Chassis controller

• US 9,954,793 B2
• Filed: 03/21/2016
• Issued: 04/24/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nicira Incorporated (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Nicira Incorporated (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Thakkar, Pankaj, Koponen, Teemu
• Primary Examiner(s): Avellino, Joseph E
• Assistant Examiner(s): MCLEOD, MARSHALL M
• Application Number:
  US15/076,613
• Publication Number:
  US 20160308785A1
• Time in Patent Office: 764 Days
• Field of Search: 709212, 709213, 709226, 709223, 709227, 709230
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 11/01 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/177 Initialisation or configuration control processor initialisation G06F9/4405
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2009/45595 Network integration; Enabling network access in virtual machine instances
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45558 Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4633 Interconnection of networks using encapsulation techniques, e.g. tunneling
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0226 Mapping or translating multiple network management protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/042 comprising distributed management centres cooperatively managing the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0806 for initial configuration or provisioning, e.g. plug-and-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/20 Network management software packages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/50 Network service management, e.g. ensuring proper service fulfilment according to agreements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/38 Flow based routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/42 Centralised routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/66 Layer 2 routing, e.g. in Ethernet based MAN's
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/50 Queue scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/825 Involving tunnels, e.g. MPLS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/254 Centralised controller, i.e. arbitration or scheduling

Abstract

A non-transitory machine readable medium storing a program that configures managed forwarding elements to establish tunnels between the managed forwarding elements is described. From a particular managed forwarding element, the program receives information regarding coupling of a network element to the first managed forwarding element. Upon receiving the information, the program generates a set of universal flow entries for configuring another managed forwarding element to establish a tunnel to the particular managed forwarding element.

Claims

1. A non-transitory machine readable medium of a host machine storing a controller application which when executed by at least one processing unit of the host machine controls forwarding behavior of a managed forwarding element (MFE) that also executes on the host machine, the controller application comprising sets of instructions for:

receiving data that defines forwarding behavior of a logical forwarding element (LFE) of a logical network that logically connects a set of end machines that execute on the host machine to a plurality of other end machines that execute on a plurality of other host machines, wherein the end machines are sources and destinations of logical network data traffic forwarded by the MFE;

based on the received data, generating data for defining forwarding behavior of the MFE to implement the LFE; and

distributing the generated data to the MFE to implement the LFE in conjunction with a plurality of other MFEs executing on the plurality of other host machines that also implement the LFE.

2. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 1, wherein the MFE implements the LFE by mapping one or more logical ports of the LFE to one or more physical ports of the MFE to which the set of end machines are coupled.

3. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 1, wherein the set of instructions for receiving the data comprises a set of instructions for receiving the data from a controller computer, separate from the host machine, that manages the controller application executing on the host machine in addition to a plurality of other controller applications executing on the plurality of other host machines.

4. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 3, wherein the controller computer also distributes the data that defines the forwarding behavior of the LFE to the other controller applications.

5. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 4, wherein each of the other controller applications to which the controller computer distributes the data that defines the forwarding behavior of the LFE (i) generates, based on the data from the controller computer, customized data that defines forwarding behavior of a corresponding MFE that executes on a host machine on which the other controller application executes, and (ii) distributes the generated customized data to the corresponding MFE for the corresponding MFE to implement the LFE.

6. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 1, wherein the controller application further comprises a set of instructions for receiving MFE-specific data from the MFE.

7. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 6, wherein the set of instructions for generating the data that defines the forwarding behavior of the MFE comprises a set of instructions for generating the data based on (i) the received data that defines the forwarding behavior of the LFE and (ii) the received MFE-specific data.

8. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 6, wherein the received MFE-specific data comprises a physical port number of the MFE to which a logical port of the LFE is mapped.

9. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 1, wherein the LFE is a first LFE, the set of end machines is a first set of end machines, the plurality of other end machines is a first plurality of other end machines, and the logical network is a first logical network, wherein the controller application further comprises sets of instructions for:

receiving data that defines forwarding behavior of a second LFE of a second logical network that logically connects a second set of end machines that execute on the host machine to a second plurality of other end machines that execute on the plurality of other host machines, wherein the second set and plurality of end machines are sources and destinations of data traffic for the second logical network that is forwarded by the MFE; and

based on the received data, generating data for defining forwarding behavior of the MFE to also implement the second LFE.

10. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 9, wherein the sets of instructions for receiving the data that defines the forwarding behaviors of the first and second LFEs comprise sets of instructions for:

receiving logical network data that defines the forwarding behavior of the first LFE from a first controller computer that manages the first logical network; and

receiving logical network data that defines the forwarding behavior of the second LFE from a second controller computer that manages the second logical network.

11. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 10, wherein the first logical network belongs to a first tenant of a hosting system while the second logical network belongs to a second different tenant of the hosting system.

12. A method for a controller application stored in a non-transitory machine readable medium of a host machine of a hosting system and executable by at least one processing unit of the host machine to control forwarding behavior of a managed forwarding element (MFE) that also executes on the host machine, the method comprising:

receiving data that defines forwarding behavior of a logical forwarding element (LFE) of a logical network that logically connects a set of end machines that execute on the host machine to a plurality of other end machines that execute on a plurality of other host machines, wherein the end machines are sources and destinations of logical network data traffic forwarded by the MFE;

based on the received data, generating data for defining forwarding behavior of the MFE to implement the LFE; and

distributing the generated data to the MFE to implement the LFE, in conjunction with a plurality of other MFEs executing on the plurality of other host machines that also implement the LFE.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the MFE implements the LFE by mapping one or more logical ports of the LFE to one or more physical ports of the MFE to which the set of end machines are coupled.

14. The method of claim 12 further comprising receiving MFE-specific data from the MFE, wherein the data that defines the forwarding behavior of the MFE 15 generated based on (i) the received data that defines the forwarding behavior of the LFE and (ii) the received MFE-specific data.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the received WE-specific data comprises a physical port number of the WE to which a logical port of the LFE is mapped.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the received WE-specific data comprises forwarding data about an end machine in the set of end machines that has ceased operating on the host machine.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein the data that defines the forwarding behavior of the LFE is received from a controller computer, separate from the host machine, that manages the controller application executing on the host machine in addition to a plurality of other controller applications executing on the plurality of other host machines.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the controller computer also distributes the data that defines the forwarding behavior of the LFE to the other controller applications.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein each of the other controller applications to which the controller computer distributes the data that defines the forwarding behavior of the LFE (i) generates, based on the received data from the controller computer, customized data that defines forwarding behavior of a corresponding WE that executes on a host machine on which the other controller application executes, and (ii) distributes the generated customized data to the corresponding MFE for the corresponding MFE to implement the LFE.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein the MFE implements the LFE, in conjunction with the plurality of other MFEs, by exchanging network data with the other MFEs, wherein the network data is sent to or received from the MFEs by the end machines that are logically connected to the LFE.