1 <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
2 <database title="Open vSwitch Configuration Database">
4 A database with this schema holds the configuration for one Open
5 vSwitch daemon. The top-level configuration for the daemon is the
6 <ref table="Open_vSwitch"/> table, which must have exactly one
7 record. Records in other tables are significant only when they
8 can be reached directly or indirectly from the <ref
9 table="Open_vSwitch"/> table. Records that are not reachable from
10 the <ref table="Open_vSwitch"/> table are automatically deleted
11 from the database, except for records in a few distinguished
15 <h2>Common Columns</h2>
18 Most tables contain two special columns, named <code>other_config</code>
19 and <code>external_ids</code>. These columns have the same form and
20 purpose each place that they appear, so we describe them here to save space
25 <dt><code>other_config</code>: map of string-string pairs</dt>
28 Key-value pairs for configuring rarely used features. Supported keys,
29 along with the forms taken by their values, are documented individually
33 A few tables do not have <code>other_config</code> columns because no
34 key-value pairs have yet been defined for them.
38 <dt><code>external_ids</code>: map of string-string pairs</dt>
40 Key-value pairs for use by external frameworks that integrate with Open
41 vSwitch, rather than by Open vSwitch itself. System integrators should
42 either use the Open vSwitch development mailing list to coordinate on
43 common key-value definitions, or choose key names that are likely to be
44 unique. In some cases, where key-value pairs have been defined that are
45 likely to be widely useful, they are documented individually for each
50 <table name="Open_vSwitch" title="Open vSwitch configuration.">
51 Configuration for an Open vSwitch daemon. There must be exactly
52 one record in the <ref table="Open_vSwitch"/> table.
54 <group title="Configuration">
55 <column name="bridges">
56 Set of bridges managed by the daemon.
60 SSL used globally by the daemon.
63 <column name="external_ids" key="system-id">
64 A unique identifier for the Open vSwitch's physical host.
65 The form of the identifier depends on the type of the host.
66 On a Citrix XenServer, this will likely be the same as
67 <ref column="external_ids" key="xs-system-uuid"/>.
70 <column name="external_ids" key="xs-system-uuid">
71 The Citrix XenServer universally unique identifier for the physical
72 host as displayed by <code>xe host-list</code>.
75 <column name="other_config" key="flow-restore-wait"
76 type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
78 When <code>ovs-vswitchd</code> starts up, it has an empty flow table
79 and therefore it handles all arriving packets in its default fashion
80 according to its configuration, by dropping them or sending them to
81 an OpenFlow controller or switching them as a standalone switch.
82 This behavior is ordinarily desirable. However, if
83 <code>ovs-vswitchd</code> is restarting as part of a ``hot-upgrade,''
84 then this leads to a relatively long period during which packets are
88 This option allows for improvement. When <code>ovs-vswitchd</code>
89 starts with this value set as <code>true</code>, it will neither
90 flush or expire previously set datapath flows nor will it send and
91 receive any packets to or from the datapath. When this value is
92 later set to <code>false</code>, <code>ovs-vswitchd</code> will
93 start receiving packets from the datapath and re-setup the flows.
96 Thus, with this option, the procedure for a hot-upgrade of
97 <code>ovs-vswitchd</code> becomes roughly the following:
101 Stop <code>ovs-vswitchd</code>.
104 Set <ref column="other_config" key="flow-restore-wait"/>
105 to <code>true</code>.
108 Start <code>ovs-vswitchd</code>.
111 Use <code>ovs-ofctl</code> (or some other program, such as an
112 OpenFlow controller) to restore the OpenFlow flow table
113 to the desired state.
116 Set <ref column="other_config" key="flow-restore-wait"/>
117 to <code>false</code> (or remove it entirely from the database).
121 The <code>ovs-ctl</code>'s ``restart'' and ``force-reload-kmod''
122 functions use the above config option during hot upgrades.
126 <column name="other_config" key="flow-limit"
127 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 0}'>
130 number of flows allowed in the datapath flow table. Internally OVS
131 will choose a flow limit which will likely be lower than this number,
132 based on real time network conditions.
135 The default is 200000.
139 <column name="other_config" key="force-miss-model">
141 Specifies userspace behaviour for handling flow misses. This takes
142 precedence over flow-eviction-threshold.
146 <dt><code>auto</code></dt>
147 <dd>Handle automatically based on the flow-eviction-threshold and
148 the flow setup governer (default, recommended).</dd>
149 <dt><code>with-facets</code></dt>
150 <dd>Always create facets. Expensive kernel flow creation and
151 statistics tracking is always performed, even on flows with only
152 a small number of packets.</dd>
153 <dt><code>without-facets</code></dt>
154 <dd>Always handle without facets. Forces flow misses to be handled
155 in userspace. May cause an increase in CPU usage and packet loss
156 on high throughput.</dd>
161 <column name="other_config" key="n-handler-threads"
162 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
164 Specifies the number of threads for software datapaths to use for
165 handling new flows. The default the number of online CPU cores minus
166 the number of revalidators.
169 This configuration is per datapath. If you have more than one
170 software datapath (e.g. some <code>system</code> bridges and some
171 <code>netdev</code> bridges), then the total number of threads is
172 <code>n-handler-threads</code> times the number of software
177 <column name="other_config" key="n-revalidator-threads"
178 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
180 Specifies the number of threads for software datapaths to use for
181 revalidating flows in the datapath. Typically, there is a direct
182 correlation between the number of revalidator threads, and the number
183 of flows allowed in the datapath. The default is the number of cpu
184 cores divided by four plus one. If <code>n-handler-threads</code> is
185 set, the default changes to the number of cpu cores minus the number
189 This configuration is per datapath. If you have more than one
190 software datapath (e.g. some <code>system</code> bridges and some
191 <code>netdev</code> bridges), then the total number of threads is
192 <code>n-handler-threads</code> times the number of software
198 <group title="Status">
199 <column name="next_cfg">
200 Sequence number for client to increment. When a client modifies
201 any part of the database configuration and wishes to wait for
202 Open vSwitch to finish applying the changes, it may increment
203 this sequence number.
206 <column name="cur_cfg">
207 Sequence number that Open vSwitch sets to the current value of
208 <ref column="next_cfg"/> after it finishes applying a set of
209 configuration changes.
212 <group title="Statistics">
214 The <code>statistics</code> column contains key-value pairs that
215 report statistics about a system running an Open vSwitch. These are
216 updated periodically (currently, every 5 seconds). Key-value pairs
217 that cannot be determined or that do not apply to a platform are
221 <column name="other_config" key="enable-statistics"
222 type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
223 Statistics are disabled by default to avoid overhead in the common
224 case when statistics gathering is not useful. Set this value to
225 <code>true</code> to enable populating the <ref column="statistics"/>
226 column or to <code>false</code> to explicitly disable it.
229 <column name="statistics" key="cpu"
230 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
232 Number of CPU processors, threads, or cores currently online and
233 available to the operating system on which Open vSwitch is running,
234 as an integer. This may be less than the number installed, if some
235 are not online or if they are not available to the operating
239 Open vSwitch userspace processes are not multithreaded, but the
240 Linux kernel-based datapath is.
244 <column name="statistics" key="load_average">
245 A comma-separated list of three floating-point numbers,
246 representing the system load average over the last 1, 5, and 15
247 minutes, respectively.
250 <column name="statistics" key="memory">
252 A comma-separated list of integers, each of which represents a
253 quantity of memory in kilobytes that describes the operating
254 system on which Open vSwitch is running. In respective order,
259 <li>Total amount of RAM allocated to the OS.</li>
260 <li>RAM allocated to the OS that is in use.</li>
261 <li>RAM that can be flushed out to disk or otherwise discarded
262 if that space is needed for another purpose. This number is
263 necessarily less than or equal to the previous value.</li>
264 <li>Total disk space allocated for swap.</li>
265 <li>Swap space currently in use.</li>
269 On Linux, all five values can be determined and are included. On
270 other operating systems, only the first two values can be
271 determined, so the list will only have two values.
275 <column name="statistics" key="process_NAME">
277 One such key-value pair, with <code>NAME</code> replaced by
278 a process name, will exist for each running Open vSwitch
279 daemon process, with <var>name</var> replaced by the
280 daemon's name (e.g. <code>process_ovs-vswitchd</code>). The
281 value is a comma-separated list of integers. The integers
282 represent the following, with memory measured in kilobytes
283 and durations in milliseconds:
287 <li>The process's virtual memory size.</li>
288 <li>The process's resident set size.</li>
289 <li>The amount of user and system CPU time consumed by the
291 <li>The number of times that the process has crashed and been
292 automatically restarted by the monitor.</li>
293 <li>The duration since the process was started.</li>
294 <li>The duration for which the process has been running.</li>
298 The interpretation of some of these values depends on whether the
299 process was started with the <option>--monitor</option>. If it
300 was not, then the crash count will always be 0 and the two
301 durations will always be the same. If <option>--monitor</option>
302 was given, then the crash count may be positive; if it is, the
303 latter duration is the amount of time since the most recent crash
308 There will be one key-value pair for each file in Open vSwitch's
309 ``run directory'' (usually <code>/var/run/openvswitch</code>)
310 whose name ends in <code>.pid</code>, whose contents are a
311 process ID, and which is locked by a running process. The
312 <var>name</var> is taken from the pidfile's name.
316 Currently Open vSwitch is only able to obtain all of the above
317 detail on Linux systems. On other systems, the same key-value
318 pairs will be present but the values will always be the empty
323 <column name="statistics" key="file_systems">
325 A space-separated list of information on local, writable file
326 systems. Each item in the list describes one file system and
327 consists in turn of a comma-separated list of the following:
331 <li>Mount point, e.g. <code>/</code> or <code>/var/log</code>.
332 Any spaces or commas in the mount point are replaced by
334 <li>Total size, in kilobytes, as an integer.</li>
335 <li>Amount of storage in use, in kilobytes, as an integer.</li>
339 This key-value pair is omitted if there are no local, writable
340 file systems or if Open vSwitch cannot obtain the needed
347 <group title="Version Reporting">
349 These columns report the types and versions of the hardware and
350 software running Open vSwitch. We recommend in general that software
351 should test whether specific features are supported instead of relying
352 on version number checks. These values are primarily intended for
353 reporting to human administrators.
356 <column name="ovs_version">
357 The Open vSwitch version number, e.g. <code>1.1.0</code>.
360 <column name="db_version">
362 The database schema version number in the form
363 <code><var>major</var>.<var>minor</var>.<var>tweak</var></code>,
364 e.g. <code>1.2.3</code>. Whenever the database schema is changed in
365 a non-backward compatible way (e.g. deleting a column or a table),
366 <var>major</var> is incremented. When the database schema is changed
367 in a backward compatible way (e.g. adding a new column),
368 <var>minor</var> is incremented. When the database schema is changed
369 cosmetically (e.g. reindenting its syntax), <var>tweak</var> is
374 The schema version is part of the database schema, so it can also be
375 retrieved by fetching the schema using the Open vSwitch database
380 <column name="system_type">
382 An identifier for the type of system on top of which Open vSwitch
383 runs, e.g. <code>XenServer</code> or <code>KVM</code>.
386 System integrators are responsible for choosing and setting an
387 appropriate value for this column.
391 <column name="system_version">
393 The version of the system identified by <ref column="system_type"/>,
394 e.g. <code>5.6.100-39265p</code> on XenServer 5.6.100 build 39265.
397 System integrators are responsible for choosing and setting an
398 appropriate value for this column.
404 <group title="Database Configuration">
406 These columns primarily configure the Open vSwitch database
407 (<code>ovsdb-server</code>), not the Open vSwitch switch
408 (<code>ovs-vswitchd</code>). The OVSDB database also uses the <ref
409 column="ssl"/> settings.
413 The Open vSwitch switch does read the database configuration to
414 determine remote IP addresses to which in-band control should apply.
417 <column name="manager_options">
418 Database clients to which the Open vSwitch database server should
419 connect or to which it should listen, along with options for how these
420 connection should be configured. See the <ref table="Manager"/> table
421 for more information.
425 <group title="Common Columns">
426 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
427 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
429 <column name="other_config"/>
430 <column name="external_ids"/>
434 <table name="Bridge">
436 Configuration for a bridge within an
437 <ref table="Open_vSwitch"/>.
440 A <ref table="Bridge"/> record represents an Ethernet switch with one or
441 more ``ports,'' which are the <ref table="Port"/> records pointed to by
442 the <ref table="Bridge"/>'s <ref column="ports"/> column.
445 <group title="Core Features">
447 Bridge identifier. Should be alphanumeric and no more than about 8
448 bytes long. Must be unique among the names of ports, interfaces, and
452 <column name="ports">
453 Ports included in the bridge.
456 <column name="mirrors">
457 Port mirroring configuration.
460 <column name="netflow">
461 NetFlow configuration.
464 <column name="sflow">
465 sFlow(R) configuration.
468 <column name="ipfix">
472 <column name="flood_vlans">
474 VLAN IDs of VLANs on which MAC address learning should be disabled,
475 so that packets are flooded instead of being sent to specific ports
476 that are believed to contain packets' destination MACs. This should
477 ordinarily be used to disable MAC learning on VLANs used for
478 mirroring (RSPAN VLANs). It may also be useful for debugging.
481 SLB bonding (see the <ref table="Port" column="bond_mode"/> column in
482 the <ref table="Port"/> table) is incompatible with
483 <code>flood_vlans</code>. Consider using another bonding mode or
484 a different type of mirror instead.
489 <group title="OpenFlow Configuration">
490 <column name="controller">
492 OpenFlow controller set. If unset, then no OpenFlow controllers
497 If there are primary controllers, removing all of them clears the
498 flow table. If there are no primary controllers, adding one also
499 clears the flow table. Other changes to the set of controllers, such
500 as adding or removing a service controller, adding another primary
501 controller to supplement an existing primary controller, or removing
502 only one of two primary controllers, have no effect on the flow
507 <column name="flow_tables">
508 Configuration for OpenFlow tables. Each pair maps from an OpenFlow
509 table ID to configuration for that table.
512 <column name="fail_mode">
513 <p>When a controller is configured, it is, ordinarily, responsible
514 for setting up all flows on the switch. Thus, if the connection to
515 the controller fails, no new network connections can be set up.
516 If the connection to the controller stays down long enough,
517 no packets can pass through the switch at all. This setting
518 determines the switch's response to such a situation. It may be set
519 to one of the following:
521 <dt><code>standalone</code></dt>
522 <dd>If no message is received from the controller for three
523 times the inactivity probe interval
524 (see <ref column="inactivity_probe"/>), then Open vSwitch
525 will take over responsibility for setting up flows. In
526 this mode, Open vSwitch causes the bridge to act like an
527 ordinary MAC-learning switch. Open vSwitch will continue
528 to retry connecting to the controller in the background
529 and, when the connection succeeds, it will discontinue its
530 standalone behavior.</dd>
531 <dt><code>secure</code></dt>
532 <dd>Open vSwitch will not set up flows on its own when the
533 controller connection fails or when no controllers are
534 defined. The bridge will continue to retry connecting to
535 any defined controllers forever.</dd>
539 The default is <code>standalone</code> if the value is unset, but
540 future versions of Open vSwitch may change the default.
