This procedure shows how to create a new VXLAN BGP EVPN fabric.

This procedure contains descriptions for the IPv4 underlay. For information about IPv6 underlay, see IPv6 Underlay Support for Easy Fabric.

1. Choose Control > Fabric Builder.

   The Fabric Builder window appears. When you log in for the first time, the Fabrics section has no entries. After you create a fabric, it is displayed on the Fabric Builder window, wherein a rectangular box represents each fabric.

   A standalone or member fabric contains Switch_Fabric (in the Type field), the AS number (in the ASN field), and mode of replication (in the Replication Mode field).

2. Click Create Fabric, the Add Fabric screen appears.

   The fields are explained:

   Fabric Name - Enter the name of the fabric.

   Fabric Template - From the drop-down menu, choose the Easy_Fabric_11_1 fabric template. The fabric settings for creating a standalone fabric appear.

   

   The tabs and their fields in the screen are explained in the subsequent points. The overlay and underlay network parameters are included in these tabs.

   Note	If you are creating a standalone fabric as a potential member fabric of an MSD fabric (used for provisioning overlay networks for fabrics that are connected through EVPN Multi-Site technology), then browse through the Multi-Site Domain for VXLAN BGP EVPN Fabrics topic before member fabric creation.

3. The General tab is displayed by default. The fields in this tab are:

   BGP ASN: Enter the BGP AS number the fabric is associated with.

   Enable IPv6 Underlay: Enable the IPv6 underlay feature. For information, see IPv6 Underlay Support for Easy Fabric.

   Enable IPv6 Link-Local Address: Enables the IPv6 Link-Local address.

   Fabric Interface Numbering : Specifies whether you want to use point-to-point (p2p) or unnumbered networks.

   Underlay Subnet IP Mask - Specifies the subnet mask for the fabric interface IP addresses.

   Underlay Routing Protocol : The IGP used in the fabric, OSPF, or IS-IS.

   Route-Reflectors (RRs) – The number of spine switches that are used as route reflectors for transporting BGP traffic. Choose 2 or 4 from the drop-down box. The default value is 2.

   To deploy spine devices as RRs, DCNM sorts the spine devices based on their serial numbers, and designates two or four spine devices as RRs. If you add more spine devices, existing RR configuration will not change.

   Increasing the count - You can increase the route reflectors from two to four at any point in time. Configurations are automatically generated on the other two spine devices designated as RRs.

   Decreasing the count - When you reduce four route reflectors to two, remove the unneeded route reflector devices from the fabric. Follow these steps to reduce the count from 4 to 2.

   1. Change the value in the drop-down box to 2.

   2. Identify the spine switches designated as route reflectors.

      An instance of the rr_state policy is applied on the spine switch if it is a route reflector. To find out if the policy is applied on the switch, right-click the switch, and choose View/edit policies. In the View/Edit Policies screen, search rr_state in the Template field. It is displayed on the screen.

   3. Delete the unneeded spine devices from the fabric (right-click the spine switch icon and choose Discovery > Remove from fabric).

      If you delete existing RR devices, the next available spine switch is selected as the replacement RR.

   4. Click Save & Deploy in the fabric topology window.

   You can preselect RRs and RPs before performing the first Save & Deploy operation. For more information, see Preselecting Switches as Route-Reflectors and Rendezvous-Points.

   Anycast Gateway MAC : Specifies the anycast gateway MAC address.

   NX-OS Software Image Version : Select an image from the list.

   If you upload Cisco NX-OS software images through the image upload option, the uploaded images are listed in this field. If you select an image, and save the Fabric Settings, the system checks that all the switches within the fabric have the selected version. If some devices do not run the image, a warning is prompted to perform an In-Service Software Upgrade (ISSU) to the specified image. The warning is also accompanied with a Resolve button. This takes the user to the image management screen with the mismatched switches auto selected for device upgrade/downgrade to the specified NX-OS image specified in Fabric Settings. Till, all devices run the specified image, the deployment process is incomplete.

   If you want to deploy more than one type of software image on the fabric switches, don’t specify any image. If an image is specified, delete it.

4. Click the Replication tab. Most of the fields are auto generated. You can update the fields if needed.

   

   Replication Mode : The mode of replication that is used in the fabric for BUM (Broadcast, Unknown Unicast, Multicast) traffic. The choices are Ingress Replication or Multicast. When you choose Ingress replication, the multicast related fields get disabled.

   You can change the fabric setting from one mode to the other, if no overlay profile exists for the fabric.

   Multicast Group Subnet : IP address prefix used for multicast communication. A unique IP address is allocated from this group for each overlay network.

   In the DCNM 11.0(1) release, the replication mode change is not allowed if a policy template instance is created for the current mode. For example, if a multicast related policy is created and deployed, you cannot change the mode to Ingress.

   Enable Tenant Routed Multicast (TRM) – Select the check box to enable Tenant Routed Multicast (TRM) that allows overlay multicast traffic to be supported over EVPN/MVPN in the VXLAN BGP EVPN fabric.

   Default MDT Address for TRM VRFs: The multicast address for Tenant Routed Multicast traffic is populated. By default, this address is from the IP prefix specified in the Multicast Group Subnet field. When you update either field, ensure that the TRM address is chosen from the IP prefix specified in Multicast Group Subnet.

   For more information, see Overview of Tenant Routed Multicast.

   Rendezvous-Points - Enter the number of spine switches acting as rendezvous points.

   RP mode – Choose from the two supported multicast modes of replication, ASM (for Any-Source Multicast [ASM]) or BiDir (for Bidirectional PIM [BIDIR-PIM]).

   When you choose ASM, the BiDir related fields are not enabled. When you choose BiDir, the BiDir related fields are enabled.

   Note	BIDIR-PIM is supported on Cisco's Cloud Scale Family platforms 9300-EX and 9300-FX/FX2, and software release 9.2(1) onwards.

   When you create a new VRF for the fabric overlay, this address is populated in the Underlay Multicast Address field, in the Advanced tab.

   Underlay RP Loopback ID – The loopback ID used for the rendezvous point (RP), for multicast protocol peering purposes in the fabric underlay.

   The next two fields are enabled if you choose BIDIR-PIM as the multicast mode of replication.

   Underlay Primary RP Loopback ID – The primary loopback ID used for the phantom RP, for multicast protocol peering purposes in the fabric underlay.

   Underlay Backup RP Loopback ID – The secondary loopback ID used for the phantom RP, for multicast protocol peering purposes in the fabric underlay.

   Underlay Second Backup RP Loopback Id and Underlay Third Backup RP Loopback Id: Used for the second and third fallback Bidir-PIM Phantom RP.

5. Click the vPC tab. Most of the fields are auto generated. You can update the fields if needed.

   

   vPC Peer Link VLAN – VLAN used for the vPC peer link SVI.

   Make vPC Peer Link VLAN as Native VLAN - Enables vPC peer link VLAN as Native VLAN.

   vPC Peer Keep Alive option – Choose the management or loopback option. If you want to use IP addresses assigned to the management port and the management VRF, choose management. If you use IP addresses assigned to loopback interfaces (and a non-management VRF), choose loopback.

   If you use IPv6 addresses, you must use loopback IDs.

   vPC Auto Recovery Time - Specifies the vPC auto recovery time-out period in seconds.

   vPC Delay Restore Time - Specifies the vPC delay restore period in seconds.

   vPC Peer Link Port Channel ID - Specifies the Port Channel ID for a vPC Peer Link. By default, the value in this field is 500.

   vPC IPv6 ND Synchronize – Enables IPv6 Neighbor Discovery synchronization between vPC switches. The check box is enabled by default. Clear the check box to disable the function.

   vPC advertise-pip - Select the check box to enable the Advertise PIP feature.

   You can enable the advertise PIP feature on a specific vPC as well. For more information, see Advertising PIP on vPC.

   Enable the same vPC Domain Id for all vPC Pairs: Enable the same vPC Domain ID for all vPC pairs. When you select this field, the vPC Domain Id field is editable.

   vPC Domain Id - Specifies the vPC domain ID to be used on all vPC pairs.

   vPC Domain Id Range - Specifies the vPC Domain Id range to use for new pairings.

