Add a Transport Node Profile

You must create a Transport Node Profile (TNP) and if needed Sub-TNPs before you prepare ESXi clusters as transport nodes. Both VDS and N-VDS Host Switches are supported.

Note: Transport node profiles are only applicable to hosts. It cannot be applied to NSX Edge transport nodes.

Prerequisites

• Verify that the hosts are part of a vCenter Server cluster.
• vCenter Server must have at least one cluster.
• Verify that a transport zone is configured. See Create Transport Zones.
• Verify that a cluster is available. See Deploy NSX Manager Nodes to Form a Cluster from the UI.
• Verify that an IP pool is configured, or DHCP must be available in the network deployment. See Create an IP Pool for Tunnel Endpoint IP Addresses.
• Verify that a compute manager is configured. See Add a Compute Manager.

Procedure

1. From a browser, log in with admin privileges to an NSX Manager at https://<nsx-manager-ip-address>.
2. (NSX-T Data Center 3.2.1 and previous versions) Select System → Fabric → Profiles > Transport Node Profiles > Add Profile.
3. (NSX-T Data Center 3.2.2) Select System → Fabric → Hosts.
4. (NSX-T Data Center 3.2.2) On the Hosts page, select Transport Node Profile → Add Transport Node Profile.
5. Enter a name to identify the transport node profile.

   You can optionally add the description about the transport node profile.

6. The Applied Clusters field, is populated with the cluster names that have applied this transport node profile.
7. In the Host Switch field, select Set.
8. If you select NVDS as the host switch type, proceed to enter details for the fields described in this step. Skip to the next step, if you select VDS as the host switch type.

   Option	Description
   Name	Enter a name for the NVDS switch.
   Type	Indicates the type of switch that is configured.
   Mode	Choose between these options: Standard: Is the standard mode that is available to all supported hypervisors by NSX-T Data Center. ENS Interrupt: Is a variant of the Enhanced Datapath mode. Enhanced Datapath: Is the mode that provides accelerated networking performance. This mode requires nodes to use VMXNET3 vNIC enabled network cards. It is not supported on KVM, NSX Edge nodes and Public Gateways. The supported hypervisor is ESXi. It is recommended to run ESXi v6.7 U2 and later versions.
   Transport Zone	Shows the transport zones that are realized by the associated host switches. You cannot add a transport zone if it is not realized by any N-VDS in the transport node profile.
   NIOC Profile	Select the NIOC profile from the drop-down menu. The bandwidth allocations specified in the profile for the traffic resources are enforced.
   Uplink Profile	Select an existing uplink profile from the drop-down menu or create a custom uplink profile. You can also use the default uplink profile. Multiple N-VDS host switches on a transport node can belong to the same VLAN segment or VTEP pool, or they can belong to different VLAN segments or VTEP IP pools. Configuring different transport VLAN segments for different N-VDS host switches allows additional traffic isolation in the underlay as well.
   LLDP Profile	By default, NSX-T only receives LLDP packets from a LLDP neighbor. However, NSX-T can be set to send LLDP packets to and receive LLDP packets from a LLDP neighbor.
   IP Assignment	Select between Use DHCP , Use IP Pool or Use Static IP List to assign an IP address to tunnel endpoints (TEPs) of the transport node. If you selected Use IP Pool for an IP assignment, specify the IP pool name and the range of IP addresses that can be used for tunnel endpoints.
   Teaming Policy Uplink Mapping	Map uplinks defined in the selected NSX-T uplink profile with physical NICs. The number of uplinks that are presented for mapping depends on the uplink profile configuration. For example, in the upink-1 (active) row, go to the Physical NICs column, click the edit icon, and type in the name of physical NIC to complete mapping it with uplink-1 (active). Likewise, complete mapping for the other uplinks.
   PNIC only Migration	Before setting this field, consider the following points: Know whether the physical NIC defined is a used NIC or a free NIC. Determine whether VMkernel interfaces of a host need to be migrated along with physical NICs. Set the field: Enable PNIC only Migration if you only want to migrate physical NICs from a VSS or DVS switch to an N-VDS switch. Disable PNIC only Migration if you want to migrate a used physical NIC and its associated VMkernel interface mapping. A free or available physical NIC is attached to the N-VDS switch when a VMkernel interface migration mapping is specified. On a host with multiple host switches: If all host switches are to migrate only PNICs, then you can migrate the PNICs in a single operation. If some hosts switches are to migrate VMkernel interfaces and the remaining host switches are to migrate only PNICs: In the first operation, migrate only PNICs. In the second operation, migrate VMkernel interfaces. Ensure that PNIC only Migration is disabled. Both PNIC only migration and VMkernel interface migration are not supported at the same time across multiple hosts. Note: To migrate a management network NIC, configure its associated VMkernel network mapping and keep PNIC only Migration disabled. If you only migrate the management NIC, the host loses connectivity. For more information, see VMkernel Migration to an N-VDS Switch.
   Network Mappings for Install	Click Set and click Add. Add VMkernel Adapter or Physical Adapter to VLAN Segments mappings and click Apply. From the VMkernel Adapter drop-down menu, select VMkernel Adapter. From the VLAN Segments drop-down menu, select VLAN Segment. The NSX Manager migrates the VMkernel Adapters to the mapped VLAN Segment on N-VDS. Caution: Ensure that the management NIC and management VMkernel interface are migrated to a segment that is connected to the same VLAN that the management NIC was connected to before migration. If vmnic <n> and VMkernel <n> are migrated to a different VLAN, then connectivity to the host is lost. Caution: For pinned physical NICs, ensure that the host switch mapping of physical NIC to a VMkernel interface matches the configuration specified in the transport node profile. As part of the validation procedure, NSX-T Data Center verifies the mapping and if the validation passes migration of VMkernel interfaces to an N-VDS switch is successful. It is also mandatory to configure the network mapping for uninstallation because NSX-T Data Center does not store the mapping configuration of the host switch after migrating the VMkernel interfaces to the N-VDS switch. If the mapping is not configured, connectivity to services, such as vSAN, can be lost after migrating back to the VSS or VDS switch. For more information, see VMkernel Migration to an N-VDS Switch.
   Network Mappings for Uninstall	Click Set. To revert the migration of VMkernels attached to an N-VDS switch during uninstallation. Map VMkernels to port groups on VSS or DVS, so that NSX Manager knows which port group the VMkernel must be migrated back to on the VSS or DVS. For a DVS switch, ensure that the port group is of the type Ephemeral. To revert the migration of VMkernels attached to a NSX-T port group created on a vSphere Distributed Switch (VDS) during uninstallation, map VMkernels to port groups on VSS or DVS, so that NSX Manager knows which port group the VMkernel must be migrated back to on the VSS or DVS. For a DVS switch, ensure that the port group is of the type Ephemeral. Add VMKNIC to PortGroup mappings and click Apply. In the VMkernel Adapter field, enter VMkernel Adapter name. In the PortGroup field, enter portgroup name of the type Ephemeral. Add Physical NIC to uplink profile mappings and click Apply. In the Physical NICs field, enter physical NIC name. In the Uplink field, enter uplink name. Caution: For pinned physical NICs, ensure that the transport node profile mapping of physical NIC to VMkernel interface matches the configuration specified in the host switch. It is mandatory to configure the network mapping for uninstallation because NSX-T Data Center does not store the mapping configuration of the host switch after migrating the VMkernel interfaces to the N-VDS switch. If the mapping is not configured, connectivity to services, such as vSAN, can be lost after migrating back to the VSS or VDS switch. For more information, see VMkernel Migration to an N-VDS Switch.