543 The <code>standalone</code> mode can create forwarding loops on a
544 bridge that has more than one uplink port unless STP is enabled. To
545 avoid loops on such a bridge, configure <code>secure</code> mode or
546 enable STP (see <ref column="stp_enable"/>).
548 <p>When more than one controller is configured,
549 <ref column="fail_mode"/> is considered only when none of the
550 configured controllers can be contacted.</p>
552 Changing <ref column="fail_mode"/> when no primary controllers are
553 configured clears the flow table.
557 <column name="datapath_id">
558 Reports the OpenFlow datapath ID in use. Exactly 16 hex digits.
559 (Setting this column has no useful effect. Set <ref
560 column="other-config" key="datapath-id"/> instead.)
563 <column name="other_config" key="datapath-id">
564 Exactly 16 hex digits to set the OpenFlow datapath ID to a specific
565 value. May not be all-zero.
568 <column name="other_config" key="dp-desc">
569 Human readable description of datapath. It it a maximum 256
570 byte-long free-form string to describe the datapath for
571 debugging purposes, e.g. <code>switch3 in room 3120</code>.
574 <column name="other_config" key="disable-in-band"
575 type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
576 If set to <code>true</code>, disable in-band control on the bridge
577 regardless of controller and manager settings.
580 <column name="other_config" key="in-band-queue"
581 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 0, "maxInteger": 4294967295}'>
582 A queue ID as a nonnegative integer. This sets the OpenFlow queue ID
583 that will be used by flows set up by in-band control on this bridge.
584 If unset, or if the port used by an in-band control flow does not have
585 QoS configured, or if the port does not have a queue with the specified
586 ID, the default queue is used instead.
589 <column name="protocols">
590 List of OpenFlow protocols that may be used when negotiating a
591 connection with a controller. A default value of
592 <code>OpenFlow10</code> will be used if this column is empty.
596 <group title="Spanning Tree Configuration">
597 The IEEE 802.1D Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) is a network protocol
598 that ensures loop-free topologies. It allows redundant links to
599 be included in the network to provide automatic backup paths if
600 the active links fails.
602 <column name="stp_enable">
603 Enable spanning tree on the bridge. By default, STP is disabled
604 on bridges. Bond, internal, and mirror ports are not supported
605 and will not participate in the spanning tree.
608 <column name="other_config" key="stp-system-id">
609 The bridge's STP identifier (the lower 48 bits of the bridge-id)
611 <var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>.
612 By default, the identifier is the MAC address of the bridge.
615 <column name="other_config" key="stp-priority"
616 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 0, "maxInteger": 65535}'>
617 The bridge's relative priority value for determining the root
618 bridge (the upper 16 bits of the bridge-id). A bridge with the
619 lowest bridge-id is elected the root. By default, the priority
623 <column name="other_config" key="stp-hello-time"
624 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1, "maxInteger": 10}'>
625 The interval between transmissions of hello messages by
626 designated ports, in seconds. By default the hello interval is
630 <column name="other_config" key="stp-max-age"
631 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 6, "maxInteger": 40}'>
632 The maximum age of the information transmitted by the bridge
633 when it is the root bridge, in seconds. By default, the maximum
637 <column name="other_config" key="stp-forward-delay"
638 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 4, "maxInteger": 30}'>
639 The delay to wait between transitioning root and designated
640 ports to <code>forwarding</code>, in seconds. By default, the
641 forwarding delay is 15 seconds.
645 <group title="Other Features">
646 <column name="datapath_type">
647 Name of datapath provider. The kernel datapath has
648 type <code>system</code>. The userspace datapath has
649 type <code>netdev</code>.
652 <column name="external_ids" key="bridge-id">
653 A unique identifier of the bridge. On Citrix XenServer this will
654 commonly be the same as
655 <ref column="external_ids" key="xs-network-uuids"/>.
658 <column name="external_ids" key="xs-network-uuids">
659 Semicolon-delimited set of universally unique identifier(s) for the
660 network with which this bridge is associated on a Citrix XenServer
661 host. The network identifiers are RFC 4122 UUIDs as displayed by,
662 e.g., <code>xe network-list</code>.
665 <column name="other_config" key="hwaddr">
666 An Ethernet address in the form
667 <var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>
668 to set the hardware address of the local port and influence the
672 <column name="other_config" key="forward-bpdu"
673 type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
674 Option to allow forwarding of BPDU frames when NORMAL action is
675 invoked. Frames with reserved Ethernet addresses (e.g. STP
676 BPDU) will be forwarded when this option is enabled and the
677 switch is not providing that functionality. If STP is enabled
678 on the port, STP BPDUs will never be forwarded. If the Open
679 vSwitch bridge is used to connect different Ethernet networks,
680 and if Open vSwitch node does not run STP, then this option
681 should be enabled. Default is disabled, set to
682 <code>true</code> to enable.
684 The following destination MAC addresss will not be forwarded when this
687 <dt><code>01:80:c2:00:00:00</code></dt>
688 <dd>IEEE 802.1D Spanning Tree Protocol (STP).</dd>
690 <dt><code>01:80:c2:00:00:01</code></dt>
691 <dd>IEEE Pause frame.</dd>
693 <dt><code>01:80:c2:00:00:0<var>x</var></code></dt>
694 <dd>Other reserved protocols.</dd>
696 <dt><code>00:e0:2b:00:00:00</code></dt>
697 <dd>Extreme Discovery Protocol (EDP).</dd>
700 <code>00:e0:2b:00:00:04</code> and <code>00:e0:2b:00:00:06</code>
702 <dd>Ethernet Automatic Protection Switching (EAPS).</dd>
704 <dt><code>01:00:0c:cc:cc:cc</code></dt>
706 Cisco Discovery Protocol (CDP), VLAN Trunking Protocol (VTP),
707 Dynamic Trunking Protocol (DTP), Port Aggregation Protocol (PAgP),
711 <dt><code>01:00:0c:cc:cc:cd</code></dt>
712 <dd>Cisco Shared Spanning Tree Protocol PVSTP+.</dd>
714 <dt><code>01:00:0c:cd:cd:cd</code></dt>
715 <dd>Cisco STP Uplink Fast.</dd>
717 <dt><code>01:00:0c:00:00:00</code></dt>
718 <dd>Cisco Inter Switch Link.</dd>
720 <dt><code>01:00:0c:cc:cc:c<var>x</var></code></dt>
725 <column name="other_config" key="mac-aging-time"
726 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
728 The maximum number of seconds to retain a MAC learning entry for
729 which no packets have been seen. The default is currently 300
730 seconds (5 minutes). The value, if specified, is forced into a
731 reasonable range, currently 15 to 3600 seconds.
735 A short MAC aging time allows a network to more quickly detect that a
736 host is no longer connected to a switch port. However, it also makes
737 it more likely that packets will be flooded unnecessarily, when they
738 are addressed to a connected host that rarely transmits packets. To
739 reduce the incidence of unnecessary flooding, use a MAC aging time
740 longer than the maximum interval at which a host will ordinarily
745 <column name="other_config" key="mac-table-size"
746 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
748 The maximum number of MAC addresses to learn. The default is
749 currently 2048. The value, if specified, is forced into a reasonable
750 range, currently 10 to 1,000,000.
755 <group title="Bridge Status">
757 Status information about bridges.
759 <column name="status">
760 Key-value pairs that report bridge status.
762 <column name="status" key="stp_bridge_id">
764 The bridge-id (in hex) used in spanning tree advertisements.
765 Configuring the bridge-id is described in the
766 <code>stp-system-id</code> and <code>stp-priority</code> keys
767 of the <code>other_config</code> section earlier.
770 <column name="status" key="stp_designated_root">
772 The designated root (in hex) for this spanning tree.
775 <column name="status" key="stp_root_path_cost">
777 The path cost of reaching the designated bridge. A lower
783 <group title="Common Columns">
784 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
785 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
787 <column name="other_config"/>
788 <column name="external_ids"/>
792 <table name="Port" table="Port or bond configuration.">
793 <p>A port within a <ref table="Bridge"/>.</p>
794 <p>Most commonly, a port has exactly one ``interface,'' pointed to by its
795 <ref column="interfaces"/> column. Such a port logically
796 corresponds to a port on a physical Ethernet switch. A port
797 with more than one interface is a ``bonded port'' (see
798 <ref group="Bonding Configuration"/>).</p>
799 <p>Some properties that one might think as belonging to a port are actually
800 part of the port's <ref table="Interface"/> members.</p>
803 Port name. Should be alphanumeric and no more than about 8
804 bytes long. May be the same as the interface name, for
805 non-bonded ports. Must otherwise be unique among the names of
806 ports, interfaces, and bridges on a host.
809 <column name="interfaces">
810 The port's interfaces. If there is more than one, this is a
814 <group title="VLAN Configuration">
815 <p>Bridge ports support the following types of VLAN configuration:</p>
820 A trunk port carries packets on one or more specified VLANs
821 specified in the <ref column="trunks"/> column (often, on every
822 VLAN). A packet that ingresses on a trunk port is in the VLAN
823 specified in its 802.1Q header, or VLAN 0 if the packet has no
824 802.1Q header. A packet that egresses through a trunk port will
825 have an 802.1Q header if it has a nonzero VLAN ID.
829 Any packet that ingresses on a trunk port tagged with a VLAN that
830 the port does not trunk is dropped.
837 An access port carries packets on exactly one VLAN specified in the
838 <ref column="tag"/> column. Packets egressing on an access port
839 have no 802.1Q header.
843 Any packet with an 802.1Q header with a nonzero VLAN ID that
844 ingresses on an access port is dropped, regardless of whether the
845 VLAN ID in the header is the access port's VLAN ID.
849 <dt>native-tagged</dt>
851 A native-tagged port resembles a trunk port, with the exception that
852 a packet without an 802.1Q header that ingresses on a native-tagged
853 port is in the ``native VLAN'' (specified in the <ref column="tag"/>
857 <dt>native-untagged</dt>
859 A native-untagged port resembles a native-tagged port, with the
860 exception that a packet that egresses on a native-untagged port in
861 the native VLAN will not have an 802.1Q header.
865 A packet will only egress through bridge ports that carry the VLAN of
866 the packet, as described by the rules above.
869 <column name="vlan_mode">
871 The VLAN mode of the port, as described above. When this column is
872 empty, a default mode is selected as follows:
876 If <ref column="tag"/> contains a value, the port is an access
877 port. The <ref column="trunks"/> column should be empty.
880 Otherwise, the port is a trunk port. The <ref column="trunks"/>
881 column value is honored if it is present.
888 For an access port, the port's implicitly tagged VLAN. For a
889 native-tagged or native-untagged port, the port's native VLAN. Must
890 be empty if this is a trunk port.
894 <column name="trunks">
896 For a trunk, native-tagged, or native-untagged port, the 802.1Q VLAN
897 or VLANs that this port trunks; if it is empty, then the port trunks
898 all VLANs. Must be empty if this is an access port.
901 A native-tagged or native-untagged port always trunks its native
902 VLAN, regardless of whether <ref column="trunks"/> includes that
907 <column name="other_config" key="priority-tags"
908 type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
910 An 802.1Q header contains two important pieces of information: a VLAN
911 ID and a priority. A frame with a zero VLAN ID, called a
912 ``priority-tagged'' frame, is supposed to be treated the same way as
913 a frame without an 802.1Q header at all (except for the priority).
917 However, some network elements ignore any frame that has 802.1Q
918 header at all, even when the VLAN ID is zero. Therefore, by default
919 Open vSwitch does not output priority-tagged frames, instead omitting
920 the 802.1Q header entirely if the VLAN ID is zero. Set this key to
921 <code>true</code> to enable priority-tagged frames on a port.
925 Regardless of this setting, Open vSwitch omits the 802.1Q header on
926 output if both the VLAN ID and priority would be zero.
930 All frames output to native-tagged ports have a nonzero VLAN ID, so
931 this setting is not meaningful on native-tagged ports.
936 <group title="Bonding Configuration">
937 <p>A port that has more than one interface is a ``bonded port.'' Bonding
938 allows for load balancing and fail-over.</p>
941 The following types of bonding will work with any kind of upstream
942 switch. On the upstream switch, do not configure the interfaces as a
947 <dt><code>balance-slb</code></dt>
949 Balances flows among slaves based on source MAC address and output
950 VLAN, with periodic rebalancing as traffic patterns change.
953 <dt><code>active-backup</code></dt>
955 Assigns all flows to one slave, failing over to a backup slave when
956 the active slave is disabled. This is the only bonding mode in which
957 interfaces may be plugged into different upstream switches.
962 The following modes require the upstream switch to support 802.3ad with
963 successful LACP negotiation. If LACP negotiation fails and
964 other-config:lacp-fallback-ab is true, then <code>active-backup</code>
969 <dt><code>balance-tcp</code></dt>
971 Balances flows among slaves based on L2, L3, and L4 protocol
972 information such as destination MAC address, IP address, and TCP
977 <p>These columns apply only to bonded ports. Their values are
978 otherwise ignored.</p>
980 <column name="bond_mode">
981 <p>The type of bonding used for a bonded port. Defaults to
982 <code>active-backup</code> if unset.
986 <column name="other_config" key="bond-hash-basis"
987 type='{"type": "integer"}'>
988 An integer hashed along with flows when choosing output slaves in load
989 balanced bonds. When changed, all flows will be assigned different
990 hash values possibly causing slave selection decisions to change. Does
991 not affect bonding modes which do not employ load balancing such as
992 <code>active-backup</code>.
995 <group title="Link Failure Detection">
997 An important part of link bonding is detecting that links are down so
998 that they may be disabled. These settings determine how Open vSwitch
999 detects link failure.
1002 <column name="other_config" key="bond-detect-mode"
1003 type='{"type": "string", "enum": ["set", ["carrier", "miimon"]]}'>
1004 The means used to detect link failures. Defaults to
1005 <code>carrier</code> which uses each interface's carrier to detect
1006 failures. When set to <code>miimon</code>, will check for failures
1007 by polling each interface's MII.
1010 <column name="other_config" key="bond-miimon-interval"
1011 type='{"type": "integer"}'>
1012 The interval, in milliseconds, between successive attempts to poll
1013 each interface's MII. Relevant only when <ref column="other_config"
1014 key="bond-detect-mode"/> is <code>miimon</code>.
1017 <column name="bond_updelay">
1019 The number of milliseconds for which the link must stay up on an
1020 interface before the interface is considered to be up. Specify
1021 <code>0</code> to enable the interface immediately.
1025 This setting is honored only when at least one bonded interface is
1026 already enabled. When no interfaces are enabled, then the first
1027 bond interface to come up is enabled immediately.
1031 <column name="bond_downdelay">
1032 The number of milliseconds for which the link must stay down on an
1033 interface before the interface is considered to be down. Specify
1034 <code>0</code> to disable the interface immediately.
1038 <group title="LACP Configuration">
1040 LACP, the Link Aggregation Control Protocol, is an IEEE standard that
1041 allows switches to automatically detect that they are connected by
1042 multiple links and aggregate across those links. These settings
1043 control LACP behavior.