   Enable Qos for Fabric vPC-Peering - Enable QoS on spines for guaranteed delivery of vPC Fabric Peering communication. For more information, see QoS for Fabric vPC-Peering.

   Note	QoS for vPC fabric peering and queuing policies options in fabric settings are mutually exclusive.

   Qos Policy Name - Specifies QoS policy name that should be same on all fabric vPC peering spines. The default name is spine_qos_for_fabric_vpc_peering.

6. Click the Protocols tab. Most of the fields are auto generated. You can update the fields if needed.

   

   Underlay Routing Loopback Id - The loopback interface ID is populated as 0 since loopback0 is usually used for fabric underlay IGP peering purposes.

   Underlay VTEP Loopback Id - The loopback interface ID is populated as 1 since loopback1 is used for the VTEP peering purposes.

   Underlay Routing Protocol Tag - The tag defining the type of network.

   OSPF Area ID – The OSPF area ID, if OSPF is used as the IGP within the fabric.

   Note	The OSPF or IS-IS authentication fields are enabled based on your selection in the Underlay Routing Protocol field in the General tab.

   Enable OSPF Authentication – Select the check box to enable OSPF authentication. Deselect the check box to disable it. If you enable this field, the OSPF Authentication Key ID and OSPF Authentication Key fields get enabled.

   OSPF Authentication Key ID - The Key ID is populated.

   OSPF Authentication Key - The OSPF authentication key must be the 3DES key from the switch.

   Note	Plain text passwords are not supported. Log in to the switch, retrieve the encrypted key and enter it in this field. Refer, Retrieving the Authentication Key section for details.

   IS-IS Level - Select the IS-IS level from this drop-down list.

   Enable IS-IS Authentication - Select the check box to enable IS-IS authentication. Deselect the check box to disable it. If you enable this field, the IS-IS authentication fields are enabled.

   IS-IS Authentication Keychain Name - Enter the Keychain name, such as CiscoisisAuth.

   IS-IS Authentication Key ID - The Key ID is populated.

   IS-IS Authentication Key - Enter the Cisco Type 7 encrypted key.

   Note	Plain text passwords are not supported. Log in to the switch, retrieve the encrypted key and enter it in this field. Refer the Retrieving the Authentication Key section for details.

   Enable BGP Authentication - Select the check box to enable BGP authentication. Deselect the check box to disable it. If you enable this field, the BGP Authentication Key Encryption Type and BGP Authentication Key fields are enabled.

   Note	If you enable BGP authentication using this field, leave the iBGP Peer-Template Config field blank to avoid duplicate configuration.

   BGP Authentication Key Encryption Type – Choose the 3 for 3DES encryption type, or 7 for Cisco encryption type.

   BGP Authentication Key - Enter the encrypted key based on the encryption type.

   Note	Plain text passwords are not supported. Log in to the switch, retrieve the encrypted key and enter it in the BGP Authentication Key field. Refer the Retrieving the Authentication Key section for details.

   Enable PIM Hello Authentication - Enables the PIM hello authentication.

   PIM Hello Authentication Key - Specifies the PIM hello authentication key.

   Enable BFD: Select the check box to enable feature bfd on all switches in the fabric. This feature is valid only on IPv4 underlay and the scope is within a fabric.

   From Cisco DCNM Release 11.3(1), BFD within a fabric is supported natively. The BFD feature is disabled by default in the Fabric Settings. If enabled, BFD is enabled for the underlay protocols with the default settings. Any custom required BFD configurations must be deployed via the per switch freeform or per interface freeform policies.

   The following config is pushed after you select the Enable BFD check box:

   feature bfd

   Note	After you upgrade from DCNM Release 11.2(1) with BFD enabled to DCNM Release 11.3(1), the following configurations are pushed on all P2P fabric interfaces: no ip redirects no ipv6 redirects

   For information about BFD feature compatibility, refer your respective platform documentation and for information about the supported software images, see Compatibility Matrix for Cisco DCNM.

   Enable BFD for iBGP: Select the check box to enable BFD for the iBGP neighbor. This option is disabled by default.

   Enable BFD for OSPF: Select the check box to enable BFD for the OSPF underlay instance. This option is disabled by default, and it is grayed out if the link state protocol is ISIS.

   Enable BFD for ISIS: Select the check box to enable BFD for the ISIS underlay instance. This option is disabled by default, and it is grayed out if the link state protocol is OSPF.

   Enable BFD for PIM: Select the check box to enable BFD for PIM. This option is disabled by default, and it is be grayed out if the replication mode is Ingress.

   Here are the examples of the BFD global policies:

   
   router ospf <ospf tag>
      bfd
   
   router isis <isis tag>
     address-family ipv4 unicast
       bfd
   
   ip pim bfd
   
   router bgp <bgp asn>
     neighbor <neighbor ip>
       bfd
   

   Enable BFD Authentication: Select the check box to enable BFD authentication. If you enable this field, the BFD Authentication Key ID and BFD Authentication Key fields are editable.

   Note	BFD Authentication is not supported when the Fabric Interface Numbering field under the General tab is set to unnumbered. The BFD authentication fields will be grayed out automatically. BFD authentication is valid for only for P2P interfaces.

   BFD Authentication Key ID: Specifies the BFD authentication key ID for the interface authentication. The default value is 100.

   BFD Authentication Key: Specifies the BFD authentication key.

   For information about how to retrieve the BFD authentication parameters, see Retrieving the Encrypted BFD Authentication Key.

   iBGP Peer-Template Config – Add iBGP peer template configurations on the leaf switches to establish an iBGP session between the leaf switch and route reflector.

   If you use BGP templates, add the authentication configuration within the template and clear the Enable BGP Authentication check box to avoid duplicate configuration.

   In the sample configuration, the 3DES password is displayed after password 3.

   router bgp 65000
       password 3 sd8478fswerdfw3434fsw4f4w34sdsd8478fswerdfw3434fsw4f4w
   

   Until Cisco DCNM Release 11.3(1), iBGP peer template for iBGP definition on the leafs or border role devices and BGP RRs were same. From DCNM Release 11.4(1), the following fields can be used to specify different configurations:

   • iBGP Peer-Template Config – Specifies the config used for RR and spines with border role.

   • Leaf/Border/Border Gateway iBGP Peer-Template Config – Specifies the config used for leaf, border, or border gateway. If this field is empty, the peer template defined in iBGP Peer-Template Config is used on all BGP enabled devices (RRs, leafs, border, or border gateway roles).

   In brownfield migration, if the spine and leaf use different peer template names, both iBGP Peer-Template Config and Leaf/Border/Border Gateway iBGP Peer-Template Config fields need to be set according to the switch config. If spine and leaf use the same peer template name and content (except for the “route-reflector-client” CLI), only iBGP Peer-Template Config field in fabric setting needs to be set. If the fabric settings on iBGP peer templates do not match the existing switch configuration, an error message is generated and the migration will not proceed.

7. Click the Advanced tab. Most of the fields are auto generated. You can update the fields if needed.

   

   VRF Template and VRF Extension Template: Specifies the VRF template for creating VRFs, and the VRF extension template for enabling VRF extension to other fabrics.

   Network Template and Network Extension Template: Specifies the network template for creating networks, and the network extension template for extending networks to other fabrics.

   Site ID - The ID for this fabric if you are moving this fabric within an MSD. The site ID is mandatory for a member fabric to be a part of an MSD. Each member fabric of an MSD has a unique site ID for identification.

   Intra Fabric Interface MTU - Specifies the MTU for the intra fabric interface. This value should be an even number.

   Layer 2 Host Interface MTU - Specifies the MTU for the layer 2 host interface. This value should be an even number.

   Power Supply Mode - Choose the appropriate power supply mode.

   CoPP Profile - Choose the appropriate Control Plane Policing (CoPP) profile policy for the fabric. By default, the strict option is populated.

   VTEP HoldDown Time - Specifies the NVE source interface hold down time.