9. Select VDS as the host switch type and enter the switch details. You can use the same VDS switch to configure NSX-T Data Center on multiple transport nodes or clusters as long as they are part of that VDS switch in vCenter Server.

   Option	Description
   vCenter	Select the vCenter Server.
   Type	Indicates the switch type that will be configured on the host.
   Mode	Choose between these options: Standard: Is the standard mode that is available to all supported hypervisors by NSX-T Data Center. ENS Interrupt: Is a variant of the Enhanced Datapath mode. Enhanced Datapath: Is the mode that provides accelerated networking performance. This mode requires nodes to use VMXNET3 vNIC enabled network cards. It is not supported on KVM, NSX Edge nodes and Public Gateways. The supported hypervisor is ESXi. It is recommended to run ESXi v6.7 U2 and later versions.
   VDS	Select a VDS that is created under the selected vCenter Server.
   Transport Zones	Shows the transport zones that are realized by the associated host switches. You cannot add a transport zone if it is not realized by any host switch.
   Uplink Profile	Select an existing uplink profile from the drop-down menu or create a custom uplink profile. Note: Ensure MTU value entered in the NSX-T Data Center uplink profile and VDS switch is set to at least 1600. If the MTU value in vCenter Server for the VDS switch is lower than the MTU value entered in the uplink profile, then NSX-T Data Center displays an error asking you to enter an appropriate MTU value in the vCenter Server. You can also use the default uplink profile. Note: Link Aggregation Groups defined in an uplink profile cannot be mapped to VDS uplinks.
   IP Assignment	Select between Use DHCP and Use IP Pool to assign an IP address to tunnel endpoints (TEPs) of the transport node. If you selected Use IP Pool for an IP assignment, specify the IP pool name and the range of IP addresses that can be used for tunnel endpoints.
   Sub-Transport Node Profile (Sub-TNP)	(NSX-T Data Center 3.2.2) Click Set. In the Sub-Transport Node Profile window, enter these details and click Add Sub-Transport Node Profile: Enter a name for the Sub-TNP. Select a VDS switch for Sub-TNP. Select an uplink profile. Select an IP Assignment: Use DHCP or IP Pool. Map NSX-T uplinks to VDS links. Click Add. Click Apply.
   Teaming Policy Switch Mapping	Before you map uplinks profiles in NSX-T with uplinks in VDS, ensure uplinks are configured on the VDS switch. To configure or view the VDS switch uplinks, go to vCenter Server → vSphere Distributed Switch. Click Actions → Settings → Edit Settings. Map uplinks defined in the selected NSX-T uplink profile with VDS uplinks. The number of NSX-T uplinks that are presented for mapping depends on the uplink profile configuration. For example, in the upink-1 (active) row, go to the Physical NICs column, click the edit icon, and type in the name of VDS uplink to map it with uplink-1 (active). Likewise, complete mapping for the other uplinks.

   Note: For a VDS switch, Uplinks/LAGs, NIOC profile, LLDP profile can be defined only in vSphere ESXi host. These configurations are not available in NSX Manager. In addition, in NSX Manager, you cannot configure networking mapping for install and uninstall if the host switch is a VDS switch. To manage VMkernel adapters on a VDS switch, go to vCenter Server to attach VMkernel adapters to Distributed Virtual port groups or NSX port groups.
10. Click Add to complete the configuration.

What to do next

Apply the transport node profile to an existing vSphere cluster. See Prepare ESXi Cluster Hosts as Transport Nodes.