This presentation was given at the Boston VMUG on Tuesday, October 29, 2103.

1. Network Virtualization with VMware NSX
Scott Lowe, VCDX
Engineering Architect
Networking & Security BU, VMware, Inc.
http://blog.scottlowe.org
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2. Before we get started
§ Get
involved! Audience participation is encouraged
and requested.
§ If you use Twitter, feel free to tweet about this session
(use @MyVMUG or @BostonVMUG)
§ I encourage you to take photos or videos of today’s
session and share them online
§ This presentation will be made available online after
the event
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3. Your name is familiar...
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4. Networking can be a barrier to the
software-defined data center
Software Defined Data Center
VDC
SOFTWARE-DEFINED
DATACENTER SERVICES
§ Provisioning
is slow
§ Placement is limited
§ Mobility is limited
§ Hardware dependent
§ Operationally intensive
Compute Virtualization
Any Physical
Infrastructure
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5. How can we solve this challenge?
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6. Many technologies are claiming to be
able to address this challenge
SR-IOV
Open vSwitch
SDN controllers
STT
Network overlays
LISP
VXLAN
TRILL
Merchant silicon
SDN
OpenFlow
Fabrics
NVGRE
OpenStack Networking
Northbound APIs
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7. By themselves, these technologies
don’t change the operational model.
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8. To change the operational model,
what’s needed is the right abstraction.
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9. Let’s look at compute virtualization
§ Multiple
forms of virtualization existed in x86-based
computing before VMware
80386 “protected mode”
§ Virtual memory
§ Application virtual machines (e.g., JVM)
§ Remote presentation (X Window System)
§
§ These
were all important developments, but...
None of them had the power to change the
operational model.
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10. Along comes VMware and the VM
§ VMware
introduced a new abstraction: the virtual
machine (VM)
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11. Why is the VM important?
§ The
VM abstraction encompassed other virtualization
technologies, but enabled operational change
§ Operational change enabled customers to address
pain points (speed of provisioning, for example)
Now users could easily create VMs, destroy VMs, clone
VMs, start/stop/pause VMs
§ VMs encouraged more standardized configurations
§ VMs could be deployed programmatically, which enables
self-service tools and methodologies
§
§ Success
encouraged adoption; adoption encouraged
ecosystem development (positive feedback loop)
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12. So what does this have to do with
network virtualization?
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13. What’s needed is the right abstraction
§ The
right abstraction—the virtual network—lets us
change the operational model
§ Changing the operational model brings benefits:
Greater speed and agility
§ Lower operational overhead
§ Decreased capital expenditures
§ But...it’s really about greater speed & agility
§
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14. What is a virtual network?
Application
Application
Workload
Application
Workload
Workload
L2, L3, L4-7 Network Services
x86 Environment
Software
Virtual
Machine
Virtual
Machine
Virtual
Machine
Server Hypervisor
Virtual
Network
Decoupled
Requirement: x86
Virtual
Network
Virtual
Network
Network Hypervisor
Requirement: IP Transport
Hardware
General Purpose Server Hardware
(Dell, HP, IBM, OpenCompute, Quanta)
General Purpose IP Hardware
(Arista, Cisco, HP, Juniper, Accton)
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15. Networks aren’t just about connectivity
§ A
virtual network must be more than just connectivity
§ It has to also provide virtual network services:
Routing
§ Firewalling
§ Load balancing
§ VPNs
§
§ It
has to be extensible, allowing technology partners to
“plug into” the virtual network to bring additional
services and functionality to bear for customers
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16. Key functions of a virtual network
Virtual
Virtual
Network
Operations
1. Decouples
2. Reproduces
3. Automates
Physical
Hardware
independence
Physical
No change to network
from end host perspective
Cloud
Operations
Operational benefits
of virtualization
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17. VMware NSX provides the right
abstraction—the virtual network—to
enable operational change that
addresses pain points and meets
business needs.
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18. Networking can be a barrier to the
software-defined data center
Software Defined Data Center
VDC
SOFTWARE-DEFINED
DATACENTER SERVICES
§ Provisioning
is slow
§ Placement is limited
§ Mobility is limited
§ Hardware dependent
§ Operationally intensive
Compute Virtualization
Any Physical
Infrastructure
18

19. Network virtualization addresses this
challenge
Software Defined Data Center
VDC
SOFTWARE-DEFINED
DATACENTER SERVICES
§ Programmatic
provisioning
§ Place any workload anywhere
§ Move any workload anywhere
§ Decoupled from hardware
§ Operationally efficient
Network Virtualization
Compute Virtualization
Any Physical
Infrastructure
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20. Looking a bit deeper at VMware NSX
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21. Some technologies you might find
helpful
§ Linux
§ Open
vSwitch (OVS)
§ OpenFlow
§ OVSDB
§ Cloud management systems
vCloud Automation Center (vCAC)
§ OpenStack
§ CloudStack
§
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22. Questions & answers
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23. Thank you
Scott Lowe
slowe@vmware.com
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