   Brownfield Overlay Network Name Format: Enter the format to be used to build the overlay network name during a brownfield import or migration. The network name should not contain any white spaces or special characters except underscore (_) and hyphen (-). The network name must not be changed once the brownfield migration has been initiated. See the Creating Networks for the Standalone Fabric section for the naming convention of the network name. The syntax is [<string> | $$VLAN_ID$$] $$VNI$$ [<string>| $$VLAN_ID$$] and the default value is Auto_Net_VNI$$VNI$$_VLAN$$VLAN_ID$$. When you create networks, the name is generated according to the syntax you specify. The following table describes the variables in the syntax.

   Variables	Description
   $$VNI$$	Specifies the network VNI ID found in the switch configuration. This is a mandatory keyword required to create unique network names.
   $$VLAN_ID$$	Specifies the VLAN ID associated with the network. VLAN ID is specific to switches, hence DCNM picks the VLAN ID from one of the switches, where the network is found, randomly and use it in the name. We recommend not to use this unless the VLAN ID is consistent across the fabric for the VNI.
   <string>	This variable is optional and you can enter any number of alphanumeric characters that meet the network name guidelines.

   Example overlay network name: Site_VNI12345_VLAN1234

   Note	Ignore this field for greenfield deployments. The Brownfield Overlay Network Name Format applies for the following brownfield imports: CLI-based overlays Configuration profile-based overlay where the configuration profiles were created in Cisco DCNM Release 10.4(2).

   Enable CDP for Bootstrapped Switch - Enables CDP on management (mgmt0) interface for bootstrapped switch. By default, for bootstrapped switches, CDP is disabled on the mgmt0 interface.

   Enable VXLAN OAM - Enables the VXLAM OAM functionality for devices in the fabric. This is enabled by default. Clear the check box to disable VXLAN OAM function.

   If you want to enable the VXLAN OAM function on specific switches and disable on other switches in the fabric, you can use freeform configurations to enable OAM and disable OAM in the fabric settings.

   Note	The VXLAN OAM feature in Cisco DCNM is only supported on a single fabric or site.

   Enable Tenant DHCP – Select the check box to enable feature dhcp and associated configurations globally on all switches in the fabric. This is a pre-requisite for support of DHCP for overlay networks that are part of the tenant VRFs.

   Note	Ensure that Enable Tenant DHCP is enabled before enabling DHCP related parameters in the overlay profiles.

   Enable NX-API - Specifies enabling of NX-API on HTTPS. This check box is checked by default.

   Enable NX-API on HTTP on Port - Specifies enabling of NX-API on HTTP. Enable this check box and the Enable NX-API check box to use HTTP. This check box is checked by default. If you uncheck this check box, the applications that use NX-API and supported by Cisco DCNM, such as Endpoint Locator (EPL), Layer 4-Layer 7 services (L4-L7 services), VXLAN OAM, and so on, start using the HTTPS instead of HTTP.

   Note	If you check the Enable NX-API check box and the Enable NX-API on HTTP check box, applications use HTTP.

   Enable Policy-Based Routing (PBR) - Select this check box to enable routing of packets based on the specified policy. Starting with Cisco NX-OS Release 7.0(3)I7(1) and later releases, this feature works on Cisco Nexus 9000 Series switches with Nexus 9000 Cloud Scale (Tahoe) ASICs. This feature is used along with the Layer 4-Layer 7 service workflow. For information on Layer 4-Layer 7 service, refer the Layer 4-Layer 7 Service chapter.

   Enable Strict Config Compliance - Enable the Strict Config Compliance feature by selecting this check box. By default, this feature is disabled. For more information, refer Strict Configuration Compliance.

   Enable AAA IP Authorization - Enables AAA IP authorization, when IP Authorization is enabled in the remote authentication server. This is required to support DCNM in scenarios where customers have strict control of which IP addresses can have access to the switches.

   Enable DCNM as Trap Host - Select this check box to enable DCNM as a SNMP trap destination. Typically, for a native HA DCNM deployment, the eth1 VIP IP address will be configured as SNMP trap destination on the switches. By default, this check box is enabled.

   Greenfield Cleanup Option – Enable the switch cleanup option for switches imported into DCNM with Preserve-Config=No, without a switch reload. This option is typically recommended only for the fabric environments with Cisco Nexus 9000v Switches to improve on the switch clean up time. The recommended option for Greenfield deployment is to employ Bootstrap or switch cleanup with a reboot. In other words, this option should be unchecked.

   Enable Precision Time Protocol (PTP): Enables PTP across a fabric. When you select this check box, PTP is enabled globally and on core-facing interfaces. Additionally, the PTP Source Loopback Id and PTP Domain Id fields are editable. For more information, see Precision Time Protocol for Easy Fabric.

   PTP Source Loopback Id: Specifies the loopback interface ID Loopback that is used as the Source IP Address for all PTP packets. The valid values range from 0 to 1023. The PTP loopback ID cannot be the same as RP, Phantom RP, NVE, or MPLS loopback ID. Otherwise, an error will be generated. The PTP loopback ID can be the same as BGP loopback or user-defined loopback which is created from DCNM.

   If the PTP loopback ID is not found during Save & Deploy, the following error is generated:

   Loopback interface to use for PTP source IP is not found. Create PTP loopback interface on all the devices to enable PTP feature.

   PTP Domain Id: Specifies the PTP domain ID on a single network. The valid values range from 0 to 127.

   Enable MPLS Handoff: Select the check box to enable the MPLS Handoff feature. For more information, see the Border Provisioning Use Case in VXLAN BGP EVPN Fabrics - MPLS SR and LDP Handoff chapter.

   Underlay MPLS Loopback Id: Specifies the underlay MPLS loopback ID. The default value is 101.

   Enable TCAM Allocation: TCAM commands are automatically generated for VXLAN and vPC Fabric Peering when enabled.

   Enable Default Queuing Policies: Check this check box to apply QoS policies on all the switches in this fabric. To remove the QoS policies that you applied on all the switches, uncheck this check box, update all the configurations to remove the references to the policies, and save and deploy. From Cisco DCNM Release 11.3(1), pre-defined QoS configurations are included that can be used for various Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Switches. When you check this check box, the appropriate QoS configurations are pushed to the switches in the fabric. The system queuing is updated when configurations are deployed to the switches. You can perform the interface marking with defined queuing policies, if required, by adding the required configuration to the per interface freeform block.

   From Cisco DCNM Release 11.4(1), the DSCP mapping for QoS 5 has changed from 40 to 46 in the policy template. For DCNM 11.3(1) deployments that have been upgraded to 11.4(1), you will see the diffs that need to be deployed.

   Review the actual queuing policies by opening the policy file in the template editor. From Cisco DCNM Web UI, choose Control > Template Library. Search for the queuing policies by the policy file name, for example, queuing_policy_default_8q_cloudscale. Choose the file and click the Modify/View template icon to edit the policy.

   See the Cisco Nexus 9000 Series NX-OS Quality of Service Configuration Guide for platform specific details.

   N9K Cloud Scale Platform Queuing Policy: Choose the queuing policy from the drop-down list to be applied to all Cisco Nexus 9200 Series Switches and the Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Switches that ends with EX, FX, and FX2 in the fabric. The valid values are queuing_policy_default_4q_cloudscale and queuing_policy_default_8q_cloudscale. Use the queuing_policy_default_4q_cloudscale policy for FEXes. You can change from the queuing_policy_default_4q_cloudscale policy to the queuing_policy_default_8q_cloudscale policy only when FEXes are offline.

   N9K R-Series Platform Queuing Policy: Choose the queuing policy from the drop-down list to be applied to all Cisco Nexus switches that ends with R in the fabric. The valid value is queuing_policy_default_r_series.

   Other N9K Platform Queuing Policy: Choose the queuing policy from the drop-down list to be applied to all other switches in the fabric other than the switches mentioned in the above two options. The valid value is queuing_policy_default_other.

   Enable MACsec - Enables MACsec for the fabric. For more information, see MACsec Support in Easy Fabric and eBGP Fabric.

