Intel and Red Hat Demonstrate SDN Service-Chaining Solutions
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White Paper Intel® Open Network Platform Software Defined Networking Division Going Virtual: Intel and Red Hat Demonstrate SDN Service-Chaining Solutions As software-defined networking (SDN) and network function virtualization (NFV) have gained traction in the marketplace, many organizations—from enterprise IT to cloud and telecommunications service providers—have discovered the benefits of virtualizing compute and networking components. Enterprises and service providers face intense pressure to support the rapid deployment of new services, and this is one of the key factors driving the industry shift to SDN and NFV solutions. Service chaining adds another dimension to virtualization possibilities: added flexibility in integrating virtual appliances into the mix to handle routing, switching, and other functions as part of the service chain. Service chaining provides a flexible means of managing network traffic more intelligently—with greater agility—when moving from physical networking machines, such as routers and switches, to virtual network appliances that implement multiple virtual machines on each standard high-volume server (SHVS). To advance this technology further, the Intel® Open Network Platform (Intel® ONP) reference architecture and Red Hat’s Enterprise Linux* OpenStack* platform, combined with open-source components and virtual appliances from Intel® Network Builders partners, form the basis of a powerful demonstration that shows the practical capabilities of service chaining in action. This paper explains the concepts that characterize service chaining and discusses the multi-vendor demo that illustrates the benefits of this technology to enterprises, cloud, and telecommunications companies. Going Virtual: Intel and Red Hat Demonstrate SDN Service-Chaining Solutions Table of Contents What is the Intel ONP Dynamic service chaining offers a Reference Architecture? means to improve efficiency and What is the Intel ONP systematically direct packets, flows, Developed to streamline the design, Reference Architecture? . 2 or messages across the network. deployment, and manageability of Intelligent network orchestration is Technology Challenge: open solutions within SDN and NFV Realizing the Promise of environments, the Intel ONP reference at the heart of this technology. With Dynamic Service Chaining . 2 architecture provides a blueprint for NFV, a centralized master with visibility enabling commercial adoption of into all available networking devices Supporting Reference Architecture validated hardware and software in manages and provisions network Used for the Demonstration . 3 key industry sectors. Telecom carrier functions, simplifying the combining A Deeper Look at networks, enterprise environments, and coordination of services. Service Chaining . 3 and cloud data centers can more easily To accomplish SDN/NFV service build solutions using an open-source Intel® Open Network Platform software stack running on standard chaining requires overcoming these Reference Architecture . 3 high-volume servers, as delineated challenges: Broad SDN/NFV Ecosystem by the reference architecture. An • Packet flow issues. Determining a on Intel Architecture . 4 ecosystem has been built around logical packet flow is necessary— the foundation established by the Rapid Provisioning and Enhanced packets sometimes need to traverse Intel ONP reference architecture with physical links multiple times. Network Management through collaboration, contributions, and the Service Chaining . 4 support of industry consortiums, • Managing L2/L3 packet forwarding. Overcoming Network telecommunications and cloud In enterprise environments, network Infrastructure Weaknesses . 5 providers, Intel® Network Builders, and address translation would modify leading companies involved in open- the IP address. Any modifications Building a High-Performance source projects. to the L2/L3 header can disrupt SDN/NFV Platform . 6 consistency in the chain because Traffic Flow through a Service- Technology Challenge: control mechanisms within a flow are Aware NFV Infrastructure . 7 Realizing the Promise of identified by the header. Dynamic Service Chaining Overcoming Latency for • Managing L4/L7 service processing. Network Function Virtualization Traditionally, network services are Service processing, such as that (NFV) Servers . 7 implemented in static chains. This performed by application delivery Summary . 