1046 <column name="lacp">
1047 Configures LACP on this port. LACP allows directly connected
1048 switches to negotiate which links may be bonded. LACP may be enabled
1049 on non-bonded ports for the benefit of any switches they may be
1050 connected to. <code>active</code> ports are allowed to initiate LACP
1051 negotiations. <code>passive</code> ports are allowed to participate
1052 in LACP negotiations initiated by a remote switch, but not allowed to
1053 initiate such negotiations themselves. If LACP is enabled on a port
1054 whose partner switch does not support LACP, the bond will be
1055 disabled, unless other-config:lacp-fallback-ab is set to true.
1056 Defaults to <code>off</code> if unset.
1059 <column name="other_config" key="lacp-system-id">
1060 The LACP system ID of this <ref table="Port"/>. The system ID of a
1061 LACP bond is used to identify itself to its partners. Must be a
1062 nonzero MAC address. Defaults to the bridge Ethernet address if
1066 <column name="other_config" key="lacp-system-priority"
1067 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1, "maxInteger": 65535}'>
1068 The LACP system priority of this <ref table="Port"/>. In LACP
1069 negotiations, link status decisions are made by the system with the
1070 numerically lower priority.
1073 <column name="other_config" key="lacp-time"
1074 type='{"type": "string", "enum": ["set", ["fast", "slow"]]}'>
1076 The LACP timing which should be used on this <ref table="Port"/>.
1077 By default <code>slow</code> is used. When configured to be
1078 <code>fast</code> LACP heartbeats are requested at a rate of once
1079 per second causing connectivity problems to be detected more
1080 quickly. In <code>slow</code> mode, heartbeats are requested at a
1081 rate of once every 30 seconds.
1085 <column name="other_config" key="lacp-fallback-ab"
1086 type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
1088 Determines the behavior of openvswitch bond in LACP mode. If
1089 the partner switch does not support LACP, setting this option
1090 to <code>true</code> allows openvswitch to fallback to
1091 active-backup. If the option is set to <code>false</code>, the
1092 bond will be disabled. In both the cases, once the partner switch
1093 is configured to LACP mode, the bond will use LACP.
1098 <group title="Rebalancing Configuration">
1100 These settings control behavior when a bond is in
1101 <code>balance-slb</code> or <code>balance-tcp</code> mode.
1104 <column name="other_config" key="bond-rebalance-interval"
1105 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 0, "maxInteger": 10000}'>
1106 For a load balanced bonded port, the number of milliseconds between
1107 successive attempts to rebalance the bond, that is, to move flows
1108 from one interface on the bond to another in an attempt to keep usage
1109 of each interface roughly equal. If zero, load balancing is disabled
1110 on the bond (link failure still cause flows to move). If
1111 less than 1000ms, the rebalance interval will be 1000ms.
1115 <column name="bond_fake_iface">
1116 For a bonded port, whether to create a fake internal interface with the
1117 name of the port. Use only for compatibility with legacy software that
1122 <group title="Spanning Tree Configuration">
1123 <column name="other_config" key="stp-enable"
1124 type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
1125 If spanning tree is enabled on the bridge, member ports are
1126 enabled by default (with the exception of bond, internal, and
1127 mirror ports which do not work with STP). If this column's
1128 value is <code>false</code> spanning tree is disabled on the
1132 <column name="other_config" key="stp-port-num"
1133 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1, "maxInteger": 255}'>
1134 The port number used for the lower 8 bits of the port-id. By
1135 default, the numbers will be assigned automatically. If any
1136 port's number is manually configured on a bridge, then they
1140 <column name="other_config" key="stp-port-priority"
1141 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 0, "maxInteger": 255}'>
1142 The port's relative priority value for determining the root
1143 port (the upper 8 bits of the port-id). A port with a lower
1144 port-id will be chosen as the root port. By default, the
1148 <column name="other_config" key="stp-path-cost"
1149 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 0, "maxInteger": 65535}'>
1150 Spanning tree path cost for the port. A lower number indicates
1151 a faster link. By default, the cost is based on the maximum
1156 <group title="Other Features">
1158 Quality of Service configuration for this port.
1162 The MAC address to use for this port for the purpose of choosing the
1163 bridge's MAC address. This column does not necessarily reflect the
1164 port's actual MAC address, nor will setting it change the port's actual
1168 <column name="fake_bridge">
1169 Does this port represent a sub-bridge for its tagged VLAN within the
1170 Bridge? See ovs-vsctl(8) for more information.
1173 <column name="external_ids" key="fake-bridge-id-*">
1174 External IDs for a fake bridge (see the <ref column="fake_bridge"/>
1175 column) are defined by prefixing a <ref table="Bridge"/> <ref
1176 table="Bridge" column="external_ids"/> key with
1177 <code>fake-bridge-</code>,
1178 e.g. <code>fake-bridge-xs-network-uuids</code>.
1182 <group title="Port Status">
1184 Status information about ports attached to bridges.
1186 <column name="status">
1187 Key-value pairs that report port status.
1189 <column name="status" key="stp_port_id">
1191 The port-id (in hex) used in spanning tree advertisements for
1192 this port. Configuring the port-id is described in the
1193 <code>stp-port-num</code> and <code>stp-port-priority</code>
1194 keys of the <code>other_config</code> section earlier.
1197 <column name="status" key="stp_state"
1198 type='{"type": "string", "enum": ["set",
1199 ["disabled", "listening", "learning",
1200 "forwarding", "blocking"]]}'>
1202 STP state of the port.
1205 <column name="status" key="stp_sec_in_state"
1206 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 0}'>
1208 The amount of time (in seconds) port has been in the current
1212 <column name="status" key="stp_role"
1213 type='{"type": "string", "enum": ["set",
1214 ["root", "designated", "alternate"]]}'>
1216 STP role of the port.
1221 <group title="Port Statistics">
1223 Key-value pairs that report port statistics.
1225 <group title="Statistics: STP transmit and receive counters">
1226 <column name="statistics" key="stp_tx_count">
1227 Number of STP BPDUs sent on this port by the spanning
1230 <column name="statistics" key="stp_rx_count">
1231 Number of STP BPDUs received on this port and accepted by the
1232 spanning tree library.
1234 <column name="statistics" key="stp_error_count">
1235 Number of bad STP BPDUs received on this port. Bad BPDUs
1236 include runt packets and those with an unexpected protocol ID.
1241 <group title="Common Columns">
1242 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
1243 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
1245 <column name="other_config"/>
1246 <column name="external_ids"/>
1250 <table name="Interface" title="One physical network device in a Port.">
1251 An interface within a <ref table="Port"/>.
1253 <group title="Core Features">
1254 <column name="name">
1255 Interface name. Should be alphanumeric and no more than about 8 bytes
1256 long. May be the same as the port name, for non-bonded ports. Must
1257 otherwise be unique among the names of ports, interfaces, and bridges
1261 <column name="ifindex">
1262 A positive interface index as defined for SNMP MIB-II in RFCs 1213 and
1263 2863, if the interface has one, otherwise 0. The ifindex is useful for
1264 seamless integration with protocols such as SNMP and sFlow.
1267 <column name="mac_in_use">
1268 The MAC address in use by this interface.
1272 <p>Ethernet address to set for this interface. If unset then the
1273 default MAC address is used:</p>
1275 <li>For the local interface, the default is the lowest-numbered MAC
1276 address among the other bridge ports, either the value of the
1277 <ref table="Port" column="mac"/> in its <ref table="Port"/> record,
1278 if set, or its actual MAC (for bonded ports, the MAC of its slave
1279 whose name is first in alphabetical order). Internal ports and
1280 bridge ports that are used as port mirroring destinations (see the
1281 <ref table="Mirror"/> table) are ignored.</li>
1282 <li>For other internal interfaces, the default MAC is randomly
1284 <li>External interfaces typically have a MAC address associated with
1285 their hardware.</li>
1287 <p>Some interfaces may not have a software-controllable MAC
1291 <group title="OpenFlow Port Number">
1293 When a client adds a new interface, Open vSwitch chooses an OpenFlow
1294 port number for the new port. If the client that adds the port fills
1295 in <ref column="ofport_request"/>, then Open vSwitch tries to use its
1296 value as the OpenFlow port number. Otherwise, or if the requested
1297 port number is already in use or cannot be used for another reason,
1298 Open vSwitch automatically assigns a free port number. Regardless of
1299 how the port number was obtained, Open vSwitch then reports in <ref
1300 column="ofport"/> the port number actually assigned.
1304 Open vSwitch limits the port numbers that it automatically assigns to
1305 the range 1 through 32,767, inclusive. Controllers therefore have
1306 free use of ports 32,768 and up.
1309 <column name="ofport">
1311 OpenFlow port number for this interface. Open vSwitch sets this
1312 column's value, so other clients should treat it as read-only.
1315 The OpenFlow ``local'' port (<code>OFPP_LOCAL</code>) is 65,534.
1316 The other valid port numbers are in the range 1 to 65,279,
1317 inclusive. Value -1 indicates an error adding the interface.
1321 <column name="ofport_request"
1322 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1, "maxInteger": 65279}'>
1324 Requested OpenFlow port number for this interface.
1328 A client should ideally set this column's value in the same
1329 database transaction that it uses to create the interface. Open
1330 vSwitch version 2.1 and later will honor a later request for a
1331 specific port number, althuogh it might confuse some controllers:
1332 OpenFlow does not have a way to announce a port number change, so
1333 Open vSwitch represents it over OpenFlow as a port deletion
1334 followed immediately by a port addition.
1338 If <ref column="ofport_request"/> is set or changed to some other
1339 port's automatically assigned port number, Open vSwitch chooses a
1340 new port number for the latter port.
1346 <group title="System-Specific Details">
1347 <column name="type">
1349 The interface type, one of:
1353 <dt><code>system</code></dt>
1354 <dd>An ordinary network device, e.g. <code>eth0</code> on Linux.
1355 Sometimes referred to as ``external interfaces'' since they are
1356 generally connected to hardware external to that on which the Open
1357 vSwitch is running. The empty string is a synonym for
1358 <code>system</code>.</dd>
1360 <dt><code>internal</code></dt>
1361 <dd>A simulated network device that sends and receives traffic. An
1362 internal interface whose <ref column="name"/> is the same as its
1363 bridge's <ref table="Open_vSwitch" column="name"/> is called the
1364 ``local interface.'' It does not make sense to bond an internal
1365 interface, so the terms ``port'' and ``interface'' are often used
1366 imprecisely for internal interfaces.</dd>
1368 <dt><code>tap</code></dt>
1369 <dd>A TUN/TAP device managed by Open vSwitch.</dd>
1371 <dt><code>gre</code></dt>
1373 An Ethernet over RFC 2890 Generic Routing Encapsulation over IPv4
1377 <dt><code>ipsec_gre</code></dt>
1379 An Ethernet over RFC 2890 Generic Routing Encapsulation over IPv4
1383 <dt><code>gre64</code></dt>
1385 It is same as GRE, but it allows 64 bit key. To store higher 32-bits
1386 of key, it uses GRE protocol sequence number field. This is non
1387 standard use of GRE protocol since OVS does not increment
1388 sequence number for every packet at time of encap as expected by
1389 standard GRE implementation. See <ref group="Tunnel Options"/>
1390 for information on configuring GRE tunnels.
1393 <dt><code>ipsec_gre64</code></dt>
1395 Same as IPSEC_GRE except 64 bit key.
1398 <dt><code>vxlan</code></dt>
1401 An Ethernet tunnel over the experimental, UDP-based VXLAN
1402 protocol described at
1403 <code>http://tools.ietf.org/html/draft-mahalingam-dutt-dcops-vxlan-03</code>.
1406 Open vSwitch uses UDP destination port 4789. The source port used for
1407 VXLAN traffic varies on a per-flow basis and is in the ephemeral port
1412 <dt><code>lisp</code></dt>
1415 A layer 3 tunnel over the experimental, UDP-based Locator/ID
1416 Separation Protocol (RFC 6830).
1419 Only IPv4 and IPv6 packets are supported by the protocol, and
1420 they are sent and received without an Ethernet header. Traffic
1421 to/from LISP ports is expected to be configured explicitly, and
1422 the ports are not intended to participate in learning based
1423 switching. As such, they are always excluded from packet
1428 <dt><code>patch</code></dt>
1430 A pair of virtual devices that act as a patch cable.
1433 <dt><code>null</code></dt>
1434 <dd>An ignored interface. Deprecated and slated for removal in
1440 <group title="Tunnel Options">
1442 These options apply to interfaces with <ref column="type"/> of
1443 <code>gre</code>, <code>ipsec_gre</code>, <code>gre64</code>,
1444 <code>ipsec_gre64</code>, <code>vxlan</code>, and <code>lisp</code>.
1448 Each tunnel must be uniquely identified by the combination of <ref
1449 column="type"/>, <ref column="options" key="remote_ip"/>, <ref
1450 column="options" key="local_ip"/>, and <ref column="options"
1451 key="in_key"/>. If two ports are defined that are the same except one
1452 has an optional identifier and the other does not, the more specific
1453 one is matched first. <ref column="options" key="in_key"/> is
1454 considered more specific than <ref column="options" key="local_ip"/> if
1455 a port defines one and another port defines the other.
1458 <column name="options" key="remote_ip">
1459 <p>Required. The remote tunnel endpoint, one of:</p>
1463 An IPv4 address (not a DNS name), e.g. <code>192.168.0.123</code>.
1464 Only unicast endpoints are supported.
1467 The word <code>flow</code>. The tunnel accepts packets from any
1468 remote tunnel endpoint. To process only packets from a specific
1469 remote tunnel endpoint, the flow entries may match on the
1470 <code>tun_src</code> field. When sending packets to a
1471 <code>remote_ip=flow</code> tunnel, the flow actions must
1472 explicitly set the <code>tun_dst</code> field to the IP address of
1473 the desired remote tunnel endpoint, e.g. with a
1474 <code>set_field</code> action.
1479 The remote tunnel endpoint for any packet received from a tunnel
1480 is available in the <code>tun_src</code> field for matching in the
1485 <column name="options" key="local_ip">
1487 Optional. The tunnel destination IP that received packets must
1488 match. Default is to match all addresses. If specified, may be one
1494 An IPv4 address (not a DNS name), e.g. <code>192.168.12.3</code>.
1497 The word <code>flow</code>. The tunnel accepts packets sent to any
1498 of the local IP addresses of the system running OVS. To process
1499 only packets sent to a specific IP address, the flow entries may
1500 match on the <code>tun_dst</code> field. When sending packets to a
1501 <code>local_ip=flow</code> tunnel, the flow actions may
1502 explicitly set the <code>tun_src</code> field to the desired IP
1503 address, e.g. with a <code>set_field</code> action. However, while
1504 routing the tunneled packet out, the local system may override the
1505 specified address with the local IP address configured for the
1506 outgoing system interface.
1509 This option is valid only for tunnels also configured with the
1510 <code>remote_ip=flow</code> option.
1516 The tunnel destination IP address for any packet received from a
1517 tunnel is available in the <code>tun_dst</code> field for matching in
1522 <column name="options" key="in_key">
1523 <p>Optional. The key that received packets must contain, one of:</p>
1527 <code>0</code>. The tunnel receives packets with no key or with a
1528 key of 0. This is equivalent to specifying no <ref column="options"
1529 key="in_key"/> at all.