   Freeform CLIs - Fabric level freeform CLIs can be added while creating or editing a fabric. They are applicable to switches across the fabric. You must add the configurations as displayed in the running configuration, without indentation. Switch level freeform configurations such as VLAN, SVI, and interface configurations should only be added on the switch. For more information, refer Enabling Freeform Configurations on Fabric Switches.

   Leaf Freeform Config - Add CLIs that should be added to switches that have the Leaf, Border, and Border Gateway roles.

   Spine Freeform Config - Add CLIs that should be added to switches with a Spine, Border Spine, Border Gateway Spine, and Super Spine roles.

   Intra-fabric Links Additional Config - Add CLIs that should be added to the intra-fabric links.

8. Click the Resources tab.

   

   Manual Underlay IP Address Allocation – Do not select this check box if you are transitioning your VXLAN fabric management to DCNM.

   • By default, DCNM allocates the underlay IP address resources (for loopbacks, fabric interfaces, etc) dynamically from the defined pools. If you select the check box, the allocation scheme switches to static, and some of the dynamic IP address range fields are disabled.

   • For static allocation, the underlay IP address resources must be populated into the Resource Manager (RM) using REST APIs.

     Refer the Cisco DCNM REST API Reference Guide, Release 11.2(1) for more details. The REST APIs must be invoked after the switches are added to the fabric, and before you use the Save & Deploy option.

   • The Underlay RP Loopback IP Range field stays enabled if BIDIR-PIM function is chosen for multicast replication.

   • Changing from static to dynamic allocation keeps the current IP resource usage intact. Only future IP address allocation requests are taken from dynamic pools.

   Underlay Routing Loopback IP Range - Specifies loopback IP addresses for the protocol peering.

   Underlay VTEP Loopback IP Range - Specifies loopback IP addresses for VTEPs.

   Underlay RP Loopback IP Range - Specifies the anycast or phantom RP IP address range.

   Underlay Subnet IP Range - IP addresses for underlay P2P routing traffic between interfaces.

   Underlay MPLS Loopback IP Range: Specifies the underlay MPLS loopback IP address range.

   For eBGP between Border of Easy A and Easy B, Underlay routing loopback and Underlay MPLS loopback IP range must be a unique range. It should not overlap with IP ranges of the other fabrics, else VPNv4 peering will not come up.

   Layer 2 VXLAN VNI Range and Layer 3 VXLAN VNI Range - Specifies the VXLAN VNI IDs for the fabric.

   Network VLAN Range and VRF VLAN Range - VLAN ranges for the Layer 3 VRF and overlay network.

   Subinterface Dot1q Range - Specifies the subinterface range when L3 sub interfaces are used.

   VRF Lite Deployment - Specify the VRF Lite method for extending inter fabric connections.

   The VRF Lite Subnet IP Range field specifies resources reserved for IP address used for VRF LITE when VRF LITE IFCs are auto-created. If you select Back2BackOnly, ToExternalOnly, or Back2Back&ToExternal then VRF LITE IFCs are auto-created.

   Auto Deploy Both - This check box is applicable for the symmetric VRF Lite deployment. When you select this check box, it would set the auto deploy flag to true for auto-created IFCs to turn on symmetric VRF Lite configuration.

   This check box can be selected or deselected when the VRF Lite Deployment field is not set to Manual. In the case, a user explicitly unchecks the auto-deploy field for any auto-created IFCs, then the user input is always given the priority. This flag only affects the new auto-created IFC and it does not affect the existing IFCs.

   VRF Lite Subnet IP Range and VRF Lite Subnet Mask – These fields are populated with the DCI subnet details. Update the fields as needed.

   The values shown in your screen are automatically generated. If you want to update the IP address ranges, VXLAN Layer 2/Layer 3 network ID ranges or the VRF/Network VLAN ranges, ensure the following:

   Note

   When you update a range of values, ensure that it does not overlap with other ranges. You should only update one range of values at a time. If you want to update more than one range of values, do it in separate instances. For example, if you want to update L2 and L3 ranges, you should do the following. Update the L2 range and click Save. Click the Edit Fabric option again, update the L3 range and click Save.

   Service Network VLAN Range - Specifies a VLAN range in the Service Network VLAN Range field. This is a per switch overlay service network VLAN range. The minimum allowed value is 2 and the maximum allowed value is 3967.

   Route Map Sequence Number Range - Specifies the route map sequence number range. The minimum allowed value is 1 and the maximum allowed value is 65534.

9. Click the Manageability tab.

   

   The fields in this tab are:

   DNS Server IPs - Specifies the comma separated list of IP addresses (v4/v6) of the DNS servers.

   DNS Server VRFs - Specifies one VRF for all DNS servers or a comma separated list of VRFs, one per DNS server.

   NTP Server IPs - Specifies comma separated list of IP addresses (v4/v6) of the NTP server.

   NTP Server VRFs - Specifies one VRF for all NTP servers or a comma separated list of VRFs, one per NTP server.

   Syslog Server IPs – Specifies the comma separated list of IP addresses (v4/v6) IP address of the syslog servers, if used.

   Syslog Server Severity – Specifies the comma separated list of syslog severity values, one per syslog server. The minimum value is 0 and the maximum value is 7. To specify a higher severity, enter a higher number.

   Syslog Server VRFs – Specifies one VRF for all syslog servers or a comma separated list of VRFs, one per syslog server.

   AAA Freeform Config – Specifies the AAA freeform configurations.

   If AAA configurations are specified in the fabric settings, switch_freeform PTI with source as UNDERLAY_AAA and description as AAA Configurations will be created.

10. Click the Bootstrap tab.

    

    Enable Bootstrap - Select this check box to enable the bootstrap feature. Bootstrap allows easy day-0 import and bring-up of new devices into an existing fabric. Bootstrap leverages the NX-OS POAP functionality.

    After you enable bootstrap, you can enable the DHCP server for automatic IP address assignment using one of the following methods:

    • External DHCP Server: Enter information about the external DHCP server in the Switch Mgmt Default Gateway and Switch Mgmt IP Subnet Prefix fields.

    • Local DHCP Server: Enable the Local DHCP Server check box and enter details for the remaining mandatory fields.

    Enable Local DHCP Server - Select this check box to initiate enabling of automatic IP address assignment through the local DHCP server. When you select this check box, the DHCP Scope Start Address and DHCP Scope End Address fields become editable.

    If you do not select this check box, DCNM uses the remote or external DHCP server for automatic IP address assignment.

    DHCP Version – Select DHCPv4 or DHCPv6 from this drop-down list. When you select DHCPv4, the Switch Mgmt IPv6 Subnet Prefix field is disabled. If you select DHCPv6, the Switch Mgmt IP Subnet Prefix is disabled.

    Note	Cisco Nexus 9000 and 3000 Series Switches support IPv6 POAP only when switches are either Layer-2 adjacent (eth1 or out-of-band subnet must be a /64) or they are L3 adjacent residing in some IPv6 /64 subnet. Subnet prefixes other than /64 are not supported.

    DHCP Scope Start Address and DHCP Scope End Address - Specifies the first and last IP addresses of the IP address range to be used for the switch out of band POAP.

    Switch Mgmt Default Gateway - Specifies the default gateway for the management VRF on the switch.

    Switch Mgmt IP Subnet Prefix - Specifies the prefix for the Mgmt0 interface on the switch. The prefix should be between 8 and 30.

    DHCP scope and management default gateway IP address specification - If you specify the management default gateway IP address 10.0.1.1 and subnet mask 24, ensure that the DHCP scope is within the specified subnet, between 10.0.1.2 and 10.0.1.254.

    Switch Mgmt IPv6 Subnet Prefix - Specifies the IPv6 prefix for the Mgmt0 interface on the switch. The prefix should be between 112 and 126. This field is editable if you enable IPv6 for DHCP.

    Enable AAA Config – Select this check box to include AAA configurations from the Manageability tab as part of the device startup config post bootstrap.