10 can create technical challenges and controllers (ADCs) and WAN introduce network management optimizers often modifies L4 - L7 issues when network functions are operations, which can terminate virtualized. In an environment using some flows and start up others static chains, service functions— unexpectedly. including WAN optimization, load • Orchestration and controller issues. balancing, security, and additional Placement of services must be value-added services—exist in a coordinated. Services that depend rigid path dictated by the hardware on conditions and states to control configuration. Making modifications to operations must use a single path in the components in this path requires both directions. substantial manual intervention. In this type of implementation, data exchanged between communicating peers adds inefficiencies, reduces overall bandwidth, and typically leads to significant numbers of duplicated functions. 2 Going Virtual: Intel and Red Hat Demonstrate SDN Service-Chaining Solutions As dynamic service chaining matures, Intel® Open Network Platform Reference Architecture solutions for these challenges are being researched and explored, including the Open Source Software Stack following techniques: Based on ETSI-NFVI Reference Architecture • Coordinating service segments through the SDN controller offers a potential solution currently being OpenStack Cloud OS explored, but it adds complexity to Open Daylight Controller service chain operations. • Use of a dedicated service chain header can indicate the appropriate Open vSwitch DPDK service path and provide this data to An Open Virtual Switch Open vSwitch the controller to select the optimal path. • Performing deep packet inspection Linux Fedora OS KVM Hypervisor gives the SDN controller the information to more intelligently handle the packet ordering and flow. Intel® QuickAssist Technology Driver Ongoing work in this area focuses on Intel® Ethernet Drivers: 10 & 40 GbE gaining a better understanding of these service-chaining challenges as new solutions are developed. Industry standard High Volume Server Intel® Xeon® Intel® Communications Intel® Ethernet Supporting Reference Architecture processor E5 v3 Chipset 89xx Series Controller XL710 Used for the Demonstration Intel ONP is a reference architecture Figure 1 . Software stack and hardware platform for the Intel® Open Network Platform reference architecture, release 1.2. that defines a modular framework for a wide range of SDN and NFV vendor solutions. Virtual appliances from F5, interoperability with Intel ONP, Intel The reference architecture is strongly Riverbed, Brocade, and other vendors submitted optimizations for OpenStack aligned with the NFV architecture have been used as part of the service- and demonstrated compatibility with specifications established by ETSI and chaining demo. OpenDaylight. the guidelines formulated by the Open Platform for NFV* (OPNFV*) project, The software stack for the Intel ONP Hardware components included in the making it possible to achieve greater reference architecture, shown in Figure demo as a part of the implementation interoperability through Intel ONP. 1, runs on the latest Intel® processor: of Intel ONP are the Intel® QuickAssist the Intel® Xeon® processor E5 v3 Adapter 8950 and the Intel® Ethernet A Deeper Look at Service Chaining family. The OpenDaylight* Helium Controller XL710. Other hardware controller and the OpenStack Juno and software configurations are Service chaining within an SDN/NFV platform provide SDN/NFV control supported by the Intel ONP reference environment enables the connection and orchestrations, respectively. The architecture release 1.2 as well. An of network and security services software components in the compute array of validated solutions from the into the flow of network traffic in a node stack are based entirely on open- Intel Network Builders ecosystem dynamic manner, using software and source projects, including the Data (see Figure 2) makes it possible to virtual appliances rather than physical Plane Development Kit (DPDK), Open quickly construct a high-performance appliances. Service-chaining actions vSwitch*, Kernel-based Virtual Machine SDN/NFV solution and to implement are initiated and performed through a (KVM*), and Fedora Linux. To improve versatile service chaining functionality. centralized controller. 3 Going Virtual: Intel and Red Hat Demonstrate SDN Service-Chaining Solutions Broad SDN/NFV Ecosystem on Intel Architecture Network Applications 6WIND*, ADLINK Technology, Inc *,. Advantech Co ., Ltd* Akamai*, Altobridge*, Brocade*, Intel® ONP Server Clavister AB*, Dell*, Emerson*, F5*, Huawei*, Reference Architecture Orchestrator IneoQuest Technologies, Inc *. Kontron*, Link Commercial Analytics*, McAfee*, Procera Networks*, SDN/NFV Qosmos*, Radisys*, Red Hat*, Spirent Solutions Available on Controller Communications*, Trail-f Systems*, Tango www .01 .org Networks*, Tektronix Communications*, The Saguna Networks LTD*, Tieto*, Vantrix*, Node WMware*, Wind River*, and ZTE Corporation* . Trials and Deployments https://networkbuilders .intel .com 120+ Partners