1532 A positive 24-bit (for VXLAN and LISP), 32-bit (for GRE) or 64-bit
1533 (for GRE64) number. The tunnel receives only packets with the
1537 The word <code>flow</code>. The tunnel accepts packets with any
1538 key. The key will be placed in the <code>tun_id</code> field for
1539 matching in the flow table. The <code>ovs-ofctl</code> manual page
1540 contains additional information about matching fields in OpenFlow
1549 <column name="options" key="out_key">
1550 <p>Optional. The key to be set on outgoing packets, one of:</p>
1554 <code>0</code>. Packets sent through the tunnel will have no key.
1555 This is equivalent to specifying no <ref column="options"
1556 key="out_key"/> at all.
1559 A positive 24-bit (for VXLAN and LISP), 32-bit (for GRE) or 64-bit
1560 (for GRE64) number. Packets sent through the tunnel will have the
1564 The word <code>flow</code>. Packets sent through the tunnel will
1565 have the key set using the <code>set_tunnel</code> Nicira OpenFlow
1566 vendor extension (0 is used in the absence of an action). The
1567 <code>ovs-ofctl</code> manual page contains additional information
1568 about the Nicira OpenFlow vendor extensions.
1573 <column name="options" key="key">
1574 Optional. Shorthand to set <code>in_key</code> and
1575 <code>out_key</code> at the same time.
1578 <column name="options" key="tos">
1579 Optional. The value of the ToS bits to be set on the encapsulating
1580 packet. ToS is interpreted as DSCP and ECN bits, ECN part must be
1581 zero. It may also be the word <code>inherit</code>, in which case
1582 the ToS will be copied from the inner packet if it is IPv4 or IPv6
1583 (otherwise it will be 0). The ECN fields are always inherited.
1587 <column name="options" key="ttl">
1588 Optional. The TTL to be set on the encapsulating packet. It may also
1589 be the word <code>inherit</code>, in which case the TTL will be copied
1590 from the inner packet if it is IPv4 or IPv6 (otherwise it will be the
1591 system default, typically 64). Default is the system default TTL.
1594 <column name="options" key="df_default"
1595 type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
1596 Optional. If enabled, the Don't Fragment bit will be set on tunnel
1597 outer headers to allow path MTU discovery. Default is enabled; set
1598 to <code>false</code> to disable.
1601 <group title="Tunnel Options: gre and ipsec_gre only">
1603 Only <code>gre</code> and <code>ipsec_gre</code> interfaces support
1607 <column name="options" key="csum" type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
1609 Optional. Compute GRE checksums on outgoing packets. Default is
1610 disabled, set to <code>true</code> to enable. Checksums present on
1611 incoming packets will be validated regardless of this setting.
1615 GRE checksums impose a significant performance penalty because they
1616 cover the entire packet. The encapsulated L3, L4, and L7 packet
1617 contents typically have their own checksums, so this additional
1618 checksum only adds value for the GRE and encapsulated L2 headers.
1622 This option is supported for <code>ipsec_gre</code>, but not useful
1623 because GRE checksums are weaker than, and redundant with, IPsec
1624 payload authentication.
1629 <group title="Tunnel Options: ipsec_gre only">
1631 Only <code>ipsec_gre</code> interfaces support these options.
1634 <column name="options" key="peer_cert">
1635 Required for certificate authentication. A string containing the
1636 peer's certificate in PEM format. Additionally the host's
1637 certificate must be specified with the <code>certificate</code>
1641 <column name="options" key="certificate">
1642 Required for certificate authentication. The name of a PEM file
1643 containing a certificate that will be presented to the peer during
1647 <column name="options" key="private_key">
1648 Optional for certificate authentication. The name of a PEM file
1649 containing the private key associated with <code>certificate</code>.
1650 If <code>certificate</code> contains the private key, this option may
1654 <column name="options" key="psk">
1655 Required for pre-shared key authentication. Specifies a pre-shared
1656 key for authentication that must be identical on both sides of the
1662 <group title="Patch Options">
1664 Only <code>patch</code> interfaces support these options.
1667 <column name="options" key="peer">
1668 The <ref column="name"/> of the <ref table="Interface"/> for the other
1669 side of the patch. The named <ref table="Interface"/>'s own
1670 <code>peer</code> option must specify this <ref table="Interface"/>'s
1671 name. That is, the two patch interfaces must have reversed <ref
1672 column="name"/> and <code>peer</code> values.
1676 <group title="Interface Status">
1678 Status information about interfaces attached to bridges, updated every
1679 5 seconds. Not all interfaces have all of these properties; virtual
1680 interfaces don't have a link speed, for example. Non-applicable
1681 columns will have empty values.
1683 <column name="admin_state">
1685 The administrative state of the physical network link.
1689 <column name="link_state">
1691 The observed state of the physical network link. This is ordinarily
1692 the link's carrier status. If the interface's <ref table="Port"/> is
1693 a bond configured for miimon monitoring, it is instead the network
1694 link's miimon status.
1698 <column name="link_resets">
1700 The number of times Open vSwitch has observed the
1701 <ref column="link_state"/> of this <ref table="Interface"/> change.
1705 <column name="link_speed">
1707 The negotiated speed of the physical network link.
1708 Valid values are positive integers greater than 0.
1712 <column name="duplex">
1714 The duplex mode of the physical network link.
1720 The MTU (maximum transmission unit); i.e. the largest
1721 amount of data that can fit into a single Ethernet frame.
1722 The standard Ethernet MTU is 1500 bytes. Some physical media
1723 and many kinds of virtual interfaces can be configured with
1727 This column will be empty for an interface that does not
1728 have an MTU as, for example, some kinds of tunnels do not.
1732 <column name="lacp_current">
1733 Boolean value indicating LACP status for this interface. If true, this
1734 interface has current LACP information about its LACP partner. This
1735 information may be used to monitor the health of interfaces in a LACP
1736 enabled port. This column will be empty if LACP is not enabled.
1739 <column name="status">
1740 Key-value pairs that report port status. Supported status values are
1741 <ref column="type"/>-dependent; some interfaces may not have a valid
1742 <ref column="status" key="driver_name"/>, for example.
1745 <column name="status" key="driver_name">
1746 The name of the device driver controlling the network adapter.
1749 <column name="status" key="driver_version">
1750 The version string of the device driver controlling the network
1754 <column name="status" key="firmware_version">
1755 The version string of the network adapter's firmware, if available.
1758 <column name="status" key="source_ip">
1759 The source IP address used for an IPv4 tunnel end-point, such as
1763 <column name="status" key="tunnel_egress_iface">
1764 Egress interface for tunnels. Currently only relevant for GRE tunnels
1765 On Linux systems, this column will show the name of the interface
1766 which is responsible for routing traffic destined for the configured
1767 <ref column="options" key="remote_ip"/>. This could be an internal
1768 interface such as a bridge port.
1771 <column name="status" key="tunnel_egress_iface_carrier"
1772 type='{"type": "string", "enum": ["set", ["down", "up"]]}'>
1773 Whether carrier is detected on <ref column="status"
1774 key="tunnel_egress_iface"/>.
1778 <group title="Statistics">
1780 Key-value pairs that report interface statistics. The current
1781 implementation updates these counters periodically. Future
1782 implementations may update them when an interface is created, when they
1783 are queried (e.g. using an OVSDB <code>select</code> operation), and
1784 just before an interface is deleted due to virtual interface hot-unplug
1785 or VM shutdown, and perhaps at other times, but not on any regular
1789 These are the same statistics reported by OpenFlow in its <code>struct
1790 ofp_port_stats</code> structure. If an interface does not support a
1791 given statistic, then that pair is omitted.
1793 <group title="Statistics: Successful transmit and receive counters">
1794 <column name="statistics" key="rx_packets">
1795 Number of received packets.
1797 <column name="statistics" key="rx_bytes">
1798 Number of received bytes.
1800 <column name="statistics" key="tx_packets">
1801 Number of transmitted packets.
1803 <column name="statistics" key="tx_bytes">
1804 Number of transmitted bytes.
1807 <group title="Statistics: Receive errors">
1808 <column name="statistics" key="rx_dropped">
1809 Number of packets dropped by RX.
1811 <column name="statistics" key="rx_frame_err">
1812 Number of frame alignment errors.
1814 <column name="statistics" key="rx_over_err">
1815 Number of packets with RX overrun.
1817 <column name="statistics" key="rx_crc_err">
1818 Number of CRC errors.
1820 <column name="statistics" key="rx_errors">
1821 Total number of receive errors, greater than or equal to the sum of
1825 <group title="Statistics: Transmit errors">
1826 <column name="statistics" key="tx_dropped">
1827 Number of packets dropped by TX.
1829 <column name="statistics" key="collisions">
1830 Number of collisions.
1832 <column name="statistics" key="tx_errors">
1833 Total number of transmit errors, greater than or equal to the sum of
1839 <group title="Ingress Policing">
1841 These settings control ingress policing for packets received on this
1842 interface. On a physical interface, this limits the rate at which
1843 traffic is allowed into the system from the outside; on a virtual
1844 interface (one connected to a virtual machine), this limits the rate at
1845 which the VM is able to transmit.
1848 Policing is a simple form of quality-of-service that simply drops
1849 packets received in excess of the configured rate. Due to its
1850 simplicity, policing is usually less accurate and less effective than
1851 egress QoS (which is configured using the <ref table="QoS"/> and <ref
1852 table="Queue"/> tables).
1855 Policing is currently implemented only on Linux. The Linux
1856 implementation uses a simple ``token bucket'' approach:
1860 The size of the bucket corresponds to <ref
1861 column="ingress_policing_burst"/>. Initially the bucket is full.
1864 Whenever a packet is received, its size (converted to tokens) is
1865 compared to the number of tokens currently in the bucket. If the
1866 required number of tokens are available, they are removed and the
1867 packet is forwarded. Otherwise, the packet is dropped.
1870 Whenever it is not full, the bucket is refilled with tokens at the
1871 rate specified by <ref column="ingress_policing_rate"/>.
1875 Policing interacts badly with some network protocols, and especially
1876 with fragmented IP packets. Suppose that there is enough network
1877 activity to keep the bucket nearly empty all the time. Then this token
1878 bucket algorithm will forward a single packet every so often, with the
1879 period depending on packet size and on the configured rate. All of the
1880 fragments of an IP packets are normally transmitted back-to-back, as a
1881 group. In such a situation, therefore, only one of these fragments
1882 will be forwarded and the rest will be dropped. IP does not provide
1883 any way for the intended recipient to ask for only the remaining
1884 fragments. In such a case there are two likely possibilities for what
1885 will happen next: either all of the fragments will eventually be
1886 retransmitted (as TCP will do), in which case the same problem will
1887 recur, or the sender will not realize that its packet has been dropped
1888 and data will simply be lost (as some UDP-based protocols will do).
1889 Either way, it is possible that no forward progress will ever occur.
1891 <column name="ingress_policing_rate">
1893 Maximum rate for data received on this interface, in kbps. Data
1894 received faster than this rate is dropped. Set to <code>0</code>
1895 (the default) to disable policing.
1899 <column name="ingress_policing_burst">
1900 <p>Maximum burst size for data received on this interface, in kb. The
1901 default burst size if set to <code>0</code> is 1000 kb. This value
1902 has no effect if <ref column="ingress_policing_rate"/>
1903 is <code>0</code>.</p>
1905 Specifying a larger burst size lets the algorithm be more forgiving,
1906 which is important for protocols like TCP that react severely to
1907 dropped packets. The burst size should be at least the size of the
1908 interface's MTU. Specifying a value that is numerically at least as
1909 large as 10% of <ref column="ingress_policing_rate"/> helps TCP come
1910 closer to achieving the full rate.
1915 <group title="Bidirectional Forwarding Detection (BFD)">
1917 BFD, defined in RFC 5880 and RFC 5881, allows point-to-point
1918 detection of connectivity failures by occasional transmission of
1919 BFD control messages. Open vSwitch implements BFD to serve
1920 as a more popular and standards compliant alternative to CFM.
1924 BFD operates by regularly transmitting BFD control messages at a rate
1925 negotiated independently in each direction. Each endpoint specifies
1926 the rate at which it expects to receive control messages, and the rate
1927 at which it is willing to transmit them. Open vSwitch uses a detection
1928 multiplier of three, meaning that an endpoint signals a connectivity
1929 fault if three consecutive BFD control messages fail to arrive. In the
1930 case of a unidirectional connectivity issue, the system not receiving
1931 BFD control messages signals the problem to its peer in the messages it
1936 The Open vSwitch implementation of BFD aims to comply faithfully
1937 with RFC 5880 requirements. Open vSwitch does not implement the
1938 optional Authentication or ``Echo Mode'' features.
1941 <group title="BFD Configuration">
1943 A controller sets up key-value pairs in the <ref column="bfd"/>
1944 column to enable and configure BFD.
1947 <column name="bfd" key="enable" type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
1948 True to enable BFD on this <ref table="Interface"/>.
1951 <column name="bfd" key="min_rx"
1952 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
1953 The shortest interval, in milliseconds, at which this BFD session
1954 offers to receive BFD control messages. The remote endpoint may
1955 choose to send messages at a slower rate. Defaults to
1959 <column name="bfd" key="min_tx"
1960 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
1961 The shortest interval, in milliseconds, at which this BFD session is
1962 willing to transmit BFD control messages. Messages will actually be
1963 transmitted at a slower rate if the remote endpoint is not willing to
1964 receive as quickly as specified. Defaults to <code>100</code>.
1967 <column name="bfd" key="decay_min_rx" type='{"type": "integer"}'>
1968 An alternate receive interval, in milliseconds, that must be greater
1969 than or equal to <ref column="bfd" key="min_rx"/>. The
1970 implementation switches from <ref column="bfd" key="min_rx"/> to <ref
1971 column="bfd" key="decay_min_rx"/> when there is no obvious incoming
1972 data traffic at the interface, to reduce the CPU and bandwidth cost
1973 of monitoring an idle interface. This feature may be disabled by
1974 setting a value of 0. This feature is reset whenever <ref
1975 column="bfd" key="decay_min_rx"/> or <ref column="bfd" key="min_rx"/>
1979 <column name="bfd" key="forwarding_if_rx" type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
1980 True to consider the interface capable of packet I/O as long as it
1981 continues to receive any packets (not just BFD packets). This
1982 prevents link congestion that causes consecutive BFD control packets
1983 to be lost from marking the interface down.
1986 <column name="bfd" key="cpath_down" type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
1987 Set to true to notify the remote endpoint that traffic should not be
1988 forwarded to this system for some reason other than a connectivty
1989 failure on the interface being monitored. The typical underlying
1990 reason is ``concatenated path down,'' that is, that connectivity
1991 beyond the local system is down. Defaults to false.
1994 <column name="bfd" key="check_tnl_key" type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
1995 Set to true to make BFD accept only control messages with a tunnel
1996 key of zero. By default, BFD accepts control messages with any
2000 <column name="bfd" key="bfd_dst_mac">
2001 Set to an Ethernet address in the form
2002 <var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>
2003 to set the MAC used as destination for transmitted BFD packets and
2004 expected as destination for received BFD packets. The default is
2005 <code>00:23:20:00:00:01</code>.