    Bootstrap Freeform Config - (Optional) Enter additional commands as needed. For example, if you require some additional configurations to be pushed to the device and be available post device bootstrap, they can be captured in this field, to save the desired intent. After the devices boot up, they will contain the configuration defined in the Bootstrap Freeform Config field.

    Copy-paste the running-config to a freeform config field with correct indentation, as seen in the running configuration on the NX-OS switches. The freeform config must match the running config. For more information, see Resolving Freeform Config Errors in Switches.

    DHCPv4/DHCPv6 Multi Subnet Scope - Specifies the field to enter one subnet scope per line. This field is editable after you check the Enable Local DHCP Server check box.

    The format of the scope should be defined as:

    DHCP Scope Start Address, DHCP Scope End Address, Switch Management Default Gateway, Switch Management Subnet Prefix

    For example: 10.6.0.2, 10.6.0.9, 10.6.0.1, 24

11. Click the Configuration Backup tab. The fields on this tab are:

    

    Hourly Fabric Backup: Select the check box to enable an hourly backup of fabric configurations and the intent.

    The hourly backups are triggered during the first 10 minutes of the hour.

    Scheduled Fabric Backup: Check the check box to enable a daily backup. This backup tracks changes in running configurations on the fabric devices that are not tracked by configuration compliance.

    Scheduled Time: Specify the scheduled backup time in a 24-hour format. This field is enabled if you check the Scheduled Fabric Backup check box.

    Select both the check boxes to enable both back up processes.

    The backup process is initiated after you click Save.

    The scheduled backups are triggered exactly at the time you specify with a delay of up to two minutes. The scheduled backups are triggered regardless of the configuration deployment status.

    The backup configuration files are stored in the following path in DCNM: /usr/local/cisco/dcm/dcnm/data/archive

    The number of archived files that can be retained is set in the # Number of archived files per device to be retained: field in the Server Properties window.

    Note	To trigger an immediate backup, do the following: Choose Control > Fabric Builder. The Fabric Builder screen comes up. Click within the specific fabric box. The fabric topology screen comes up. From the Actions pane at the left part of the screen, click Re-Sync Fabric.

    You can also initiate the fabric backup in the fabric topology window. Click Backup Now in the Actions pane.

12. Click ThousandEyes Agent tab. This feature is supported on Cisco DCNM Release 11.5(3) only. For more information, refer to Configuring Global Settings for ThousandEyes Enterprise Agent.

    

    The fields on this tab are:

    Note	The fabric settings for ThousandEyes Agent overwrites the global settings and applies the same configuration for all the ThousandEyes Agent installed on switches in that fabric.

    • Enable Fabric Override for ThousandEyes Agent Installation: Select the check box to enable the ThousandEyes Enterprise Agent on the fabric.

    • ThousandEyes Account Group Token: Specifies ThousandEyes Enterprise Agent account group token for installation.

    • VRF on Switch for ThousandEyes Agent Collector Reachability: Specifies the VRF data which provides internet reachability.

    • DNS Domain: Specifies the switch DNS domain configuration.

    • DNS Server IPs: Specifies the comma separated list of IP addresses (v4/v6) of Domain Name System (DNS) server. You can enter a maximum of three IP addresses for the DNS Server.

    • NTP Server IPs: Specifies comma separated list of IP addresses (v4/v6) of Network Time Protocol (NTP) server. You can enter a maximum of three IP addresses for the NTP Server.

    • Enable Proxy for Internet Access: Select the check box to enable the proxy setting for NX-OS switch internet access.

    • Proxy Information: Specifies the proxy server port information.

    • Proxy Bypass: Specifies the server list for which proxy is bypassed.

13. Click Save after filling and updating relevant information. A note appears briefly at the bottom right part of the screen, indicating that the fabric is created. When a fabric is created, the fabric page comes up. The fabric name appears at the top left part of the screen.

    (At the same time, the newly created fabric instance appears on the Fabric Builder screen. To go to the Fabric Builder screen, click the left arrow (←) button above the Actions pane [to the left of the screen]).

    The Actions pane allows you to perform various functions. One of them is the Add switches option to add switches to the fabric. After you create a fabric, you should add fabric devices. The options are explained:

    • Tabular View - By default, the switches are displayed in the topology view. Use this option to view switches in the tabular view.

    • Refresh topology - Allows you to refresh the topology.

    • Save Layout – Saves a custom view of the topology. You can create a specific view in the topology and save it for ease of use.

    • Delete saved layout – Deletes the custom view of the topology

    • Topology views - You can choose between Hierarchical, Random and Custom saved layout display options.

      • Hierarchical - Provides an architectural view of your topology. Various Switch Roles can be defined that draws the nodes on how you configure your CLOS topology.

      • Random - Nodes are placed randomly on the window. DCNM tries to make a guess and intelligently place nodes that belong together in close proximity.

      • Custom saved layout - You can drag nodes around to your liking. Once you have the positions as how you like, you can click Save Layout to remember the positions. Next time you come to the topology, DCNM will draw the nodes based on your last saved layout positions.

    • Restore Fabric – Allows you to restore the fabric to a prior DCNM configuration state (one month back, two months back, and so on). For more information, see the Restore Fabric section.

    • Backup Now: You can initiate a fabric backup manually by clicking Backup Now. Enter a name for the tag and click OK. Regardless of the settings you choose under the Configuration Backup tab in the Fabric Settings dialog box, you can initiate a backup using this option.

    • Resync Fabric - Use this option to resynchronize DCNM state when there is a large scale out-of-band change, or if configuration changes do not register in the DCNM properly. The resync operation does a full CC run for the fabric switches and recollects “show run” and “show run all” commands from the switches. When you initiate the re-sync process, a progress message is displayed on the window. During the re-sync, the running configuration is taken from the switches. Then, the Out-of-Sync/In-Sync status for the switch is recalculated based on the intent or expected configuration defined in DCNM versus the current running configuration that was taken from the switches.

    • Add Switches – Allows you to add switch instances to the fabric.

    • Fabric Settings – Allows you to view or edit fabric settings.

    • Cloud icon - Click the Cloud icon to display (or not display) an Undiscovered cloud.

      When you click the icon, the Undiscovered cloud and its links to the selected fabric topology are not displayed.

      Click the Cloud icon again to display the Undiscovered cloud.

SCOPE - You can toggle between fabrics by using the SCOPE drop-down box at the top right. The current fabric is highlighted. An MSD and its member fabrics are distinctly displayed, wherein the member fabrics are indented, under the MSD fabric.

From Cisco DCNM Release 11.3(1), you can create an Easy fabric with IPv6 only underlay. The IPv6 underlay is supported only for the Easy_Fabric_11_1 template. For more information, see Configuring a VXLAN Fabric with IPv6 Underlay.

DCNM supports Brownfield deployments, wherein you transition your VXLAN BGP EVPN fabric management to DCNM. The transition involves migrating existing network configurations to DCNM. For information, see Managing a Brownfield VXLAN BGP EVPN Fabric.

You can use the Easy_Fabric_eBGP fabric template to create a fabric with eBGP underlay. For more information, see Managing BGP-Based Routed Fabrics and Managing a Greenfield VXLAN BGP EVPN Fabric.

In DCNM 11.1(1) release, you can add switches to the external fabric. Generic pointers:

• An external fabric is a monitor-only or managed mode fabric. DCNM supports only the monitor mode for Cisco IOS-XR family devices.

• You can import, remove, and delete switches for an external fabric.

• For Inter-Fabric Connection (IFC) cases, you can choose Cisco 9000, 7000 and 5600 Series switches as destination switches in the external fabric.

• You can use non-existing switches as destination switches.

• The template that supports an external fabric is External_Fabric.

• If an external fabric is an MSD fabric member, then the MSD topology screen displays the external fabric with its devices, along with the member fabrics and their devices.

  When viewed from an external fabric topology screen, any connections to non-DCNM managed switches are represented by a cloud icon labeled as Undiscovered.

