This document describes how to build and install Open vSwitch on a
generic Linux host. If you want to install Open vSwitch on a Citrix
-XenServer version 5.5.0, see INSTALL.XenServer instead.
+XenServer, see INSTALL.XenServer instead.
-This version of Open vSwitch should be built manually with "configure"
-and "make". Debian packaging for Open vSwitch is also included, but
-they have not been recently tested, and so Debian packages are not a
-recommended way to use this version of Open vSwitch.
+This version of Open vSwitch may be built manually with "configure"
+and "make", as described below. You may also build Debian packages by
+running "dpkg-buildpackage".
Build Requirements
------------------
- The GNU C compiler. We generally test with version 4.1, 4.2, or
4.3.
+ - pkg-config. We test with version 0.22.
+
- libssl, from OpenSSL, is optional but recommended if you plan to
connect the Open vSwitch to an OpenFlow controller. libssl is
required to establish confidentiality and authenticity in the
- connections from an Open vSwitch to an OpenFlow controller. To
- enable, configure with --enable-ssl=yes.
+ connections from an Open vSwitch to an OpenFlow controller. If
+ libssl is installed, then Open vSwitch will automatically build
+ with support for it.
To compile the kernel module, you must also install the following. If
you cannot build or install the kernel module, you may use the
be compiled with IPv6 support (CONFIG_IPV6). This allows for
special handling (such as path MTU discovery) of IPv6 packets.
+ To configure HTB or HFSC quality of service with Open vSwitch,
+ you must enable the respective configuration options.
+
To use Open vSwitch support for TAP devices, you must enable
CONFIG_TUN.
infrastructure.
If you are working from a Git tree or snapshot (instead of from a
-distribution tarball), or if you modify the Open vSwitch build system,
-you will also need the following software:
+distribution tarball), or if you modify the Open vSwitch build system
+or the database schema, you will also need the following software:
- Autoconf version 2.64 or later.
- Automake version 1.10 or later.
- - pkg-config. We test with version 0.22.
-
- Python 2.x, for x >= 4.
If you modify the ovsdbmonitor tool, then you will also need the
- pyuic4 from PyQt4 (http://www.riverbankcomputing.co.uk).
+To run the unit tests, you also need:
+
+ - Perl. Version 5.10.1 is known to work. Earlier versions should
+ also work.
+
+If you modify the vswitchd database schema, then the E-R diagram in
+the ovs-vswitchd.conf.db(5) manpage will be updated properly only if
+you have the following:
+
+ - "dot" from graphviz (http://www.graphviz.org/).
+
+ - Perl. Version 5.10.1 is known to work. Earlier versions should
+ also work.
+
+ - Python 2.x, for x >= 4.
+
Installation Requirements
-------------------------
module loading, please include the output from the "dmesg" and
"modinfo" commands mentioned above.
+ There is an optional module parameter to openvswitch_mod.ko called
+ vlan_tso that enables TCP segmentation offload over VLANs on NICs
+ that support it. Many drivers do not expose support for TSO on VLANs
+ in a way that Open vSwitch can use but there is no way to detect
+ whether this is the case. If you know that your particular driver can
+ handle it (for example by testing sending large TCP packets over VLANs)
+ then passing in a value of 1 may improve performance. Modules built for
+ Linux kernels 2.6.37 and later, as well as specially patched versions
+ of earlier kernels, do not need this and do not have this parameter. If
+ you do not understand what this means or do not know if your driver
+ will work, do not set this.
+
7. Initialize the configuration database using ovsdb-tool, e.g.:
- % ovsdb-tool create /usr/local/etc/ovs-vswitchd.conf.db vswitchd/vswitch.ovsschema
+ % mkdir -p /usr/local/etc/openvswitch
+ % ovsdb-tool create /usr/local/etc/openvswitch/conf.db vswitchd/vswitch.ovsschema
Startup
=======
Before starting ovs-vswitchd itself, you need to start its
-configuration database, ovsdb-server. Configure it to use the
-database you created during step 7 of installation, above, and to
-listen on a Unix domain socket, e.g.:
-
- % ovsdb-server /usr/local/etc/ovs-vswitchd.conf.db --remote=punix:/usr/local/var/run/openvswitch/db.sock
-
-Then initialize the database with "ovs-vsctl init". This is only
+configuration database, ovsdb-server. Each machine on which Open
+vSwitch is installed should run its own copy of ovsdb-server.
+Configure it to use the database you created during step 7 of
+installation, above, to listen on a Unix domain socket, to connect to
+any managers specified in the database itself, and to use the SSL
+configuration in the database:
+
+ % ovsdb-server /usr/local/etc/openvswitch/conf.db \
+ --remote=punix:/usr/local/var/run/openvswitch/db.sock \
+ --remote=db:Open_vSwitch,manager_options \
+ --private-key=db:SSL,private_key \
+ --certificate=db:SSL,certificate \
+ --bootstrap-ca-cert=db:SSL,ca_cert \
+ --pidfile --detach
+
+(If you built Open vSwitch without SSL support, then omit
+--private-key, --certificate, and --bootstrap-ca-cert.)
+
+Then initialize the database using ovs-vsctl. This is only
necessary the first time after you create the database with
ovsdb-tool (but running it at any time is harmless):
- % ovs-vsctl init
+ % ovs-vsctl --no-wait init
Then start the main Open vSwitch daemon, telling it to connect to the
same Unix domain socket:
- % ovs-vswitchd unix:/usr/local/var/run/openvswitch/db.sock
+ % ovs-vswitchd unix:/usr/local/var/run/openvswitch/db.sock \
+ --pidfile --detach
Now you may use ovs-vsctl to set up bridges and other Open vSwitch
features. For example, to create a bridge named br0 and add ports
Please refer to ovs-vsctl(8) for more details.
+Upgrading
+=========
+
+When you upgrade Open vSwitch from one version to another, you should
+also upgrade the database schema:
+
+1. Stop the Open vSwitch daemons, e.g.:
+
+ % kill `cd /usr/local/var/run && cat ovsdb-server.pid ovs-vswitchd.pid`
+
+2. Install the new Open vSwitch release.
+
+3. Upgrade the database, in one of the following two ways:
+
+ - If there is no important data in your database, then you may
+ delete the database file and recreate it with ovsdb-tool,
+ following the instructions under "Building and Installing Open
+ vSwitch for Linux".
+
+ - If you want to preserve the contents of your database, back it
+ up first, then use "ovsdb-tool convert" to upgrade it, e.g.:
+
+ % ovsdb-tool convert /usr/local/etc/openvswitch/conf.db vswitchd/vswitch.ovsschema
+
+4. Start the Open vSwitch daemons as described under "Building and
+ Installing Open vSwitch for Linux" above.
+
Bug Reporting
-------------
git://git.onelab.eu / sliver-openvswitch.git / blobdiff