Description

      name

      The name of the device cluster.

      type

      The type of the device cluster. Possible values are:

      • virtual

      • physical

      vlan-domain

      The domain to use for allocating the VLANs. The domain must be a VMM domain for virtual device and physical domain for physical device.

      function

      (Optional) The function type. Possible values are:

      • go-to

      • go-through

      service

      (Optional) The service type. This is used by the GUI to show the ADC- or firewall-specific icons and GUI. Possible values are:

      • ADC

      • FW

      • OTHERS



      Example:

      For a physical device, enter: 

      apic1(config-tenant)# l4l7 cluster name D1 type physical vlan-domain phys
  function go-through service ADC

      For a virtual device, enter: 

      apic1(config-tenant)# l4l7 cluster name ADCCluster1 type virtual vlan-domain mininet
      Step 4   Add one or more cluster devices in the device cluster. 
      cluster-device device_name [vcenter vcenter_name] [vm vm_name]

      Parameter

      Description

      vcenter

      (Only for a virtual device) The name of VCenter that hosts the virtual machine for the virtual device.

      vm

      (Only for a virtual device) The name of the virtual machine for the virtual device.



      Example:

      For a physical device, enter: 

      apic1(config-cluster)# cluster-device C1
apic1(config-cluster)# cluster-device C2

      For a virtual device, enter: 

      apic1(config-cluster)# cluster-device C1 vcenter vcenter1 vm VM1
apic1(config-cluster)# cluster-device C2 vcenter vcenter1 vm VM2
      Step 5   Add one or more cluster interfaces in the device cluster. 
      cluster-interface interface_name [vlan static_encap]

      Parameter

      Description

      vlan

      (Only for a physical device) The static encapsulation for the cluster interface. VLAN value must be between 1 to 4094.



      Example:

      For a physical device, enter: 

      apic1(config-cluster)# cluster-interface consumer vlan 1001

      For a virtual device, enter: 

      apic1(config-cluster)# cluster-interface consumer
      Step 6   Add one or more members in the cluster interface. 
      member device device_name device-interface interface_name

      Parameter

      Description

      device

      The name of the cluster device that must have been already added to this device cluster using cluster-device command.

      device-interface

      The name of the interface on the cluster device.



      Example: 
      apic1(config-cluster-interface)# member device C1 device-interface 1.1
      Step 7   Add an interface to a member. 
      interface {ethernet ethernet_port | port-channel port_channel_name [fex fex_ID] |
  vpc vpc_name [fex fex_ID]} leaf leaf_ID

      If you want to add a vNIC instead of an interface, then skip this step.

      Parameter

      Description

      ethernet

      (Only for an Ethernet or FEX Ethernet interface) The Ethernet port on the leaf where the cluster device is connected to Cisco Application Centric Infrastructure (ACI) fabric. If you are adding a FEX Ethernet member, specify both the FEX ID and the FEX port in the following format: 

      FEX_ID/FEX_port

      For example: 

      101/1/23

      The FEX ID specifies where the cluster device is connected to Fabric extender.

      port-channel

      (Only for a port channel or FEX port channel interface) The port channel name where the cluster device is connected to ACI fabric.

      vpc

      (Only for a virtual port channel or FEX virtual port channel interface) The virtual port channel name where the cluster device is connected to ACI fabric.

      fex

      (Only for a port channel, FEX port channel, virtual port channel, or FEX virtual port channel interface) The FEX IDs in a space-separated list that are used to form the port channel or virtual port channel.

      leaf

      The leaf IDs in a space-separated list where the cluster device is connected.