• You can set up a Multi-Site or a VRF-lite IFC by manually configuring the links for the border devices in the VXLAN fabric or by using an automatic Deploy Border Gateway Method or VRF Lite IFC Deploy Method. If you are configuring the links manually for the border devices, we recommend using the Core Router role to set up a Multi-Site eBGP underlay from a Border Gateway device to a Core Router and the Edge Router role to set up a VRF-lite Inter-Fabric Connection (IFC) from a Border device to an Edge device.

• If you are using the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switch with Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(24a) on the LAN Classic or External fabrics, make sure to enable AAA IP Authorization in the fabric settings.

• You can discover the following non-Nexus devices in an external fabric:

  • IOS-XE family devices: Cisco CSR 1000v, Cisco IOS XE Gibraltar 16.10.x, Cisco ASR 1000 Series routers, and Cisco Catalyst 9000 Series Switches

  • IOS-XR family devices: ASR 9000 Series Routers, IOS XR Release 6.5.2 and Cisco NCS 5500 Series Routers, IOS XR Release 6.5.3

  • Arista 4.2 (Any model)

• Configure all the non-Nexus devices, except Cisco CSR 1000v, before adding them to the external fabric.

• From Cisco DCNM Release 11.4(1), you can configure non-Nexus devices as borders. You can create an IFC between a non-Nexus device in an external fabric and a Cisco Nexus device in an easy fabric. The interfaces supported for these devices are:

  • Routed

  • Subinterface

  • Loopback

• From Cisco DCNM, Release 11.4(1), you can configure a Cisco ASR 1000 Series routers and Cisco Catalyst 9000 Series switches as edge routers, set up a VRF-lite IFC and connect it as a border device with an easy fabric.

• Before a VDC reload, discover Admin VDC in the fabric. Otherwise, the reload operation does not occur.

• You can connect a Cisco data center to a public cloud using Cisco CSR 1000v. See the Connecting Cisco Data Center and a Public Cloud chapter for a use case.

• In an external fabric, when you add the switch_user policy and provide the username and password, the password must be an encrypted string that is displayed in the show run command.

  For example:

  
  username admin password 5 $5$I4sapkBh$S7B7UcPH/iVTihLKH5sgldBeS3O2X1StQsvv3cmbYd1  role network-admin

  In this case, the entered password should be 5$5$I4sapkBh$S7B7UcPH/iVTihLKH5sgldBeS3O2X1StQsvv3cmbYd1.

• For the Cisco Network Insights for Resources (NIR) Release 2.1 and later, and flow telemetry, feature lldp command is one of the required configuration.

  Cisco DCNM pushes feature lldp on the switches only for the Easy Fabric deployments, that is, for the eBGP routed fabric or VXLAN EVPN fabric.

  Therefore, NIR users need to enable feature lldp on all the switches in the following scenarios:

  • External fabric in Monitored or Managed Mode

  • LAN Classic fabric in Monitored or Managed Mode (Applicable for DCNM 11.4(1) or later)

External Fabric Depiction in an MSD Fabric Topology

The MSD topology screen displays MSD member fabrics and external fabrics together. The external fabric External65000 is displayed as part of the MSD topology.

Note	When you deploy networks or VRFs for the VXLAN fabric, the deployment page (MSD topology view) shows the VXLAN and external fabrics that are connected to each other.

A Multi-Site Domain (MSD) is a multifabric container that is created to manage multiple member fabrics. An MSD is a single point of control for definition of overlay networks and VRFs that are shared across member fabrics. When you move fabrics (that are designated to be part of the multifabric overlay network domain) under the MSD as member fabrics, the member fabrics share the networks and VRFs created at the MSD-level. This way, you can consistently provision network and VRFs for different fabrics, at one go. It significantly reduces the time and complexity involving multiple fabric provisionings.

Since server networks and VRFs are shared across the member fabrics (as one stretched network), the new networks and VRFs provisioning function is provided at the MSD fabric level. Any new network and VRF creation is only allowed for the MSD. All member fabrics inherit any new network and VRF created for the MSD.

In DCNM 11.1(1) release, in addition to member fabrics, the topology view for the MSD fabric is introduced. This view displays all member fabrics, and how they are connected to each other, in one view.

Also, a deployment view is introduced for the MSD fabric. You can deploy overlay networks (and VRFs) on member fabrics from a single topology deployment screen, instead of visiting each member fabric deployment screen separately and deploying.

Note

vPC support is added for BGWs in the DCNM 11.1(1) release. The MSD feature is unsupported on the switches with the Cisco NX-OS Release 7.0(3)I4(8b) and 7.0(4)I4(x) images. The VXLAN OAM feature in Cisco DCNM is only supported on a single fabric or site. After you unpair a BGW vPC, perform a Save & Deploy on the member fabric followed by a Save & Deploy of the MSD fabric.

A few fabric-specific terms:

• Standalone fabric: A fabric that is not part of an MSD is referred as a standalone fabric from the MSD perspective. Before the MSD concept, all fabrics were considered standalone, though two or more such fabrics can be connected with each other.

• Member fabrics: Fabrics that are part of an MSD are called member fabrics or members. Create a standalone fabric (of the type Easy_Fabric) first and then move it within an MSD as a member fabric.

When a standalone fabric is added to the MSD, the following actions take place:

• The standalone fabric's relevant attributes and the network and VRF definitions are checked against that of the MSD. If there is a conflict, then the standalone fabric addition to the MSD fails. If there are no conflicts, then the standalone fabric becomes a member fabric for the MSD. If there is a conflict, the exact conflicts are logged in the pending errors log for the MSD fabric. You can remedy the conflicts and then attempt to add the standalone fabric to the MSD again.

• All the VRFs and networks definitions from the standalone fabric that do not have presence in the MSD are copied over to the MSD and in turn inherited to each of its other existing member fabrics.

• The VRFs (and their definitions) from the MSD (such as the MSD's VRF, and L2 and L3 VNI parameters that do not have presence in the standalone fabric) are inherited into the standalone fabric that just became a member.

MSD and Member Fabric Process Flow

An MSD has multiple sites (and hence, multiple member fabrics under an MSD). VRFs and networks are created for the MSD and get inherited by the member fabrics. For example, VRF-50000 (and L3 network with ID 50000), and L2 networks with IDs 30000 and 30001 are created for the MSD, in one go.

A high-level flow chart of the MSD and member fabric creation and MSD-to-member fabric inheritance process:

The sample flow explained the inheritance from the MSD to one member. An MSD has multiple sites (and hence, multiple member fabrics under an MSD). A sample flow from an MSD to multiple members:

In this example, VRF-50000 (and L3 network with ID 50000), and L2 networks with IDs 30000 and 30001 are created in one go. Networks and VRFs are deployed on the member fabric switches, one after another, as depicted in the image.

In DCNM 11.1(1), you can provision overlay networks through a single MSD deployment screen.

Note	If you move a standalone fabric with existing networks and VRFs to an MSD, DCNM does appropriate validation. This is explained in detail in an upcoming section.

Upcoming sections in the document explain the following:

• Creation of an MSD fabric.

• Creation of a standalone fabric (as a potential member) and its movement under the MSD as a member.

• Creation of networks and VRFs in the MSD and their inheritance to the member fabrics.

• Deployment of networks and VRFs from the MSD and member fabric topology views.

• Other scenarios for fabric movement:

  • Standalone fabric with existing networks and VRFs to an MSD fabric.

  • Member fabric from one MSD to another.

Creating and Deploying Networks and VRFs in an MSD Fabric

In standalone fabrics, networks and VRFs are created for each fabric. In an MSD fabric, networks and VRFs should be created at the MSD fabric level. The networks and VRFs are inherited by all the member networks. You cannot create or delete networks and VRFs for member fabrics. However, you can edit them.

For example, consider an MSD fabric with two member fabrics. If you create three networks in the MSD fabric, then all three networks will automatically be available for deployment in both the member fabrics.

Though member fabrics inherit the MSD fabric's networks and VRFs, you have to deploy the networks and VRFs distinctly, for each fabric.

In DCNM 11.1(1) release, a deployment view is introduced for the MSD, in addition to the per-fabric deployment view. In this view, you can view and provision overlay networks for all member fabrics within the MSD, at once. However, you still have to apply and save network and VRF configurations distinctly, for each fabric.

