Creating a New Network Resource

 

Only platform administrators can perform this task.

 

Network resources are used by Cloud Automation Platform to create a network of VMs that, despite being clones of one or a few originals, possess unique MAC addresses, IP addresses, and, if necessary, virtual network identifiers.

 

To create a new network resource, perform the following steps:

 

  1. In the left pane, click Network Resources, under Resources.

 

On the right pane, the list of existing network resource ranges and AD computer accounts appears.

 

  1. In the Network Resource Ranges area, click New... and from the list select the type of network resource that you want to create. For additional information, see Determining which network resources are required for your environment.

 

The available types include:

    • IP Address Range --  If a server configuration specifies that NAIL is used, an address from this range provides the external IP address that is used during external communications.
    • MAC Address Range -- MAC addresses must be created. When a VM is deployed, a MAC address from this range provides the internal MAC address for the VM.
    • VLAN ID Range -- If you are using NAIL Server, select this option.
    • NAIL Driver Network Range (only visible with legacy NAIL Driver support) -- If your environment includes any application configuration that contains two or more server configurations with legacy NAIL Driver network adapters (version 5.2 and earlier), you must create at least one NAIL Driver Network Range.
    • VLAN-isolated DHCP Network
  1. Specify the address or address range for the new network resource.

    2. Note: If you use NAIL, the range entered must work with an existing TCP/IP gateway address. Define a gateway address if needed.

    • If you are specifying an IP address range, it is recommended that you specify a range of Class A IP addresses that falls within the larger range of 10.0.0.0 to 10.255.255.255. These addresses are reserved for private networks and cannot be routed over the Internet.
    • If you are specifying a VLAN ID Range, and you are using NAIL Server, not DHCP, you must use IDs within the range of 2 - 4095, inclusive. Furthermore, if you are implementing NAIL Server in the Advanced mode, you should work with your network administrator to select the appropriate network.

Plan for one VLAN ID for each deployment of an application configuration; so for each test configuration that will be scheduled, define a VLAN ID. As a best practice, creating extra VLAN IDs is better then having too few. The IDs created should be unique and not used anywhere else.

    • If you are specifying a NAIL Driver Network Range (legacy) it is recommended that you specify a range of Class B IP addresses that falls within the larger range of 172.16.0.0 to 172.31.255.255. If you specify a range of Class B IP addresses for the virtual network pool, ensure that the internal subnet masks of the corresponding VMs support a Class B network, such as 255.255.0.0. Similarly, if you specify a range of Class C addresses, ensure that the internal subnet masks of the corresponding VMs support a Class C network, like 255.255.255.0.

      • Best Practice: When you define the NAIL Driver network range, use the third octet of the IP address range for the second octet of the NAIL virtual network range. For example, if your IP address range begins with 10.5.35.x, the NAIL driver network range should be 172.35.x.0. This helps the NAIL driver network ranges remain unique.

       

    • If you are creating a DHCP Network Range, in order to use VLAN-isolated DHCP networks, identify the network (in valid CIDR notation) and any exceptions (IP Addresses already in use). For more information about using VLAN-isolated DHCP networks, see the Installation and Administration Guide, Chapter 6, "Advanced Networking."

 

    If you use a mixed environment where some server configurations use DHCP and others do not, at a minimum, ensure that the IP addresses provided by your DHCP server are excluded from the IP address range specified in the Cloud Automation Platform network resources.

Note: Some DHCP servers require that you add the MAC addresses created for Cloud Automation Platform to the DHCP configuration table.

 

  1. Specify any Exceptions (IP Addresses already in use). To do so, type the IP Address, then click Add Exception.

 

  1. Optional: Assign the network resources to a pool.

 

  1. Review the information for the new network resource.

Note: It is a good idea to verify the accuracy of the IP or MAC address ranges you enter. A small error when entering a range of addresses can result in the creation of thousands of unwanted addresses in the Cloud Automation Platform database. Every address in the range takes a few seconds to process, and therefore a large address range may take a considerable amount of time to finish processing.

 

  1. Click Save.

 

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