      Example:

      For an Ethernet interface, enter: 

      apic1(config-member)# interface ethernet 1/23 leaf 101
apic1(config-member)# exit

      For a FEX Ethernet interface, enter: 

      apic1(config-member)# interface ethernet 101/1/23 leaf 101
apic1(config-member)# exit

      For a port channel interface, enter: 

      apic1(config-member)# interface port-channel pc1 leaf 101
apic1(config-member)# exit

      For a FEX port channel interface, enter: 

      apic1(config-member)# interface port-channel pc1 leaf 101 fex 101
apic1(config-member)# exit

      For a virtual port channel interface, enter: 

      apic1(config-member)# interface vpc vpc1 leaf 101 102
apic1(config-member)# exit

      For a FEX virtual port channel interface, enter: 

      apic1(config-member)# interface vpc vpc1 leaf 101 102 fex 101 102
apic1(config-member)# exit
      Step 8   Add a vNIC to a member. 
      vnic "vnic_name"

      If you want to add an interface instead of a vNIC, then see the previous step.

      Parameter

      Description

      vnic

      The name of the VNIC adapter on the virtual machine for the cluster-device. Enclose the name in double quotes.



      Example: 
      apic1(config-member)# vnic "Network adapter 2"
apic1(config-member)# exit
      Step 9   If you are done creating the device, exit the configuration mode.

      Example: 
      apic1(config-cluster-interface)# exit
apic1(config-cluster)# exit
apic1(config-tenant)# exit
apic1(config)# exit

      Using an Imported Device Using the REST APIs

      The following REST API uses an imported device: 
      <polUni>
  <fvTenant dn="uni/tn-tenant1" name="tenant1">
    <vnsLDevIf ldev="uni/tn-mgmt/lDevVip-ADCCluster1"/>
    <vnsLDevCtx ctrctNameOrLbl="any" graphNameOrLbl="any" nodeNameOrLbl="any">
      <vnsRsLDevCtxToLDev tDn="uni/tn-tenant1/lDevIf-[uni/tn-mgmt/lDevVip-ADCCluster1]"/>
      <vnsLIfCtx connNameOrLbl="inside">
        <vnsRsLIfCtxToLIf tDn="uni/tn-tenant1/lDevIf-[uni/tn-mgmt/lDevVip-ADCCluster1]/lDevIfLIf-inside"/>
        <fvSubnet ip="10.10.10.10/24"/>
        <vnsRsLIfCtxToBD tDn="uni/tn-tenant1/BD-tenant1BD1"/>
      </vnsLIfCtx>
      <vnsLIfCtx connNameOrLbl="outside">
        <vnsRsLIfCtxToLIf tDn="uni/tn-tenant1/lDevIf-[uni/tn-mgmt/lDevVip-ADCCluster1]/lDevIfLIf-outside"/>
        <fvSubnet ip="70.70.70.70/24"/>
        <vnsRsLIfCtxToBD tDn="uni/tn-tenant1/BD-tenant1BD4"/>
      </vnsLIfCtx>
    </vnsLDevCtx>
  </fvTenant>
</polUni>

      Importing a Device From Another Tenant Using the NX-OS-Style CLI

      You can import a device from another tenant for a shared services scenario.

        Step 1   Enter the configure mode.

        Example: 
        apic1# configure
        Step 2   Enter the configure mode for a tenant. 
        tenant tenant_name


        Example: 
        apic1(config)# tenant t1
        Step 3   Import the device. 
        l4l7 cluster import-from tenant_name device-cluster device_name

        Parameter

        Description

        import-from

        Name of the tenant from where to import the device.

        device-cluster

        Name of the device cluster to import from the specified tenant.



        Example: 
        apic1(config-tenant)# l4l7 cluster import-from common device-cluster d1
apic1(config-import-from)# end

        Verifying the Import of a Device Using the GUI

        You can use the GUI to verify that a device was imported successfully.
          Step 1   On the menu bar, click the TENANTS tab. The Tenant window appears.
          Step 2   On the submenu bar, click the name of the tenant for which you want to import devices.
          Step 3   In the Navigation pane, expand the tenant's branch.
          Step 4   Expand the L4-L7 Services branch.
          Step 5   Expand the Imported Devices branch.
          Step 6   Choose the appropriate device. The device information appears in the Work pane.