Note

Networks and VRFs are the common identifiers (represented across member fabrics) that servers (or end hosts) are grouped under so that traffic can be sent between the end hosts based on the network and VRF IDs, whether they reside in the same or different fabrics. Since they have common representation across member fabrics, networks and VRFs can be provisioned at one go. As the switches in different fabrics are physically and logically distinct, you have to deploy the same networks and VRFs separately for each fabric.

For example, if you create networks 30000 and 30001 for an MSD that contains two member fabrics, the networks are automatically created for the member fabrics and are available for deployment.

In DCNM 11.1(1) release, you can deploy 30000 and 30001 on the border devices of all member fabrics through a single (MSD fabric) deployment screen. Prior to this, you had to access the first member fabric deployment screen, deploy 30000 and 300001 on the fabric's border devices, and then access the second member fabric deployment screen and deploy again.

Networks and VRFs are created in the MSD and deployed in the member fabrics. The steps are explained below:

1. Create networks and VRFs in the MSD fabric.

2. Deploy the networks and VRFs in the member fabric devices, one fabric at a time.

Editing Networks in the Member Fabric

An MSD can contain multiple fabrics. These fabrics forward BUM traffic via Multicast or Ingress replication. Even if all the fabrics use multicast for BUM traffic, the multicast groups within these fabrics need not be the same.

When you create a network in MSD, it is inherited by all the member fabrics. However, the multicast group address is a fabric instance variable. To edit the multicast group address, you need to navigate to the member fabric and edit the network. For more information about the Multicast Group Address field, see Creating Networks for the Standalone Fabric.

1. Select the network and click the Edit option at the top left part of the window. The Edit Network window comes up.

2. Update the multicast group address in one of the following ways:

   • Under Network Profile, click the Generate Multicast IP button to generate a new multicast group address for the selected network, and click Save.

   • Click the Advanced tab in the Network Profile section, update the multicast group address, and click Save.

   

Note	The Generate Multicast IP option is only available for member fabric networks and not MSD networks.

Deployment and Undeployment of Networks and VRFs in Member Fabrics

Before you begin, ensure that you have created networks at the MSD fabric level since the member fabric inherits networks and VRFs created for the MSD fabric.

Note	The deployment (and undeployment) of networks and VRFs in member fabrics are the same as explained for standalone fabrics. Refer Creating and Deploying Networks and VRFs.

From Cisco DCNM Release 11.4(1), you can use the LAN_Classic and Fabric_Group templates to manage the switches that you used to previously manage in the DCNM Classic LAN deployment.

The LAN_Classic fabric template is a generic fabric template to manage Cisco Nexus switches.

Guidelines and Limitations

• Fabrics using the LAN_Classic fabric template can be changed to use the External_Fabric_11_1 fabric template and then use all its associated functionalities. Note that this is the only supported fabric template conversion and it’s nonreversible.

• The LAN_Classic fabric can be added as a member of an MSD fabric.

• Only Cisco Nexus switches are supported in the LAN_Classic fabric.

• The TOR Auto-Deploy functionality is supported in the LAN_Classic member fabric when a switch with the ToR role is in the fabric. For more information, see Configuring ToR Switches and Deploying Networks.

• If you are using the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switch with Cisco NX-OS Release 6.2(24a) on the LAN Classic or External fabrics, make sure to enable AAA IP Authorization in the fabric settings.

• The following features in the LAN_Classic template provide the same support as they do for the External_Fabric_11_1 template:

  The following features are supported:

  • Configuration compliance

  • Backup or restore of fabric

  • Network Insights

  • Performance monitoring

  • VMM

  • Topology view

  • Kubernetes visualization

  • RBAC

  For more information, refer to the feature specific sections.

From Release 11.5(1), Cisco DCNM allows you to import or discover switches with inband connectivity for External and LAN Classic fabrics in Brownfield deployments only. Enable inband management, per fabric, while configuring or editing the Fabric settings. You cannot import or discover switches with inband connectivity using POAP.

After configuration, the Fabric tries to discover switches based on the VRF of the inband management. The fabric template determines the VRF of inband switch using seed IP. If there are multiple VRFs for same seed IP, then no intent will be learnt for seed interfaces. You must create intent/configuration manually.

After configuring\editing the Fabric settings, you must Save and Deploy. You cannot change the Inband Mgmt settings after you import inband managed switches to the Fabric. If you uncheck the checkbox, the following error message is generated.

Inband IP <<IP Address>> cannot be used to import the switch, 
please enable Inband Mgmt in fabric settings and retry.

After the switches are imported to the Fabric, you must manage the interfaces to create intent. Create the intent for the interfaces that you’re importing the switch. Edit\update the Interface configuration. When you try to change the Interface IP, for this inband managed switch, an error message is generated:

Interface <<interface_name>> is used as seed or next-hop egress interface 
for switch import in inband mode. 
IP/Netmask Length/VRF changes are not allowed for this interface.

<<switch-name>>: Mgmt0 IP Address (<ip-address>) cannot be changed, 
when is it used as seed IP to discover the switch.

Create a policy for next-hop interfaces. Routes to DCNM from 3rd party devices may contain multiple interfaces, known as ECMP routes. Find the next-hop interface and create an intent for the switch. Interface IP and VRF changes are not allowed.

If inband management is enabled, during Image management, eth2 IP address is used to copy images on the switch, in ISSU, EPLD, RPM & SMU installations flows.

The fabric <<fabric name>> was updated with below message:
Fabric Settings cannot be changed for Inband Mgmt, when switches are already imported 
using inband Ip. Please remove the existing switches imported using Inband Ip from the fabric, 
then change the Fabric Setttings.

However, the same fabric can contain switches imported using both inband and out-of-band connectivity.

From Release 11.5(1), in the fabric settings for the External_Fabric_11_1 or LAN_Classic template, select the Enable Precision Time Protocol (PTP) check box to enable PTP across a fabric. When you select this check box, PTP is enabled globally and on core-facing interfaces. Additionally, the PTP Loopback Id and PTP Domain Id fields are editable.

The PTP feature is supported with Cisco Nexus 9000 Series cloud-scale switches, with NX-OS version 7.0(3)I7(1) or later. Warnings are displayed if there are non-cloud scale devices in the fabric, and PTP is not enabled. Examples of the cloud-scale devices are Cisco Nexus 93180YC-EX, Cisco Nexus 93180YC-FX, Cisco Nexus 93240YC-FX2, and Cisco Nexus 93360YC-FX2 switches. For more information, refer to https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/switches/nexus-9000-series-switches/index.html#~products.

Note	PTP global configuration is supported with Cisco Nexus 3000 Series switches; however, PTP and ttag configurations are not supported.

For more information, see the Configuring PTP chapter in Cisco Nexus 9000 Series NX-OS System Management Configuration Guide and Cisco Network Insights for Resources Application for Cisco DCNM User Guide.

For External and LAN Classic fabric deployments, you have to enable PTP globally, and also enable PTP on core-facing interfaces. The interfaces could be configured to the external PTP server like a VM or Linux-based machine. Therefore, the interface should be edited to have a connection with the grandmaster clock. For PTP and TTAG configurations to be operational on External and LAN Classic Fabrics, you must sync up of Switch Configs to DCNM using the host_port_resync policy. For more information, see Sync up Out-of-Band Switch Interface Configurations with DCNM.

It is recommended that the grandmaster clock should be configured outside of Easy Fabric and it is IP reachable. The interfaces toward the grandmaster clock need to be enabled with PTP via the interface freeform config.

All core-facing interfaces are auto-enabled with the PTP configuration after you click Save & Deploy. This action ensures that all devices are PTP synced to the grandmaster clock. Additionally, for any interfaces that are not core-facing, such as interfaces on the border devices and leafs that are connected to hosts, firewalls, service-nodes, or other routers, the ttag related CLI must be added. The ttag is added for all traffic entering the VXLAN EVPN fabric and the ttag must be stripped when traffic is exiting this fabric.

