Introduction
A network instance is a network configuration applied to an application running on an edge node. Network instances reside on the same edge nodes as the applications they govern. They allow you to define how applications communicate with one another and with external systems.
Operations using ZEDEDA GUI
After you log in to ZEDEDA, you can perform the following actions on network instances.
View your network instances
From your ZEDEDA dashboard:
- Hover on the Library dropdown menu, and select Network Instances from the options.
- Click the expand icon to view the summary panel.
- The Summary Panel shows the total number of network instances as 'Network Instance Kind Distribution' and 'Network Instance Addressing Distribution' widgets in the doughnut view. You can hover around these donuts to get the number in each distribution.
Click on any instance in the list view to see its details.
NOTE: The Network Instances list view shows a default () indicator on some Network Instances. This indicator identifies the default network instance for the Edge Node it resides on.
Create a network instance
From the Network Instances page, to create a new network instance, follow these steps:
- Click the Add icon. You should see the Add Network Instance page.
- Fill in the fields in the sections 'Identity', 'Details', and 'Networks'.
- Click Add. A toast message will appear at the top of the page.
- Verify that your network instance was successfully created.
The following tables explain what each field in the Add Network page subsections means.
Identity subsection
| Input Field | Value |
|
Name(*)
|
This is unique across the enterprise and cannot be changed.
|
| Title(*) |
This is user-defined and can be changed.
|
| Description |
A detailed explanation of what the Network Instance is used for.
|
| Network Instance Tags |
Enter the appropriate key-value pairs.
|
Details subsection
| Input Field | Value |
| Kind(*) |
This is a type of network. Select one of the Network Instances from the following dropdown list:
 Local–A Local network is the simplest Layer 3 (L3) network. Remote access is available solely through the NAT. Switch–Layer 2 (L2) networks are straight-bridged networks. Only one network port may be connected to the network at any time to avoid spanning tree issues. Cloud (Beta)–A Cloud network is an L3 network with a VPN connection. |
| Edge Node(*) | Select the appropriate edge node from the dropdown list. As you select a particular edge node, the 'Default Edge Node Network Instance' checkbox appears. |
| Port | Select the appropriate option from the dynamic dropdown list once you select the edge node. |
| Addressing |
Select one of the IP Address formats from the following dropdown list: •V4–applicable only when you select either 'Local' or 'Cloud (Beta)' from the 'Kind' field •V6–applicable only when you select 'Local' from the 'Kind' field |
Network subsection
| Input Field | Value |
| Subnet | A valid subnet is to be populated. |
| IP Address Range | The valid IP Address range needs to be populated. |
| Gateway | Valid gateway IP Address to be populated. |
| Name Server | Valid server name to be populated, separated by commas. |
| NTP Server | Valid NTP server name to be populated. |
| Domain | The Valid domain name is to be populated. |
View details
The details view shows two top-level sections: Status and Basic Info.
Status
The Status section has the following three subsections:
- Information
- This subsection shows an overview of the selected Network Instance, such as the 'Run State,' 'Up TIme,' 'Kind,' 'Bridge Number,' 'Bridge Name,' and 'Bridge IP Address.'
- IP Address Assignment
- This subsection shows the IP Addresses assigned for the selected Network Instance. The table view shows columns like 'MAC Address,' 'IP Addresses,' 'Virtual Interface,' and 'Edge App Instance.'
- Assigned Adapters
- This subsection shows the assigned adapters for the selected Network Instance. The adapters are shown in a table view showing columns like 'Member,' 'Name,' 'Type,' and 'Edge App Instance.'
Basic Info
The Basic Info section has the following two subsections:
- Identity
- For information on the field values and their descriptions, refer to the tables under the create operation.
-
Details
-
For information on the field values and their descriptions, refer to the tables under the create operation.
-
Update
You can update your network instances from the Network Instances detail page in the Basic Info section.
From the Basic Info page:
- Click on the pencil icon.
- Make your changes.
- Click Submit. A toast notification will appear.
Delete
You can delete individual network instances or batches of them. To do so, from the Network Instances page, follow these steps:
- Select the network instances that you want to delete from the displayed list of instances.
- Click on the meatballs icon and select Delete from the dropdown menu.
- Click Confirm on modal dialogue, which appears after you select Delete.
- A toast message will appear and indicate the success or failure of each network instance deletion.
ALERT : Network Instances cannot be deleted when linked with more than one Edge Application Instance.
Operations using ZEDEDA CLI
After you log in to the ZEDEDA CLI, you can perform the following actions on network instances.
Create
To create a network instance, use the following command:
zcli> zcli network-instance create <name> [--title=title] --edge-node=<edge-node> \
[--port=port] --kind=[transparent|switch|local|cloud|mesh|honeypot] \
--ip-type=[v4|v6|crypto-v4|crypto-v6] [--subnet=<subnet-id>] [--gateway=<gateway>] \
[--domain=<domain>] [--ntp=<ntp>] [--nameserver=<dns>...] [--dhcp-range=<range>] \
[--static-dns=<hostname:ip>...] [--config=<path>]
Read details
To see details of your network instances, use the following command:
zcli> zcli network-instance show [[[<name> | --uuid=<uuid>] [--detail]] | \
[[--project=<project>] [--edge-node=<edge-node>] [--state=<state>] \
[--name-pattern=<name-pattern>]]] [--raw]
The following example shows the output for the basic show command:
Input:
zcli> zcli network-instance show
Output:
Network Instance kind Edge Node Iptype Run state
------------------------ -------------------- -------------------- ----------- ----------
defaultLocal-bg-supermicro-e50-1 NETWORK_INSTANCE_KIND_LOCAL bg-supermicro-e50-1 NETWORK_INSTANCE_DHCP_TYPE_V4 RUN_STATE_UNKNOWN
defaultLocal-cshari-intel-nuc NETWORK_INSTANCE_KIND_LOCAL cshari-intel-nuc NETWORK_INSTANCE_DHCP_TYPE_V4 RUN_STATE_UNKNOWN
defaultLocal-bg-advantech-ark-1124-00035 NETWORK_INSTANCE_KIND_LOCAL bg-advantech-ark-1124-00035 NETWORK_INSTANCE_DHCP_TYPE_V4 RUN_STATE_UNKNOWN
abcd NETWORK_INSTANCE_KIND_SWITCH bg-advantech-ark-1124-00035 NETWORK_INSTANCE_DHCP_TYPE_UNSPECIFIED RUN_STATE_UNKNOWN
switch-e300-eth2 NETWORK_INSTANCE_KIND_SWITCH blr-supermicro-e300-1 NETWORK_INSTANCE_DHCP_TYPE_UNSPECIFIED RUN_STATE_ONLINE
localTest-e300-1 NETWORK_INSTANCE_KIND_LOCAL blr-supermicro-e300-1 NETWORK_INSTANCE_DHCP_TYPE_V4 RUN_STATE_ONLINE
defaultLocal-bg-supermicro-zc2 NETWORK_INSTANCE_KIND_LOCAL bg-supermicro-zc2 NETWORK_INSTANCE_DHCP_TYPE_V4 RUN_STATE_UNKNOWN
zcli>
Update
To update a network instance, use the following command:
zcli> zcli network-instance update <name> [--port=port] [--title=title] \
[--subnet=<subnet-id>] [--gateway=<gateway>] [--domain=<domain>] [--ntp=<ntp>] \
[--nameserver=<dns>...] [--dhcp-range=<range>] [--static-dns=<hostname:ip>...] \
[--config=<path>]
Delete
To delete a network instance, use the following command:
zcli> zcli network-instance delete <name> [-f]