2008 <column name="bfd" key="bfd_src_ip">
2009 Set to an IPv4 address to set the IP address used as source for
2010 transmitted BFD packets. The default is <code>169.254.1.0</code>.
2013 <column name="bfd" key="bfd_dst_ip">
2014 Set to an IPv4 address to set the IP address used as destination
2015 for transmitted BFD packets. The default is <code>169.254.1.1</code>.
2019 <group title="BFD Status">
2021 The switch sets key-value pairs in the <ref column="bfd_status"/>
2022 column to report the status of BFD on this interface. When BFD is
2023 not enabled, with <ref column="bfd" key="enable"/>, the switch clears
2024 all key-value pairs from <ref column="bfd_status"/>.
2027 <column name="bfd_status" key="state"
2028 type='{"type": "string",
2029 "enum": ["set", ["admin_down", "down", "init", "up"]]}'>
2030 Reports the state of the BFD session. The BFD session is fully
2031 healthy and negotiated if <code>UP</code>.
2034 <column name="bfd_status" key="forwarding" type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
2035 Reports whether the BFD session believes this <ref
2036 table="Interface"/> may be used to forward traffic. Typically this
2037 means the local session is signaling <code>UP</code>, and the remote
2038 system isn't signaling a problem such as concatenated path down.
2041 <column name="bfd_status" key="diagnostic">
2042 In case of a problem, set to a short message that reports what the
2043 local BFD session thinks is wrong.
2046 <column name="bfd_status" key="remote_state"
2047 type='{"type": "string",
2048 "enum": ["set", ["admin_down", "down", "init", "up"]]}'>
2049 Reports the state of the remote endpoint's BFD session.
2052 <column name="bfd_status" key="remote_diagnostic">
2053 In case of a problem, set to a short message that reports what the
2054 remote endpoint's BFD session thinks is wrong.
2057 <column name="bfd_status" key="flap_count"
2058 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 0}'>
2059 Counts the number of <ref column="bfd_status" key="forwarding" />
2060 flaps since start. A flap is considered as a change of the
2061 <ref column="bfd_status" key="forwarding" /> value.
2066 <group title="Connectivity Fault Management">
2068 802.1ag Connectivity Fault Management (CFM) allows a group of
2069 Maintenance Points (MPs) called a Maintenance Association (MA) to
2070 detect connectivity problems with each other. MPs within a MA should
2071 have complete and exclusive interconnectivity. This is verified by
2072 occasionally broadcasting Continuity Check Messages (CCMs) at a
2073 configurable transmission interval.
2077 According to the 802.1ag specification, each Maintenance Point should
2078 be configured out-of-band with a list of Remote Maintenance Points it
2079 should have connectivity to. Open vSwitch differs from the
2080 specification in this area. It simply assumes the link is faulted if
2081 no Remote Maintenance Points are reachable, and considers it not
2086 When operating over tunnels which have no <code>in_key</code>, or an
2087 <code>in_key</code> of <code>flow</code>. CFM will only accept CCMs
2088 with a tunnel key of zero.
2091 <column name="cfm_mpid">
2093 A Maintenance Point ID (MPID) uniquely identifies each endpoint
2094 within a Maintenance Association. The MPID is used to identify this
2095 endpoint to other Maintenance Points in the MA. Each end of a link
2096 being monitored should have a different MPID. Must be configured to
2097 enable CFM on this <ref table="Interface"/>.
2100 According to the 802.1ag specification, MPIDs can only range between
2101 [1, 8191]. However, extended mode (see <ref column="other_config"
2102 key="cfm_extended"/>) supports eight byte MPIDs.
2106 <column name="cfm_flap_count">
2107 Counts the number of cfm fault flapps since boot. A flap is
2108 considered to be a change of the <ref column="cfm_fault"/> value.
2111 <column name="cfm_fault">
2113 Indicates a connectivity fault triggered by an inability to receive
2114 heartbeats from any remote endpoint. When a fault is triggered on
2115 <ref table="Interface"/>s participating in bonds, they will be
2119 Faults can be triggered for several reasons. Most importantly they
2120 are triggered when no CCMs are received for a period of 3.5 times the
2121 transmission interval. Faults are also triggered when any CCMs
2122 indicate that a Remote Maintenance Point is not receiving CCMs but
2123 able to send them. Finally, a fault is triggered if a CCM is
2124 received which indicates unexpected configuration. Notably, this
2125 case arises when a CCM is received which advertises the local MPID.
2129 <column name="cfm_fault_status" key="recv">
2130 Indicates a CFM fault was triggered due to a lack of CCMs received on
2131 the <ref table="Interface"/>.
2134 <column name="cfm_fault_status" key="rdi">
2135 Indicates a CFM fault was triggered due to the reception of a CCM with
2136 the RDI bit flagged. Endpoints set the RDI bit in their CCMs when they
2137 are not receiving CCMs themselves. This typically indicates a
2138 unidirectional connectivity failure.
2141 <column name="cfm_fault_status" key="maid">
2142 Indicates a CFM fault was triggered due to the reception of a CCM with
2143 a MAID other than the one Open vSwitch uses. CFM broadcasts are tagged
2144 with an identification number in addition to the MPID called the MAID.
2145 Open vSwitch only supports receiving CCM broadcasts tagged with the
2146 MAID it uses internally.
2149 <column name="cfm_fault_status" key="loopback">
2150 Indicates a CFM fault was triggered due to the reception of a CCM
2151 advertising the same MPID configured in the <ref column="cfm_mpid"/>
2152 column of this <ref table="Interface"/>. This may indicate a loop in
2156 <column name="cfm_fault_status" key="overflow">
2157 Indicates a CFM fault was triggered because the CFM module received
2158 CCMs from more remote endpoints than it can keep track of.
2161 <column name="cfm_fault_status" key="override">
2162 Indicates a CFM fault was manually triggered by an administrator using
2163 an <code>ovs-appctl</code> command.
2166 <column name="cfm_fault_status" key="interval">
2167 Indicates a CFM fault was triggered due to the reception of a CCM
2168 frame having an invalid interval.
2171 <column name="cfm_remote_opstate">
2172 <p>When in extended mode, indicates the operational state of the
2173 remote endpoint as either <code>up</code> or <code>down</code>. See
2174 <ref column="other_config" key="cfm_opstate"/>.
2178 <column name="cfm_health">
2180 Indicates the health of the interface as a percentage of CCM frames
2181 received over 21 <ref column="other_config" key="cfm_interval"/>s.
2182 The health of an interface is undefined if it is communicating with
2183 more than one <ref column="cfm_remote_mpids"/>. It reduces if
2184 healthy heartbeats are not received at the expected rate, and
2185 gradually improves as healthy heartbeats are received at the desired
2186 rate. Every 21 <ref column="other_config" key="cfm_interval"/>s, the
2187 health of the interface is refreshed.
2190 As mentioned above, the faults can be triggered for several reasons.
2191 The link health will deteriorate even if heartbeats are received but
2192 they are reported to be unhealthy. An unhealthy heartbeat in this
2193 context is a heartbeat for which either some fault is set or is out
2194 of sequence. The interface health can be 100 only on receiving
2195 healthy heartbeats at the desired rate.
2199 <column name="cfm_remote_mpids">
2200 When CFM is properly configured, Open vSwitch will occasionally
2201 receive CCM broadcasts. These broadcasts contain the MPID of the
2202 sending Maintenance Point. The list of MPIDs from which this
2203 <ref table="Interface"/> is receiving broadcasts from is regularly
2204 collected and written to this column.
2207 <column name="other_config" key="cfm_interval"
2208 type='{"type": "integer"}'>
2210 The interval, in milliseconds, between transmissions of CFM
2211 heartbeats. Three missed heartbeat receptions indicate a
2216 In standard operation only intervals of 3, 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000,
2217 60,000, or 600,000 ms are supported. Other values will be rounded
2218 down to the nearest value on the list. Extended mode (see <ref
2219 column="other_config" key="cfm_extended"/>) supports any interval up
2220 to 65,535 ms. In either mode, the default is 1000 ms.
2223 <p>We do not recommend using intervals less than 100 ms.</p>
2226 <column name="other_config" key="cfm_extended"
2227 type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
2228 When <code>true</code>, the CFM module operates in extended mode. This
2229 causes it to use a nonstandard destination address to avoid conflicting
2230 with compliant implementations which may be running concurrently on the
2231 network. Furthermore, extended mode increases the accuracy of the
2232 <code>cfm_interval</code> configuration parameter by breaking wire
2233 compatibility with 802.1ag compliant implementations. And extended
2234 mode allows eight byte MPIDs. Defaults to <code>false</code>.
2237 <column name="other_config" key="cfm_demand" type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
2239 When <code>true</code>, and
2240 <ref column="other_config" key="cfm_extended"/> is true, the CFM
2241 module operates in demand mode. When in demand mode, traffic
2242 received on the <ref table="Interface"/> is used to indicate
2243 liveness. CCMs are still transmitted and received, but if the
2244 <ref table="Interface"/> is receiving traffic, their absence does not
2245 cause a connectivity fault.
2249 Demand mode has a couple of caveats:
2252 To ensure that ovs-vswitchd has enough time to pull statistics
2253 from the datapath, the fault detection interval is set to
2254 3.5 * MAX(<ref column="other_config" key="cfm_interval"/>, 500)
2259 To avoid ambiguity, demand mode disables itself when there are
2260 multiple remote maintenance points.
2264 If the <ref table="Interface"/> is heavily congested, CCMs
2265 containing the <ref column="other_config" key="cfm_opstate"/>
2266 status may be dropped causing changes in the operational state to
2267 be delayed. Similarly, if CCMs containing the RDI bit are not
2268 received, unidirectional link failures may not be detected.
2274 <column name="other_config" key="cfm_opstate"
2275 type='{"type": "string", "enum": ["set", ["down", "up"]]}'>
2276 When <code>down</code>, the CFM module marks all CCMs it generates as
2277 operationally down without triggering a fault. This allows remote
2278 maintenance points to choose not to forward traffic to the
2279 <ref table="Interface"/> on which this CFM module is running.
2280 Currently, in Open vSwitch, the opdown bit of CCMs affects
2281 <ref table="Interface"/>s participating in bonds, and the bundle
2282 OpenFlow action. This setting is ignored when CFM is not in extended
2283 mode. Defaults to <code>up</code>.
2286 <column name="other_config" key="cfm_ccm_vlan"
2287 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1, "maxInteger": 4095}'>
2288 When set, the CFM module will apply a VLAN tag to all CCMs it generates
2289 with the given value. May be the string <code>random</code> in which
2290 case each CCM will be tagged with a different randomly generated VLAN.
2293 <column name="other_config" key="cfm_ccm_pcp"
2294 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1, "maxInteger": 7}'>
2295 When set, the CFM module will apply a VLAN tag to all CCMs it generates
2296 with the given PCP value, the VLAN ID of the tag is governed by the
2297 value of <ref column="other_config" key="cfm_ccm_vlan"/>. If
2298 <ref column="other_config" key="cfm_ccm_vlan"/> is unset, a VLAN ID of
2304 <group title="Bonding Configuration">
2305 <column name="other_config" key="lacp-port-id"
2306 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1, "maxInteger": 65535}'>
2307 The LACP port ID of this <ref table="Interface"/>. Port IDs are
2308 used in LACP negotiations to identify individual ports
2309 participating in a bond.
2312 <column name="other_config" key="lacp-port-priority"
2313 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1, "maxInteger": 65535}'>
2314 The LACP port priority of this <ref table="Interface"/>. In LACP
2315 negotiations <ref table="Interface"/>s with numerically lower
2316 priorities are preferred for aggregation.
2319 <column name="other_config" key="lacp-aggregation-key"
2320 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1, "maxInteger": 65535}'>
2321 The LACP aggregation key of this <ref table="Interface"/>. <ref
2322 table="Interface"/>s with different aggregation keys may not be active
2323 within a given <ref table="Port"/> at the same time.
2327 <group title="Virtual Machine Identifiers">
2329 These key-value pairs specifically apply to an interface that
2330 represents a virtual Ethernet interface connected to a virtual
2331 machine. These key-value pairs should not be present for other types
2332 of interfaces. Keys whose names end in <code>-uuid</code> have
2333 values that uniquely identify the entity in question. For a Citrix
2334 XenServer hypervisor, these values are UUIDs in RFC 4122 format.
2335 Other hypervisors may use other formats.
2338 <column name="external_ids" key="attached-mac">
2339 The MAC address programmed into the ``virtual hardware'' for this
2340 interface, in the form
2341 <var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>:<var>xx</var>.
2342 For Citrix XenServer, this is the value of the <code>MAC</code> field
2343 in the VIF record for this interface.
2346 <column name="external_ids" key="iface-id">
2347 A system-unique identifier for the interface. On XenServer, this will
2348 commonly be the same as <ref column="external_ids" key="xs-vif-uuid"/>.
2351 <column name="external_ids" key="iface-status"
2352 type='{"type": "string",
2353 "enum": ["set", ["active", "inactive"]]}'>
2355 Hypervisors may sometimes have more than one interface associated
2356 with a given <ref column="external_ids" key="iface-id"/>, only one of
2357 which is actually in use at a given time. For example, in some
2358 circumstances XenServer has both a ``tap'' and a ``vif'' interface
2359 for a single <ref column="external_ids" key="iface-id"/>, but only
2360 uses one of them at a time. A hypervisor that behaves this way must
2361 mark the currently in use interface <code>active</code> and the
2362 others <code>inactive</code>. A hypervisor that never has more than
2363 one interface for a given <ref column="external_ids" key="iface-id"/>
2364 may mark that interface <code>active</code> or omit <ref
2365 column="external_ids" key="iface-status"/> entirely.
2369 During VM migration, a given <ref column="external_ids"
2370 key="iface-id"/> might transiently be marked <code>active</code> on
2371 two different hypervisors. That is, <code>active</code> means that
2372 this <ref column="external_ids" key="iface-id"/> is the active
2373 instance within a single hypervisor, not in a broader scope.
2374 There is one exception: some hypervisors support ``migration'' from a
2375 given hypervisor to itself (most often for test purposes). During
2376 such a ``migration,'' two instances of a single <ref
2377 column="external_ids" key="iface-id"/> might both be briefly marked
2378 <code>active</code> on a single hypervisor.
2382 <column name="external_ids" key="xs-vif-uuid">
2383 The virtual interface associated with this interface.
2386 <column name="external_ids" key="xs-network-uuid">
2387 The virtual network to which this interface is attached.
2390 <column name="external_ids" key="vm-id">
2391 The VM to which this interface belongs. On XenServer, this will be the
2392 same as <ref column="external_ids" key="xs-vm-uuid"/>.
2395 <column name="external_ids" key="xs-vm-uuid">
2396 The VM to which this interface belongs.
2400 <group title="VLAN Splinters">
2402 The ``VLAN splinters'' feature increases Open vSwitch compatibility
2403 with buggy network drivers in old versions of Linux that do not
2404 properly support VLANs when VLAN devices are not used, at some cost
2405 in memory and performance.
