Verify that your environment meets the prerequisites for deploying an NSX-T Edge node on bare-metal hardware in an NSX-T workload domain in a VMware Cloud Foundation environment.
Hardware Requirements for the Bare-Metal Server
The bare-metal servers that run the NSX-T Edge nodes must have a specific hardware configuration.
| Requirement Type | Requirement Value |
|---|---|
| ESXi hosts for VMware Cloud Foundation | See VMware Compatibility Guide |
| Bare-metal servers for the NSX-T Edge transport nodes | See NSX Edge Bare Metal Requirements in NSX-T Data Center Installation Guide. Follow the NSX-T Edge bare-metal requirements so that the NICs that are used in the datapath can support fastpath. |
| Supported NICs | |
| Minimum number of network adapters | Three NICs in the datapath with the following configuration:
If the server has only two NICs, then Uplink 2 will not be available. As a result, the uplinks are redundant, but not in a full mesh configuration. |
| Network connectivity | Connect the NSX-T Edge nodes and NSX-T Manager cluster to a routed Layer 3 network. |
| Firewall configuration | Make sure that the firewall allows traffic for the NSX-T Edge nodes. See TCP and UDP Ports Used by NSX Edge in NSX-T Data Center Installation Guide. |
NIC Configuration for the Edge Management Interface
The bare-metal server that runs the NSX-T Edge nodes can support out-of-band management interface or in-band management interface. Select the management interface configuration according to the requirements for isolating management plane traffic from data plane traffic. If you want to isolate management plane traffic, the server must have a separate NIC that is dedicated to the management interface. If isolation between management and data plane traffic is not a requirement, you can use the same NIC for management and TEP.
The NIC used for out-of-band management interface can be a regular Gigabit Ethernet (GE) port on the motherboard. Fastpath compatibility is not required for this NIC.
On a bare-metal server, you can also allocate a second management interface (i.e. eth1) for redundant connectivity to the management network. For information on the management bond configuration for bare-metal NSX-T Edge nodes, see NSX Edge Networking Setup in NSX-T Data Center Installation Guide.
| Purpose | NIC |
|---|---|
| Management | eth0 |
| TEP | fp-eth0 |
| Uplink-1 | fp-eth1 |
| Uplink-2 | fp-eth2 |
When using in-band management interface, the management interface and Edge TEP traffic are on the same NIC. For traffic isolation, place the management interface and TEP traffic on different VLANs.
On a bare-metal server with additional fastpath NICs, for example, with four physical NICs, you can configure a second TEP for redundancy. For information about multi-TEP or overlay bond configuration, see NSX Edge Networking Setup in NSX-T Data Center Installation Guide.
| Purpose | NIC |
|---|---|
| Management | fp-eth0 |
| TEP | fp-eth0 |
| Uplink-1 | fp-eth1 |
| Uplink-2 | fp-eth2 |
VLAN Configuration
The bare-metal edge servers are deployed outside of an ESXi cluster. As a result, the limitations on the network for the management virtual machines in an ESXi cluster do not apply to the network for the management interface of the bare-metal NSX-T Edge nodes. The management traffic can be untagged or tagged for a specific VLAN. If VLAN tagging is required, you can use a VLAN ID that is different from the one used for the NSX-T Manager cluster.
Software Prerequisites
Verify that the SDDC environment has the software features and installation packages that are required for deploying the NSX-T Edge nodes on bare-metal hardware.
| Prerequisite Type |
Value |
|---|---|
| Software features |
|
| Installation packages |
Download the .ova file for the NSX-T Edge 2.5.1 appliance for Bare Metal from My VMware. |
| Access to the data center |
Provide a host virtual machine or a physical server to connect to the SDDC and store software downloads. The host must have access to the Internet and to the ESXi management network. |
