Configure an ESXi Host Transport Node with Link Aggregation

This procedure describes how to create an uplink profile that has a link aggregation group configured, and how to configure an ESXi host transport node to use that uplink profile.

Prerequisites

• Familiarize yourself with the steps to create an uplink profile. See Create an Uplink Profile.
• Familiarize yourself with the steps to create a host transport node. See Prepare Standalone Hosts as Transport Nodes.
• If you plan to configure a VDS switch on the host, configure LAG on the VDS switch.

Procedure

1. From a browser, log in with admin privileges to an NSX Manager at https://<nsx-manager-ip-address>.
2. Select System > Fabric > Profiles > Uplink Profiles > Add Profile.
3. Enter a name and optionally a description.
   For example, you enter the name uplink-profile1.
4. (Only N-VDS) Under LAGs, click Add to add a link aggregation group.
   For example, you add an LAG called lag1 with 2 uplinks.
5. Under Teamings, select Default Teaming.
6. In the Active Uplinks field, do one of the following:
   1. (N-VDS) Enter the name of the LAG that you added in the step 4. In this example, the name is lag1.
   2. (VDS) Enter the name of the LAG that you configured on the VDS switch in vCenter Server.
7. Enter the VLAN ID for Transport VLAN.
8. (Only N-VDS) Enter a value for MTU. If left blank, NSX-T Data Center sets the value to 1600. This field is not applicable to VDS.
9. Click Add at the bottom of the dialog box.
10. (Only N-VDS switches) Under Teamings, click Add to add an entry for link aggregation.
11. Based on the NSX-T Data Center version, navigate the UI:
    • (NSX-T Data Center 3.2.2 or later) System > Fabric > Hosts and select the Cluster tab.
    • (NSX-T Data Center 3.2.1 or earlier, 4.0.x) System > Fabric > Nodes > Host Transport Nodes and select the vCenter Server that hosts the ESXi host.
12. In the Host Details tab, enter IP address, OS name, admin credentials, and SHA-256 thumbprint of the host.
13. During the switch configuration, depending on N-VDS or VDS switch, select the uplink profile uplink-profile1 that was created in step 3.
14. (N-VDS) In the Physical NICs field, the physical NICs and uplinks dropdown list reflects the new NICs and uplink profile. Specifically, the uplinks lag1-0 and lag1-1, corresponding to the LAG lag1 that was created in step 4 are displayed. Select a physical NIC for lag1-0 and a physical NIC for lag1-1.
15. (VDS) In the Physical NICs field, the physical NICs and uplinks dropdown list reflects the new NICs and uplink profile. Specifically, the uplink LAG that is configured on the VDS switch is displayed in the uplink profile drop-down list. Select the VDS uplink for LAG.
16. Enter information for the other fields and complete host preparation.
    The ESXi host is prepared as a transport node using the LAG profile.