Distributed Switch Question

[JasonVmware]

Hello All,

If you have ESX4 Enterprise Plus is it still better off to use a distirbuted switch for your VMnetwork even if you don't have the cisco applicance to help manage it then breaking it up into 2-3 virtual switches as was the best practice in ESX 3.5 ?

So for example if you had a setup as such:

vSwitch0

Service Console - vmnic0,vmnic1

vSwitch1

VMKernel - vmnic2, vmnic3

vSwitch2

VM Network - vmnic4, vmnic5

would it be better to set it like this in ESX4 ?

vSwitch0

Service Console - vmnic0,vmnic1

vSwitch1

VMKernel - vmnic2, vmnic3

Distributed Switch

VM Network - vmnic4, vmnic5

[azn2kew]

Well you should take full advantage of the license and architect the vDistributed switches to be scalable and expandable in case you have to deploy Nexus 1000v modules. Make sure you plan it accordingly and when you introduce Nexus 1000v it doesn't give you much downtime or headache that's the key. VMware just release this great guide on vDistributed Switch configuration and migration that you must read for this purpose.

If you found this information useful, please consider awarding points for "Correct" or "Helpful". Thanks!!!

Regards,

Stefan Nguyen

VMware vExpert 2009

iGeek Systems Inc.

VMware, Citrix, Microsoft Consultant

[JasonVmware]

Okay I've read over the white paper and have two questions.

1.) What is the benifit without the Nexus1000 over the standard vswitch best practices currently used in 3.5?

2.) If you have 1 Distributed Switch and have your VM network, Vmkernel and Service Console in it, how do you seperate nics and iSCSI traffic ? do you have to setup a 2nd Distributed switch for iSCSI traffic still or would you use the hybrid version that would like like this? and leave it at that vSwitch0

Vmkernel - 172.16.1.x - vmnic4,vmnic5

Distributed Switch

Vm Network, Service Console - vmnic0, vmnic1,vmnic2, vmnic3

or would you just create the new port groups in the DS and leave it at that.

[Texiwill]

Hello,

Moved to vSphere Networking forum.

Best regards,

Edward L. Haletky VMware Communities User Moderator, VMware vExpert 2009, Virtualization Practice Analyst[/url]
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[jbogardus]

RE: 2.) If you have 1 Distributed Switch and have your VM network, Vmkernel and Service Console in it, how do you seperate nics and iSCSI traffic ? do you have to setup a 2nd Distributed switch for iSCSI traffic still or would you use the hybrid version that would like like this? and leave it at that vSwitch0

You create separate Port Groups for the different types of traffic and assign different Uplinks on the distributed switch to each port group.

See this discussion for more of the details on creating redundancy for each dv port group but keeping traffic types separated:

http://communities.vmware.com/thread/223379

[jbogardus]

RE: 1.) What is the benifit without the Nexus1000 over the standard vswitch best practices currently used in 3.5?

This document compares 4 vSwitch types - 3.5 Standard, vSphere standard, vSphere distributed, Nexus 1000:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/switches/ps9441/ps9902/solution_overview_c22-526262.pdf