2409 When VLAN splinters are enabled on a particular interface, Open vSwitch
2410 creates a VLAN device for each in-use VLAN. For sending traffic tagged
2411 with a VLAN on the interface, it substitutes the VLAN device. Traffic
2412 received on the VLAN device is treated as if it had been received on
2413 the interface on the particular VLAN.
2417 VLAN splinters consider a VLAN to be in use if:
2422 The VLAN is the <ref table="Port" column="tag"/> value in any <ref
2423 table="Port"/> record.
2427 The VLAN is listed within the <ref table="Port" column="trunks"/>
2428 column of the <ref table="Port"/> record of an interface on which
2429 VLAN splinters are enabled.
2431 An empty <ref table="Port" column="trunks"/> does not influence the
2432 in-use VLANs: creating 4,096 VLAN devices is impractical because it
2433 will exceed the current 1,024 port per datapath limit.
2437 An OpenFlow flow within any bridge matches the VLAN.
2442 The same set of in-use VLANs applies to every interface on which VLAN
2443 splinters are enabled. That is, the set is not chosen separately for
2444 each interface but selected once as the union of all in-use VLANs based
2449 It does not make sense to enable VLAN splinters on an interface for an
2450 access port, or on an interface that is not a physical port.
2454 VLAN splinters are deprecated. When broken device drivers are no
2455 longer in widespread use, we will delete this feature.
2458 <column name="other_config" key="enable-vlan-splinters"
2459 type='{"type": "boolean"}'>
2461 Set to <code>true</code> to enable VLAN splinters on this interface.
2462 Defaults to <code>false</code>.
2466 VLAN splinters increase kernel and userspace memory overhead, so do
2467 not use them unless they are needed.
2471 VLAN splinters do not support 802.1p priority tags. Received
2472 priorities will appear to be 0, regardless of their actual values,
2473 and priorities on transmitted packets will also be cleared to 0.
2478 <group title="Common Columns">
2479 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
2480 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
2482 <column name="other_config"/>
2483 <column name="external_ids"/>
2487 <table name="Flow_Table" title="OpenFlow table configuration">
2488 <p>Configuration for a particular OpenFlow table.</p>
2490 <column name="name">
2491 The table's name. Set this column to change the name that controllers
2492 will receive when they request table statistics, e.g. <code>ovs-ofctl
2493 dump-tables</code>. The name does not affect switch behavior.
2496 <column name="flow_limit">
2497 If set, limits the number of flows that may be added to the table. Open
2498 vSwitch may limit the number of flows in a table for other reasons,
2499 e.g. due to hardware limitations or for resource availability or
2500 performance reasons.
2503 <column name="overflow_policy">
2505 Controls the switch's behavior when an OpenFlow flow table modification
2506 request would add flows in excess of <ref column="flow_limit"/>. The
2507 supported values are:
2511 <dt><code>refuse</code></dt>
2513 Refuse to add the flow or flows. This is also the default policy
2514 when <ref column="overflow_policy"/> is unset.
2517 <dt><code>evict</code></dt>
2519 Delete the flow that will expire soonest. See <ref column="groups"/>
2525 <column name="groups">
2527 When <ref column="overflow_policy"/> is <code>evict</code>, this
2528 controls how flows are chosen for eviction when the flow table would
2529 otherwise exceed <ref column="flow_limit"/> flows. Its value is a set
2530 of NXM fields or sub-fields, each of which takes one of the forms
2531 <code><var>field</var>[]</code> or
2532 <code><var>field</var>[<var>start</var>..<var>end</var>]</code>,
2533 e.g. <code>NXM_OF_IN_PORT[]</code>. Please see
2534 <code>nicira-ext.h</code> for a complete list of NXM field names.
2538 When a flow must be evicted due to overflow, the flow to evict is
2539 chosen through an approximation of the following algorithm:
2544 Divide the flows in the table into groups based on the values of the
2545 specified fields or subfields, so that all of the flows in a given
2546 group have the same values for those fields. If a flow does not
2547 specify a given field, that field's value is treated as 0.
2551 Consider the flows in the largest group, that is, the group that
2552 contains the greatest number of flows. If two or more groups all
2553 have the same largest number of flows, consider the flows in all of
2558 Among the flows under consideration, choose the flow that expires
2559 soonest for eviction.
2564 The eviction process only considers flows that have an idle timeout or
2565 a hard timeout. That is, eviction never deletes permanent flows.
2566 (Permanent flows do count against <ref column="flow_limit"/>.)
2570 Open vSwitch ignores any invalid or unknown field specifications.
2574 When <ref column="overflow_policy"/> is not <code>evict</code>, this
2575 column has no effect.
2579 <column name="prefixes">
2581 This string set specifies which fields should be used for
2582 address prefix tracking. Prefix tracking allows the
2583 classifier to skip rules with longer than necessary prefixes,
2584 resulting in better wildcarding for datapath flows.
2587 Prefix tracking may be beneficial when a flow table contains
2588 matches on IP address fields with different prefix lengths.
2589 For example, when a flow table contains IP address matches on
2590 both full addresses and proper prefixes, the full address
2591 matches will typically cause the datapath flow to un-wildcard
2592 the whole address field (depending on flow entry priorities).
2593 In this case each packet with a different address gets handed
2594 to the userspace for flow processing and generates its own
2595 datapath flow. With prefix tracking enabled for the address
2596 field in question packets with addresses matching shorter
2597 prefixes would generate datapath flows where the irrelevant
2598 address bits are wildcarded, allowing the same datapath flow
2599 to handle all the packets within the prefix in question. In
2600 this case many userspace upcalls can be avoided and the
2601 overall performance can be better.
2604 This is a performance optimization only, so packets will
2605 receive the same treatment with or without prefix tracking.
2608 The supported fields are: <code>tun_id</code>,
2609 <code>tun_src</code>, <code>tun_dst</code>,
2610 <code>nw_src</code>, <code>nw_dst</code> (or aliases
2611 <code>ip_src</code> and <code>ip_dst</code>),
2612 <code>ipv6_src</code>, and <code>ipv6_dst</code>. (Using this
2613 feature for <code>tun_id</code> would only make sense if the
2614 tunnel IDs have prefix structure similar to IP addresses.)
2617 For example, <code>prefixes=ip_dst,ip_src</code> instructs the
2618 flow classifier to track the IP destination and source
2619 addresses used by the rules in this specific flow table. To
2620 set the prefix fields, the flow table record needs to exist:
2623 <dt><code>ovs-vsctl set Bridge br0 flow_tables:0=@N1 -- --id=@N1 create Flow_Table name=table0</code></dt>
2625 Creates a flow table record for the OpenFlow table number 0.
2628 <dt><code>ovs-vsctl set Flow_Table table0 prefixes=ip_dst,ip_src</code></dt>
2630 Enables prefix tracking for IP source and destination
2636 There is a maximum number of fields that can be enabled for any
2637 one flow table. Currently this limit is 3.
2642 <table name="QoS" title="Quality of Service configuration">
2643 <p>Quality of Service (QoS) configuration for each Port that
2646 <column name="type">
2647 <p>The type of QoS to implement. The currently defined types are
2650 <dt><code>linux-htb</code></dt>
2652 Linux ``hierarchy token bucket'' classifier. See tc-htb(8) (also at
2653 <code>http://linux.die.net/man/8/tc-htb</code>) and the HTB manual
2654 (<code>http://luxik.cdi.cz/~devik/qos/htb/manual/userg.htm</code>)
2655 for information on how this classifier works and how to configure it.
2659 <dt><code>linux-hfsc</code></dt>
2661 Linux "Hierarchical Fair Service Curve" classifier.
2662 See <code>http://linux-ip.net/articles/hfsc.en/</code> for
2663 information on how this classifier works.
2668 <column name="queues">
2669 <p>A map from queue numbers to <ref table="Queue"/> records. The
2670 supported range of queue numbers depend on <ref column="type"/>. The
2671 queue numbers are the same as the <code>queue_id</code> used in
2672 OpenFlow in <code>struct ofp_action_enqueue</code> and other
2676 Queue 0 is the ``default queue.'' It is used by OpenFlow output
2677 actions when no specific queue has been set. When no configuration for
2678 queue 0 is present, it is automatically configured as if a <ref
2679 table="Queue"/> record with empty <ref table="Queue" column="dscp"/>
2680 and <ref table="Queue" column="other_config"/> columns had been
2682 (Before version 1.6, Open vSwitch would leave queue 0 unconfigured in
2683 this case. With some queuing disciplines, this dropped all packets
2684 destined for the default queue.)
2688 <group title="Configuration for linux-htb and linux-hfsc">
2690 The <code>linux-htb</code> and <code>linux-hfsc</code> classes support
2691 the following key-value pair:
2694 <column name="other_config" key="max-rate" type='{"type": "integer"}'>
2695 Maximum rate shared by all queued traffic, in bit/s. Optional. If not
2696 specified, for physical interfaces, the default is the link rate. For
2697 other interfaces or if the link rate cannot be determined, the default
2698 is currently 100 Mbps.
2702 <group title="Common Columns">
2703 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
2704 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
2706 <column name="other_config"/>
2707 <column name="external_ids"/>
2711 <table name="Queue" title="QoS output queue.">
2712 <p>A configuration for a port output queue, used in configuring Quality of
2713 Service (QoS) features. May be referenced by <ref column="queues"
2714 table="QoS"/> column in <ref table="QoS"/> table.</p>
2716 <column name="dscp">
2717 If set, Open vSwitch will mark all traffic egressing this
2718 <ref table="Queue"/> with the given DSCP bits. Traffic egressing the
2719 default <ref table="Queue"/> is only marked if it was explicitly selected
2720 as the <ref table="Queue"/> at the time the packet was output. If unset,
2721 the DSCP bits of traffic egressing this <ref table="Queue"/> will remain
2725 <group title="Configuration for linux-htb QoS">
2727 <ref table="QoS"/> <ref table="QoS" column="type"/>
2728 <code>linux-htb</code> may use <code>queue_id</code>s less than 61440.
2729 It has the following key-value pairs defined.
2732 <column name="other_config" key="min-rate"
2733 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
2734 Minimum guaranteed bandwidth, in bit/s.
2737 <column name="other_config" key="max-rate"
2738 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
2739 Maximum allowed bandwidth, in bit/s. Optional. If specified, the
2740 queue's rate will not be allowed to exceed the specified value, even
2741 if excess bandwidth is available. If unspecified, defaults to no
2745 <column name="other_config" key="burst"
2746 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
2747 Burst size, in bits. This is the maximum amount of ``credits'' that a
2748 queue can accumulate while it is idle. Optional. Details of the
2749 <code>linux-htb</code> implementation require a minimum burst size, so
2750 a too-small <code>burst</code> will be silently ignored.
2753 <column name="other_config" key="priority"
2754 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 0, "maxInteger": 4294967295}'>
2755 A queue with a smaller <code>priority</code> will receive all the
2756 excess bandwidth that it can use before a queue with a larger value
2757 receives any. Specific priority values are unimportant; only relative
2758 ordering matters. Defaults to 0 if unspecified.
2762 <group title="Configuration for linux-hfsc QoS">
2764 <ref table="QoS"/> <ref table="QoS" column="type"/>
2765 <code>linux-hfsc</code> may use <code>queue_id</code>s less than 61440.
2766 It has the following key-value pairs defined.
2769 <column name="other_config" key="min-rate"
2770 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
2771 Minimum guaranteed bandwidth, in bit/s.
2774 <column name="other_config" key="max-rate"
2775 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
2776 Maximum allowed bandwidth, in bit/s. Optional. If specified, the
2777 queue's rate will not be allowed to exceed the specified value, even if
2778 excess bandwidth is available. If unspecified, defaults to no
2783 <group title="Common Columns">
2784 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
2785 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
2787 <column name="other_config"/>
2788 <column name="external_ids"/>
2792 <table name="Mirror" title="Port mirroring.">
2793 <p>A port mirror within a <ref table="Bridge"/>.</p>
2794 <p>A port mirror configures a bridge to send selected frames to special
2795 ``mirrored'' ports, in addition to their normal destinations. Mirroring
2796 traffic may also be referred to as SPAN or RSPAN, depending on how
2797 the mirrored traffic is sent.</p>
2799 <column name="name">
2800 Arbitrary identifier for the <ref table="Mirror"/>.
2803 <group title="Selecting Packets for Mirroring">
2805 To be selected for mirroring, a given packet must enter or leave the
2806 bridge through a selected port and it must also be in one of the
2810 <column name="select_all">
2811 If true, every packet arriving or departing on any port is
2812 selected for mirroring.
2815 <column name="select_dst_port">
2816 Ports on which departing packets are selected for mirroring.
2819 <column name="select_src_port">
2820 Ports on which arriving packets are selected for mirroring.
2823 <column name="select_vlan">
2824 VLANs on which packets are selected for mirroring. An empty set
2825 selects packets on all VLANs.
2829 <group title="Mirroring Destination Configuration">
2831 These columns are mutually exclusive. Exactly one of them must be
2835 <column name="output_port">
2836 <p>Output port for selected packets, if nonempty.</p>
2837 <p>Specifying a port for mirror output reserves that port exclusively
2838 for mirroring. No frames other than those selected for mirroring
2840 will be forwarded to the port, and any frames received on the port
2841 will be discarded.</p>
2843 The output port may be any kind of port supported by Open vSwitch.
2844 It may be, for example, a physical port (sometimes called SPAN) or a
2849 <column name="output_vlan">
2850 <p>Output VLAN for selected packets, if nonempty.</p>
2851 <p>The frames will be sent out all ports that trunk
2852 <ref column="output_vlan"/>, as well as any ports with implicit VLAN
2853 <ref column="output_vlan"/>. When a mirrored frame is sent out a
2854 trunk port, the frame's VLAN tag will be set to
2855 <ref column="output_vlan"/>, replacing any existing tag; when it is
2856 sent out an implicit VLAN port, the frame will not be tagged. This
2857 type of mirroring is sometimes called RSPAN.</p>
2859 See the documentation for
2860 <ref column="other_config" key="forward-bpdu"/> in the
2861 <ref table="Interface"/> table for a list of destination MAC
2862 addresses which will not be mirrored to a VLAN to avoid confusing
2863 switches that interpret the protocols that they represent.
