Create and manage networks (Network tab)

The OpenStack Networking service provides a scalable system for managing the network connectivity within an OpenStack cloud deployment. It handles the creation and management of a virtual networking infrastructure, including networks, switches, subnets, and routers. Advanced services such as firewalls or virtual private network (VPN) can also be used.

Networking in OpenStack is complex. This section provides the basic instructions for creating a network and a router. For detailed information about managing networks, refer to the OpenStack Networking Guide.

create a network

  1. Log in to the dashboard.

  2. Select the appropriate project from the Switch Project menu at the top left.

  3. On the Console page, open the Network tab and click Networks category.

  4. Click Create Network.

  5. In the Create Network dialog box, specify the following values.

    Network Name: Specify a name to identify the network.

    Description: A human-readable description for the resource.

    Shared: Share the network with other projects. Non admin users are not allowed to set shared option.

    Available Zone: Select a availability zone for the network.

    Port Security Enabled: Select the port security status of the network.

    Create Subnet: Select this check box to create a subnet.

    You do not have to specify a subnet when you create a network, but if you do not specify a subnet, the network can not be attached to an instance.

    Subnet Name: Specify a name for the subnet.

    CIDR: Specify the IP address for the subnet.

    IP Version: Select IPv4 or IPv6.

    Gateway IP: Specify an IP address for a specific gateway. This parameter is optional.

    Disable Gateway: Select this check box to disable a gateway IP address.

    DHCP: Select this check box to enable DHCP.

    Allocation Pools: Specify IP address pools.

    DNS: Specify the DNS server.

    Host Routes: Specify the IP address of host routes.

  6. Click OK.

    The dashboard shows the network on the Networks tab.

create a router

  1. Log in to the dashboard.

  2. Select the appropriate project from the Switch Project menu at the top left.

  3. On the Console page, open the Network tab and click Routers category.

  4. Click Create Router.

  5. In the Create Router dialog box, specify the following values.

    Name: Specify a name to identify the router.

    Open External Gateway: Select this check box to specify external gateway.

    External Gateway: Specify external gateway for the router.

    Click OK, and the new router is now displayed in the Routers tab.

  6. To connect a private network to the newly created router, perform the following steps:

    A) On the Routers tab, select More of the router, click connect Subnet.

    C) In the Connect Subnet dialog box, select a Network and Subnet.

  7. Click OK.

You have successfully created the router. You can view the new topology from the Topology tab.

create a port

  1. Log in to the dashboard.

  2. Select the appropriate project from the Switch Project menu at the top left.

  3. On the Console page, open the Network tab and click Ports category.

  4. Click Create Virtual Adapter.

  5. In the Create Virtual Adapter dialog box, specify the following values.

    Name: Specify name to identify the port.

    Owned Network: Select a network attached to the port.

    Owned Subnet: Select a subnet attached to the port.

    If you specify both a subnet ID and an IP address, OpenStack tries to allocate the IP address on that subnet to the port.

    If you specify only a subnet ID, OpenStack allocates an available IP from that subnet to the port.

    Port Security: Select this check box to specify security group.

    Security Group: Select a security groups applied to the port.

  6. Click OK.

    The new port is now displayed in the Ports list.

create a fip

  1. Log in to the dashboard.

  2. Select the appropriate project from the Switch Project menu at the top left.

  3. On the Console page, open the Network tab and click Floating IPs category.

  4. Click Allocate IP.

  5. In the Allocate IP dialog box, specify the following values.

    Network: Specify a network associated with the floating IP.

    Description: A human-readable description for the resource.

    Batch Allocate: Select this check box to specify the number of batch creation.

    Count: Specify the number of batch creation.

  6. Click OK.

    The dashboard shows the floating ip on the Floating IPs tab.

create a security group

  1. Log in to the dashboard.

  2. Select the appropriate project from the Switch Project menu at the top left.

  3. On the Console page, open the Network tab and click Security Groups category.

  4. Click Create Security Group.

  5. In the Create Security Group dialog box, specify Name and Description, click OK and the new security group is now displayed in the Security Groups list.