2865 <p><em>Please note:</em> Mirroring to a VLAN can disrupt a network that
2866 contains unmanaged switches. Consider an unmanaged physical switch
2867 with two ports: port 1, connected to an end host, and port 2,
2868 connected to an Open vSwitch configured to mirror received packets
2869 into VLAN 123 on port 2. Suppose that the end host sends a packet on
2870 port 1 that the physical switch forwards to port 2. The Open vSwitch
2871 forwards this packet to its destination and then reflects it back on
2872 port 2 in VLAN 123. This reflected packet causes the unmanaged
2873 physical switch to replace the MAC learning table entry, which
2874 correctly pointed to port 1, with one that incorrectly points to port
2875 2. Afterward, the physical switch will direct packets destined for
2876 the end host to the Open vSwitch on port 2, instead of to the end
2877 host on port 1, disrupting connectivity. If mirroring to a VLAN is
2878 desired in this scenario, then the physical switch must be replaced
2879 by one that learns Ethernet addresses on a per-VLAN basis. In
2880 addition, learning should be disabled on the VLAN containing mirrored
2881 traffic. If this is not done then intermediate switches will learn
2882 the MAC address of each end host from the mirrored traffic. If
2883 packets being sent to that end host are also mirrored, then they will
2884 be dropped since the switch will attempt to send them out the input
2885 port. Disabling learning for the VLAN will cause the switch to
2886 correctly send the packet out all ports configured for that VLAN. If
2887 Open vSwitch is being used as an intermediate switch, learning can be
2888 disabled by adding the mirrored VLAN to <ref column="flood_vlans"/>
2889 in the appropriate <ref table="Bridge"/> table or tables.</p>
2891 Mirroring to a GRE tunnel has fewer caveats than mirroring to a
2892 VLAN and should generally be preferred.
2897 <group title="Statistics: Mirror counters">
2899 Key-value pairs that report mirror statistics.
2901 <column name="statistics" key="tx_packets">
2902 Number of packets transmitted through this mirror.
2904 <column name="statistics" key="tx_bytes">
2905 Number of bytes transmitted through this mirror.
2909 <group title="Common Columns">
2910 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
2911 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
2913 <column name="external_ids"/>
2917 <table name="Controller" title="OpenFlow controller configuration.">
2918 <p>An OpenFlow controller.</p>
2921 Open vSwitch supports two kinds of OpenFlow controllers:
2925 <dt>Primary controllers</dt>
2928 This is the kind of controller envisioned by the OpenFlow 1.0
2929 specification. Usually, a primary controller implements a network
2930 policy by taking charge of the switch's flow table.
2934 Open vSwitch initiates and maintains persistent connections to
2935 primary controllers, retrying the connection each time it fails or
2936 drops. The <ref table="Bridge" column="fail_mode"/> column in the
2937 <ref table="Bridge"/> table applies to primary controllers.
2941 Open vSwitch permits a bridge to have any number of primary
2942 controllers. When multiple controllers are configured, Open
2943 vSwitch connects to all of them simultaneously. Because
2944 OpenFlow 1.0 does not specify how multiple controllers
2945 coordinate in interacting with a single switch, more than
2946 one primary controller should be specified only if the
2947 controllers are themselves designed to coordinate with each
2948 other. (The Nicira-defined <code>NXT_ROLE</code> OpenFlow
2949 vendor extension may be useful for this.)
2952 <dt>Service controllers</dt>
2955 These kinds of OpenFlow controller connections are intended for
2956 occasional support and maintenance use, e.g. with
2957 <code>ovs-ofctl</code>. Usually a service controller connects only
2958 briefly to inspect or modify some of a switch's state.
2962 Open vSwitch listens for incoming connections from service
2963 controllers. The service controllers initiate and, if necessary,
2964 maintain the connections from their end. The <ref table="Bridge"
2965 column="fail_mode"/> column in the <ref table="Bridge"/> table does
2966 not apply to service controllers.
2970 Open vSwitch supports configuring any number of service controllers.
2976 The <ref column="target"/> determines the type of controller.
2979 <group title="Core Features">
2980 <column name="target">
2981 <p>Connection method for controller.</p>
2983 The following connection methods are currently supported for primary
2987 <dt><code>ssl:<var>ip</var></code>[<code>:<var>port</var></code>]</dt>
2989 <p>The specified SSL <var>port</var> on the host at the
2990 given <var>ip</var>, which must be expressed as an IP
2991 address (not a DNS name). The <ref table="Open_vSwitch"
2992 column="ssl"/> column in the <ref table="Open_vSwitch"/>
2993 table must point to a valid SSL configuration when this form
2995 <p>If <var>port</var> is not specified, it currently
2996 defaults to 6633. In the future, the default will change to
2997 6653, which is the IANA-defined value.</p>
2998 <p>SSL support is an optional feature that is not always built as
2999 part of Open vSwitch.</p>
3001 <dt><code>tcp:<var>ip</var></code>[<code>:<var>port</var></code>]</dt>
3004 The specified TCP <var>port</var> on the host at the given
3005 <var>ip</var>, which must be expressed as an IP address (not a
3006 DNS name), where <var>ip</var> can be IPv4 or IPv6 address. If
3007 <var>ip</var> is an IPv6 address, wrap it in square brackets,
3008 e.g. <code>tcp:[::1]:6632</code>.
3011 If <var>port</var> is not specified, it currently defaults to
3012 6633. In the future, the default will change to 6653, which is
3013 the IANA-defined value.
3018 The following connection methods are currently supported for service
3022 <dt><code>pssl:</code>[<var>port</var>][<code>:<var>ip</var></code>]</dt>
3025 Listens for SSL connections on the specified TCP <var>port</var>.
3026 If <var>ip</var>, which must be expressed as an IP address (not a
3027 DNS name), is specified, then connections are restricted to the
3028 specified local IP address (either IPv4 or IPv6). If
3029 <var>ip</var> is an IPv6 address, wrap it in square brackets,
3030 e.g. <code>pssl:6632:[::1]</code>.
3033 If <var>port</var> is not specified, it currently defaults to
3034 6633. If <var>ip</var> is not specified then it listens only on
3035 IPv4 (but not IPv6) addresses. The
3036 <ref table="Open_vSwitch" column="ssl"/>
3037 column in the <ref table="Open_vSwitch"/> table must point to a
3038 valid SSL configuration when this form is used.
3041 If <var>port</var> is not specified, it currently defaults to
3042 6633. In the future, the default will change to 6653, which is
3043 the IANA-defined value.
3046 SSL support is an optional feature that is not always built as
3047 part of Open vSwitch.
3050 <dt><code>ptcp:</code>[<var>port</var>][<code>:<var>ip</var></code>]</dt>
3053 Listens for connections on the specified TCP <var>port</var>. If
3054 <var>ip</var>, which must be expressed as an IP address (not a
3055 DNS name), is specified, then connections are restricted to the
3056 specified local IP address (either IPv4 or IPv6). If
3057 <var>ip</var> is an IPv6 address, wrap it in square brackets,
3058 e.g. <code>ptcp:6632:[::1]</code>. If <var>ip</var> is not
3059 specified then it listens only on IPv4 addresses.
3062 If <var>port</var> is not specified, it currently defaults to
3063 6633. In the future, the default will change to 6653, which is
3064 the IANA-defined value.
3068 <p>When multiple controllers are configured for a single bridge, the
3069 <ref column="target"/> values must be unique. Duplicate
3070 <ref column="target"/> values yield unspecified results.</p>
3073 <column name="connection_mode">
3074 <p>If it is specified, this setting must be one of the following
3075 strings that describes how Open vSwitch contacts this OpenFlow
3076 controller over the network:</p>
3079 <dt><code>in-band</code></dt>
3080 <dd>In this mode, this controller's OpenFlow traffic travels over the
3081 bridge associated with the controller. With this setting, Open
3082 vSwitch allows traffic to and from the controller regardless of the
3083 contents of the OpenFlow flow table. (Otherwise, Open vSwitch
3084 would never be able to connect to the controller, because it did
3085 not have a flow to enable it.) This is the most common connection
3086 mode because it is not necessary to maintain two independent
3088 <dt><code>out-of-band</code></dt>
3089 <dd>In this mode, OpenFlow traffic uses a control network separate
3090 from the bridge associated with this controller, that is, the
3091 bridge does not use any of its own network devices to communicate
3092 with the controller. The control network must be configured
3093 separately, before or after <code>ovs-vswitchd</code> is started.
3097 <p>If not specified, the default is implementation-specific.</p>
3101 <group title="Controller Failure Detection and Handling">
3102 <column name="max_backoff">
3103 Maximum number of milliseconds to wait between connection attempts.
3104 Default is implementation-specific.
3107 <column name="inactivity_probe">
3108 Maximum number of milliseconds of idle time on connection to
3109 controller before sending an inactivity probe message. If Open
3110 vSwitch does not communicate with the controller for the specified
3111 number of seconds, it will send a probe. If a response is not
3112 received for the same additional amount of time, Open vSwitch
3113 assumes the connection has been broken and attempts to reconnect.
3114 Default is implementation-specific. A value of 0 disables
3119 <group title="Asynchronous Message Configuration">
3121 OpenFlow switches send certain messages to controllers spontanenously,
3122 that is, not in response to any request from the controller. These
3123 messages are called ``asynchronous messages.'' These columns allow
3124 asynchronous messages to be limited or disabled to ensure the best use
3125 of network resources.
3128 <column name="enable_async_messages">
3129 The OpenFlow protocol enables asynchronous messages at time of
3130 connection establishment, which means that a controller can receive
3131 asynchronous messages, potentially many of them, even if it turns them
3132 off immediately after connecting. Set this column to
3133 <code>false</code> to change Open vSwitch behavior to disable, by
3134 default, all asynchronous messages. The controller can use the
3135 <code>NXT_SET_ASYNC_CONFIG</code> Nicira extension to OpenFlow to turn
3136 on any messages that it does want to receive, if any.
3139 <column name="controller_rate_limit">
3141 The maximum rate at which the switch will forward packets to the
3142 OpenFlow controller, in packets per second. This feature prevents a
3143 single bridge from overwhelming the controller. If not specified,
3144 the default is implementation-specific.
3148 In addition, when a high rate triggers rate-limiting, Open vSwitch
3149 queues controller packets for each port and transmits them to the
3150 controller at the configured rate. The <ref
3151 column="controller_burst_limit"/> value limits the number of queued
3152 packets. Ports on a bridge share the packet queue fairly.
3156 Open vSwitch maintains two such packet rate-limiters per bridge: one
3157 for packets sent up to the controller because they do not correspond
3158 to any flow, and the other for packets sent up to the controller by
3159 request through flow actions. When both rate-limiters are filled with
3160 packets, the actual rate that packets are sent to the controller is
3161 up to twice the specified rate.
3165 <column name="controller_burst_limit">
3166 In conjunction with <ref column="controller_rate_limit"/>,
3167 the maximum number of unused packet credits that the bridge will
3168 allow to accumulate, in packets. If not specified, the default
3169 is implementation-specific.
3173 <group title="Additional In-Band Configuration">
3174 <p>These values are considered only in in-band control mode (see
3175 <ref column="connection_mode"/>).</p>
3177 <p>When multiple controllers are configured on a single bridge, there
3178 should be only one set of unique values in these columns. If different
3179 values are set for these columns in different controllers, the effect
3182 <column name="local_ip">
3183 The IP address to configure on the local port,
3184 e.g. <code>192.168.0.123</code>. If this value is unset, then
3185 <ref column="local_netmask"/> and <ref column="local_gateway"/> are
3189 <column name="local_netmask">
3190 The IP netmask to configure on the local port,
3191 e.g. <code>255.255.255.0</code>. If <ref column="local_ip"/> is set
3192 but this value is unset, then the default is chosen based on whether
3193 the IP address is class A, B, or C.
3196 <column name="local_gateway">
3197 The IP address of the gateway to configure on the local port, as a
3198 string, e.g. <code>192.168.0.1</code>. Leave this column unset if
3199 this network has no gateway.
3203 <group title="Controller Status">
3204 <column name="is_connected">
3205 <code>true</code> if currently connected to this controller,
3206 <code>false</code> otherwise.
3210 type='{"type": "string", "enum": ["set", ["other", "master", "slave"]]}'>
3211 <p>The level of authority this controller has on the associated
3212 bridge. Possible values are:</p>
3214 <dt><code>other</code></dt>
3215 <dd>Allows the controller access to all OpenFlow features.</dd>
3216 <dt><code>master</code></dt>
3217 <dd>Equivalent to <code>other</code>, except that there may be at
3218 most one master controller at a time. When a controller configures
3219 itself as <code>master</code>, any existing master is demoted to
3220 the <code>slave</code>role.</dd>
3221 <dt><code>slave</code></dt>
3222 <dd>Allows the controller read-only access to OpenFlow features.
3223 Attempts to modify the flow table will be rejected with an
3224 error. Slave controllers do not receive OFPT_PACKET_IN or
3225 OFPT_FLOW_REMOVED messages, but they do receive OFPT_PORT_STATUS
3230 <column name="status" key="last_error">
3231 A human-readable description of the last error on the connection
3232 to the controller; i.e. <code>strerror(errno)</code>. This key
3233 will exist only if an error has occurred.
3236 <column name="status" key="state"
3237 type='{"type": "string", "enum": ["set", ["VOID", "BACKOFF", "CONNECTING", "ACTIVE", "IDLE"]]}'>
3239 The state of the connection to the controller:
3242 <dt><code>VOID</code></dt>
3243 <dd>Connection is disabled.</dd>
3245 <dt><code>BACKOFF</code></dt>
3246 <dd>Attempting to reconnect at an increasing period.</dd>
3248 <dt><code>CONNECTING</code></dt>
3249 <dd>Attempting to connect.</dd>
3251 <dt><code>ACTIVE</code></dt>
3252 <dd>Connected, remote host responsive.</dd>
3254 <dt><code>IDLE</code></dt>
3255 <dd>Connection is idle. Waiting for response to keep-alive.</dd>
3258 These values may change in the future. They are provided only for
3263 <column name="status" key="sec_since_connect"
3264 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 0}'>
3265 The amount of time since this controller last successfully connected to
3266 the switch (in seconds). Value is empty if controller has never
3267 successfully connected.
3270 <column name="status" key="sec_since_disconnect"
3271 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 1}'>
3272 The amount of time since this controller last disconnected from
3273 the switch (in seconds). Value is empty if controller has never
3278 <group title="Connection Parameters">
3280 Additional configuration for a connection between the controller
3281 and the Open vSwitch.
3284 <column name="other_config" key="dscp"
3285 type='{"type": "integer"}'>
3286 The Differentiated Service Code Point (DSCP) is specified using 6 bits
3287 in the Type of Service (TOS) field in the IP header. DSCP provides a
3288 mechanism to classify the network traffic and provide Quality of
3289 Service (QoS) on IP networks.
3291 The DSCP value specified here is used when establishing the connection
3292 between the controller and the Open vSwitch. If no value is specified,
3293 a default value of 48 is chosen. Valid DSCP values must be in the
3299 <group title="Common Columns">
3300 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
3301 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
3303 <column name="external_ids"/>
3304 <column name="other_config"/>
3308 <table name="Manager" title="OVSDB management connection.">
3310 Configuration for a database connection to an Open vSwitch database
3315 This table primarily configures the Open vSwitch database
3316 (<code>ovsdb-server</code>), not the Open vSwitch switch
3317 (<code>ovs-vswitchd</code>). The switch does read the table to determine
3318 what connections should be treated as in-band.
3322 The Open vSwitch database server can initiate and maintain active
3323 connections to remote clients. It can also listen for database
3327 <group title="Core Features">
3328 <column name="target">
3329 <p>Connection method for managers.</p>
3331 The following connection methods are currently supported:
3334 <dt><code>ssl:<var>ip</var></code>[<code>:<var>port</var></code>]</dt>
3337 The specified SSL <var>port</var> on the host at the given
3338 <var>ip</var>, which must be expressed as an IP address
3339 (not a DNS name). The <ref table="Open_vSwitch"
3340 column="ssl"/> column in the <ref table="Open_vSwitch"/>
3341 table must point to a valid SSL configuration when this
3345 If <var>port</var> is not specified, it currently defaults
3346 to 6632. In the future, the default will change to 6640,
3347 which is the IANA-defined value.
3350 SSL support is an optional feature that is not always
3351 built as part of Open vSwitch.
3355 <dt><code>tcp:<var>ip</var></code>[<code>:<var>port</var></code>]</dt>
3358 The specified TCP <var>port</var> on the host at the given
3359 <var>ip</var>, which must be expressed as an IP address (not a
3360 DNS name), where <var>ip</var> can be IPv4 or IPv6 address. If
3361 <var>ip</var> is an IPv6 address, wrap it in square brackets,
3362 e.g. <code>tcp:[::1]:6632</code>.
3365 If <var>port</var> is not specified, it currently defaults
3366 to 6632. In the future, the default will change to 6640,
3367 which is the IANA-defined value.
3370 <dt><code>pssl:</code>[<var>port</var>][<code>:<var>ip</var></code>]</dt>
3373 Listens for SSL connections on the specified TCP <var>port</var>.
3374 Specify 0 for <var>port</var> to have the kernel automatically
3375 choose an available port. If <var>ip</var>, which must be
3376 expressed as an IP address (not a DNS name), is specified, then
3377 connections are restricted to the specified local IP address
3378 (either IPv4 or IPv6 address). If <var>ip</var> is an IPv6
3379 address, wrap in square brackets,
3380 e.g. <code>pssl:6632:[::1]</code>. If <var>ip</var> is not
3381 specified then it listens only on IPv4 (but not IPv6) addresses.
3382 The <ref table="Open_vSwitch" column="ssl"/> column in the <ref
3383 table="Open_vSwitch"/> table must point to a valid SSL
3384 configuration when this form is used.
3387 If <var>port</var> is not specified, it currently defaults
3388 to 6632. In the future, the default will change to 6640,
3389 which is the IANA-defined value.
3392 SSL support is an optional feature that is not always built as
3393 part of Open vSwitch.
3396 <dt><code>ptcp:</code>[<var>port</var>][<code>:<var>ip</var></code>]</dt>
3399 Listens for connections on the specified TCP <var>port</var>.
3400 Specify 0 for <var>port</var> to have the kernel automatically
3401 choose an available port. If <var>ip</var>, which must be
3402 expressed as an IP address (not a DNS name), is specified, then
3403 connections are restricted to the specified local IP address
3404 (either IPv4 or IPv6 address). If <var>ip</var> is an IPv6
3405 address, wrap it in square brackets,
3406 e.g. <code>ptcp:6632:[::1]</code>. If <var>ip</var> is not
3407 specified then it listens only on IPv4 addresses.
3410 If <var>port</var> is not specified, it currently defaults
3411 to 6632. In the future, the default will change to 6640,
3412 which is the IANA-defined value.
3416 <p>When multiple managers are configured, the <ref column="target"/>
3417 values must be unique. Duplicate <ref column="target"/> values yield
3418 unspecified results.</p>
3421 <column name="connection_mode">
3423 If it is specified, this setting must be one of the following strings
3424 that describes how Open vSwitch contacts this OVSDB client over the
3429 <dt><code>in-band</code></dt>
3431 In this mode, this connection's traffic travels over a bridge
3432 managed by Open vSwitch. With this setting, Open vSwitch allows
3433 traffic to and from the client regardless of the contents of the
3434 OpenFlow flow table. (Otherwise, Open vSwitch would never be able
3435 to connect to the client, because it did not have a flow to enable
3436 it.) This is the most common connection mode because it is not
3437 necessary to maintain two independent networks.
3439 <dt><code>out-of-band</code></dt>
3441 In this mode, the client's traffic uses a control network separate
3442 from that managed by Open vSwitch, that is, Open vSwitch does not
3443 use any of its own network devices to communicate with the client.
3444 The control network must be configured separately, before or after
3445 <code>ovs-vswitchd</code> is started.
3450 If not specified, the default is implementation-specific.
3455 <group title="Client Failure Detection and Handling">
3456 <column name="max_backoff">
3457 Maximum number of milliseconds to wait between connection attempts.
3458 Default is implementation-specific.
3461 <column name="inactivity_probe">
3462 Maximum number of milliseconds of idle time on connection to the client
3463 before sending an inactivity probe message. If Open vSwitch does not
3464 communicate with the client for the specified number of seconds, it
3465 will send a probe. If a response is not received for the same
3466 additional amount of time, Open vSwitch assumes the connection has been
3467 broken and attempts to reconnect. Default is implementation-specific.
3468 A value of 0 disables inactivity probes.
3472 <group title="Status">
3473 <column name="is_connected">
3474 <code>true</code> if currently connected to this manager,
3475 <code>false</code> otherwise.
3478 <column name="status" key="last_error">
3479 A human-readable description of the last error on the connection
3480 to the manager; i.e. <code>strerror(errno)</code>. This key
3481 will exist only if an error has occurred.
3484 <column name="status" key="state"
3485 type='{"type": "string", "enum": ["set", ["VOID", "BACKOFF", "CONNECTING", "ACTIVE", "IDLE"]]}'>
3487 The state of the connection to the manager:
3490 <dt><code>VOID</code></dt>
3491 <dd>Connection is disabled.</dd>
3493 <dt><code>BACKOFF</code></dt>
3494 <dd>Attempting to reconnect at an increasing period.</dd>
3496 <dt><code>CONNECTING</code></dt>
3497 <dd>Attempting to connect.</dd>
3499 <dt><code>ACTIVE</code></dt>
3500 <dd>Connected, remote host responsive.</dd>
3502 <dt><code>IDLE</code></dt>
3503 <dd>Connection is idle. Waiting for response to keep-alive.</dd>
3506 These values may change in the future. They are provided only for
3511 <column name="status" key="sec_since_connect"
3512 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 0}'>
3513 The amount of time since this manager last successfully connected
3514 to the database (in seconds). Value is empty if manager has never
3515 successfully connected.
3518 <column name="status" key="sec_since_disconnect"
3519 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 0}'>
3520 The amount of time since this manager last disconnected from the
3521 database (in seconds). Value is empty if manager has never
3525 <column name="status" key="locks_held">
3526 Space-separated list of the names of OVSDB locks that the connection
3527 holds. Omitted if the connection does not hold any locks.
3530 <column name="status" key="locks_waiting">
3531 Space-separated list of the names of OVSDB locks that the connection is
3532 currently waiting to acquire. Omitted if the connection is not waiting
3536 <column name="status" key="locks_lost">
3537 Space-separated list of the names of OVSDB locks that the connection
3538 has had stolen by another OVSDB client. Omitted if no locks have been
3539 stolen from this connection.
3542 <column name="status" key="n_connections"
3543 type='{"type": "integer", "minInteger": 2}'>
3545 When <ref column="target"/> specifies a connection method that
3546 listens for inbound connections (e.g. <code>ptcp:</code> or
3547 <code>pssl:</code>) and more than one connection is actually active,
3548 the value is the number of active connections. Otherwise, this
3549 key-value pair is omitted.
3552 When multiple connections are active, status columns and key-value
3553 pairs (other than this one) report the status of one arbitrarily
3558 <column name="status" key="bound_port" type='{"type": "integer"}'>
3559 When <ref column="target"/> is <code>ptcp:</code> or
3560 <code>pssl:</code>, this is the TCP port on which the OVSDB server is
3561 listening. (This is is particularly useful when <ref
3562 column="target"/> specifies a port of 0, allowing the kernel to
3563 choose any available port.)
3567 <group title="Connection Parameters">
3569 Additional configuration for a connection between the manager
3570 and the Open vSwitch Database.
3573 <column name="other_config" key="dscp"
3574 type='{"type": "integer"}'>
3575 The Differentiated Service Code Point (DSCP) is specified using 6 bits
3576 in the Type of Service (TOS) field in the IP header. DSCP provides a
3577 mechanism to classify the network traffic and provide Quality of
3578 Service (QoS) on IP networks.
3580 The DSCP value specified here is used when establishing the connection
3581 between the manager and the Open vSwitch. If no value is specified, a
3582 default value of 48 is chosen. Valid DSCP values must be in the range
3587 <group title="Common Columns">
3588 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
3589 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
3591 <column name="external_ids"/>
3592 <column name="other_config"/>
3596 <table name="NetFlow">
3597 A NetFlow target. NetFlow is a protocol that exports a number of
3598 details about terminating IP flows, such as the principals involved
3601 <column name="targets">
3602 NetFlow targets in the form
3603 <code><var>ip</var>:<var>port</var></code>. The <var>ip</var>
3604 must be specified numerically, not as a DNS name.
3607 <column name="engine_id">
3608 Engine ID to use in NetFlow messages. Defaults to datapath index
3612 <column name="engine_type">
3613 Engine type to use in NetFlow messages. Defaults to datapath
3614 index if not specified.
3617 <column name="active_timeout">
3618 The interval at which NetFlow records are sent for flows that are
3619 still active, in seconds. A value of <code>0</code> requests the
3620 default timeout (currently 600 seconds); a value of <code>-1</code>
3621 disables active timeouts.
3624 <column name="add_id_to_interface">
3625 <p>If this column's value is <code>false</code>, the ingress and egress
3626 interface fields of NetFlow flow records are derived from OpenFlow port
3627 numbers. When it is <code>true</code>, the 7 most significant bits of
3628 these fields will be replaced by the least significant 7 bits of the
3629 engine id. This is useful because many NetFlow collectors do not
3630 expect multiple switches to be sending messages from the same host, so
3631 they do not store the engine information which could be used to
3632 disambiguate the traffic.</p>
3633 <p>When this option is enabled, a maximum of 508 ports are supported.</p>
3636 <group title="Common Columns">
3637 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
3638 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
3640 <column name="external_ids"/>
3645 SSL configuration for an Open_vSwitch.
3647 <column name="private_key">
3648 Name of a PEM file containing the private key used as the switch's
3649 identity for SSL connections to the controller.
3652 <column name="certificate">
3653 Name of a PEM file containing a certificate, signed by the
3654 certificate authority (CA) used by the controller and manager,
3655 that certifies the switch's private key, identifying a trustworthy
3659 <column name="ca_cert">
3660 Name of a PEM file containing the CA certificate used to verify
3661 that the switch is connected to a trustworthy controller.
3664 <column name="bootstrap_ca_cert">
3665 If set to <code>true</code>, then Open vSwitch will attempt to
3666 obtain the CA certificate from the controller on its first SSL
3667 connection and save it to the named PEM file. If it is successful,
3668 it will immediately drop the connection and reconnect, and from then
3669 on all SSL connections must be authenticated by a certificate signed
3670 by the CA certificate thus obtained. <em>This option exposes the
3671 SSL connection to a man-in-the-middle attack obtaining the initial
3672 CA certificate.</em> It may still be useful for bootstrapping.
3675 <group title="Common Columns">
3676 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
3677 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
3679 <column name="external_ids"/>
3683 <table name="sFlow">
3684 <p>A set of sFlow(R) targets. sFlow is a protocol for remote
3685 monitoring of switches.</p>
3687 <column name="agent">
3688 Name of the network device whose IP address should be reported as the
3689 ``agent address'' to collectors. If not specified, the agent device is
3690 figured from the first target address and the routing table. If the
3691 routing table does not contain a route to the target, the IP address
3692 defaults to the <ref table="Controller" column="local_ip"/> in the
3693 collector's <ref table="Controller"/>. If an agent IP address cannot be
3694 determined any of these ways, sFlow is disabled.
3697 <column name="header">
3698 Number of bytes of a sampled packet to send to the collector.
3699 If not specified, the default is 128 bytes.
3702 <column name="polling">
3703 Polling rate in seconds to send port statistics to the collector.
3704 If not specified, defaults to 30 seconds.
3707 <column name="sampling">
3708 Rate at which packets should be sampled and sent to the collector.
3709 If not specified, defaults to 400, which means one out of 400
3710 packets, on average, will be sent to the collector.
3713 <column name="targets">
3714 sFlow targets in the form
3715 <code><var>ip</var>:<var>port</var></code>.
3718 <group title="Common Columns">
3719 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
3720 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
3722 <column name="external_ids"/>
3726 <table name="IPFIX">
3727 <p>A set of IPFIX collectors. IPFIX is a protocol that exports a
3728 number of details about flows.</p>
3730 <column name="targets">
3731 IPFIX target collectors in the form
3732 <code><var>ip</var>:<var>port</var></code>.
3735 <column name="sampling">
3736 For per-bridge packet sampling, i.e. when this row is referenced
3737 from a <ref table="Bridge"/>, the rate at which packets should
3738 be sampled and sent to each target collector. If not specified,
3739 defaults to 400, which means one out of 400 packets, on average,
3740 will be sent to each target collector. Ignored for per-flow
3741 sampling, i.e. when this row is referenced from a <ref
3742 table="Flow_Sample_Collector_Set"/>.
3745 <column name="obs_domain_id">
3746 For per-bridge packet sampling, i.e. when this row is referenced
3747 from a <ref table="Bridge"/>, the IPFIX Observation Domain ID
3748 sent in each IPFIX packet. If not specified, defaults to 0.
3749 Ignored for per-flow sampling, i.e. when this row is referenced
3750 from a <ref table="Flow_Sample_Collector_Set"/>.
3753 <column name="obs_point_id">
3754 For per-bridge packet sampling, i.e. when this row is referenced
3755 from a <ref table="Bridge"/>, the IPFIX Observation Point ID
3756 sent in each IPFIX flow record. If not specified, defaults to
3757 0. Ignored for per-flow sampling, i.e. when this row is
3758 referenced from a <ref table="Flow_Sample_Collector_Set"/>.
3761 <column name="cache_active_timeout">
3762 The maximum period in seconds for which an IPFIX flow record is
3763 cached and aggregated before being sent. If not specified,
3764 defaults to 0. If 0, caching is disabled.
3767 <column name="cache_max_flows">
3768 The maximum number of IPFIX flow records that can be cached at a
3769 time. If not specified, defaults to 0. If 0, caching is
3773 <group title="Common Columns">
3774 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
3775 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
3777 <column name="external_ids"/>
3781 <table name="Flow_Sample_Collector_Set">
3782 <p>A set of IPFIX collectors of packet samples generated by
3783 OpenFlow <code>sample</code> actions.</p>
3786 The ID of this collector set, unique among the bridge's
3787 collector sets, to be used as the <code>collector_set_id</code>
3788 in OpenFlow <code>sample</code> actions.
3791 <column name="bridge">
3792 The bridge into which OpenFlow <code>sample</code> actions can
3793 be added to send packet samples to this set of IPFIX collectors.
3796 <column name="ipfix">
3797 Configuration of the set of IPFIX collectors to send one flow
3798 record per sampled packet to.
3801 <group title="Common Columns">
3802 The overall purpose of these columns is described under <code>Common
3803 Columns</code> at the beginning of this document.
3805 <column name="external_ids"/>