Here is the sample PTP configuration:feature ptp

feature ptp

ptp source 100.100.100.10 -> IP address of the loopback interface (loopback0) 
that is already created, or user-created loopback interface in the fabric settings

ptp domain 1 -> PTP domain ID specified in fabric settings

interface Ethernet1/59 -> Core facing interface
  ptp
 
interface Ethernet1/50 -> Host facing interface
  ttag
  ttag-strip

The following guidelines are applicable for PTP:

• The PTP feature can be enabled in a fabric when all the switches in the fabric have Cisco NX-OS Release 7.0(3)I7(1) or a higher version. Otherwise, the following error message is displayed:

  PTP feature can be enabled in the fabric, when all the switches have 
  NX-OS Release 7.0(3)I7(1) or higher version. Please upgrade switches to 
  NX-OS Release 7.0(3)I7(1) or higher version to enable PTP in this fabric. 

• For hardware telemetry support in NIR, the PTP configuration is a prerequisite.

• If you are adding a non-cloud scale device to an existing fabric which contains PTP configuration, the following warning is displayed:

  TTAG is enabled fabric wide, when all devices are cloud-scale switches 
  so it cannot be enabled for newly added non cloud-scale device(s). 

• If a fabric contains both cloud-scale and non-cloud scale devices, the following warning is displayed when you try to enable PTP:

  TTAG is enabled fabric wide when all devices are cloud-scale switches 
  and is not enabled due to non cloud-scale device(s).

• TTAG configuration is generated for all the devices if host configuration sync up is performed on all the devices. Ttag configuration will not be generated for any newly added devices if host configuration sync up is not performed on all newly added devices.

  If the configuration is not synced, the following warning is displayed:

  TTAG on interfaces with PTP feature can only be configured for cloud-scale devices.
  It will not be enabled on any newly added switches due to the presence of non cloud-scale devices. 

• PTP and TTAG configurations are deployed on host interfaces.

• PTP and TTAG Configurations are supported between switches in the same fabric (intra-fabric links). PTP is created for inter-fabric links, and ttag is created for the inter-fabric link if the other fabric (Switch) is not managed by DCNM. Inter-fabric links do not support PTP or ttag configurations if both fabrics are managed by DCNM.

• TTAG configuration is configured by default after the breakout. After the links are discovered and connected post breakout, perform Save & Deploy to generate the correct configuration based on the type of port (host, intra-fabric link, or inter fabric link).

From DCNM release 11.5(1), any interface level configuration made outside of DCNM (via CLI) can be synced to DCNM and then managed from DCNM. Also, the vPC pair configurations are automatically detected and paired. This applies to the External_Fabric_11_1 and LAN_Classic fabrics only. The vPC pairing is performed with the vpc_pair policy.

Note	When DCNM is managing switches, ensure that all configuration changes are initiated from DCNM and avoid making changes directly on the switch.

When the interface config is synced up to the DCNM intent, the switch configs are considered as the reference, that is, at the end of the sync up, the DCNM intent reflects what is present on the switch. If there were any undeployed intent on DCNM for those interfaces before the resync operation, they will be lost.

From Cisco DCNM Release 11.5(1), MACsec is supported in the Easy Fabric and eBGP Fabric on intra-fabric links. You should enable MACsec on the fabric and on each required intra-fabric link to configure MACsec. Unlike CloudSec, auto-configuration of MACsec is not supported.

MACsec is supported on switches with minimum Cisco NX-OS Releases 7.0(3)I7(8) and 9.3(5).

Note	Support for MACsec is a preview feature in the Cisco DCNM Release 11.5(1).

Tenant Routed Multicast (TRM) enables multicast forwarding on the VXLAN fabric that uses a BGP-based EVPN control plane. TRM provides multi-tenancy aware multicast forwarding between senders and receivers within the same or different subnet local or across VTEPs.

With TRM enabled, multicast forwarding in the underlay is leveraged to replicate VXLAN encapsulated routed multicast traffic. A Default Multicast Distribution Tree (Default-MDT) is built per-VRF. This is an addition to the existing multicast groups for Layer-2 VNI Broadcast, Unknown Unicast, and Layer-2 multicast replication group. The individual multicast group addresses in the overlay are mapped to the respective underlay multicast address for replication and transport. The advantage of using a BGP-based approach allows the VXLAN BGP EVPN fabric with TRM to operate as fully distributed Overlay Rendezvous-Point (RP), with the RP presence on every edge-device (VTEP).

A multicast-enabled data center fabric is typically part of an overall multicast network. Multicast sources, receivers, and multicast rendezvous points might reside inside the data center but also might be inside the campus or externally reachable via the WAN. TRM allows a seamless integration with existing multicast networks. It can leverage multicast rendezvous points external to the fabric. Furthermore, TRM allows for tenant-aware external connectivity using Layer-3 physical interfaces or subinterfaces.

For more information, see the following:

• Guidelines and Limitations for Tenant Routed Multicast

• Guidelines and Limitations for Layer 3 Tenant Routed Multicast

• Guidelines and Limitations for Layer 2/Layer 3 Tenant Routed Multicast (Mixed Mode)

To view various options, right-click on switch:

Set Role: Assign a role to the switch. You can assign any one of the following roles to a switch:

• Spine

• Leaf (Default role)

• Border

• Border Spine

• Border Gateway

• Access

• Aggregation

• Edge Router

• Core Router

• Super Spine

• Border Super Spine

• Border Gateway Spine

• ToR

Alternatively, you can also navigate to the Tabular view from the Actions pane. Choose one or more devices of the same device type and click Set Role to set roles for devices. The device types are:

• NX-OS

• IOS XE

• IOS XR

• Other

Note	Ensure that you have moved switches from maintenance mode to active mode or operational mode before setting roles. You can change the switch role only before executing Save & Deploy.

You can assign one of the following roles for non-Nexus devices:

• Spine

• Leaf

• Access (This role is available only for Cisco ASR 1000 Series routers and Cisco Catalyst 9000 Series switches).

• Edge Router (Use this role for VRF-Lite).

• Core Router

• Super Spine

• Preview Config

• ToR (This role is available only for Cisco Catalyst 9000 series switches).

From DCNM 11.1(1) release, you can shift the switch role from existing to required role if there are no overlays on the switches. Click Save and Deploy to generate the updated configuration. The following shifts are allowed for the switch role:

• Leaf to Border

• Border to Leaf

• Leaf to Border Gateway

• Border Gateway to Leaf

• Border to Border Gateway

• Border Gateway to Border

• Spine to Border Spine

• Border Spine to Spine

• Spine to Border Gateway Spine

• Border Gateway Spine to Spine

• Border Spine to Border Gateway Spine

• Border Gateway Spine to Border Spine

You cannot change the switch role from any Leaf role to any Spine role and from any Spine role to any Leaf role.

Switch[<serial-number>]: Role change from <switch-role> to <switch-role> is not permitted.

You can then change the switch role to the role that was set earlier, or set a new role, and configure the fabric.

If you have not created any policy template instances before clicking Save and Deploy, and there are no overlays, you can change the role of a switch to any other required role.

Switches role should be the same for VPC pairing. peer1 <serial-number>: [<switch-role>], peer2 <serial-number>: [<switch-role>]

To prevent this scenario, change the switch roles of both the switches in the vPC pair to the same role.

Click Tabular view from the Actions pane in the fabric topology window. The tabular view has the following tabs:

• Switches

• Links

• Operational View

You can manage switch operations in this tab. Each row represents a switch in the fabric, and displays switch details, including its serial number.

Some of the actions that you can perform from this tab are also available when you right-click a switch in the fabric topology window. However, the Switches tab enables you to provision configurations on multiple switches, like deploying policies, simultaneously.

The Switches tab has following information of every switch you discover in the fabric:

• Name: Specifies the switch name.

• IP Address: Specifies the IP address of the switch.

• Role: Specifies the role of the switch.

• Serial Number: Specifies the serial number of the switch.

• Fabric Name: Specifies the name of the fabric, where the switch is discovered.

• Fabric Status: Specifies the status of the fabric, where the switch is discovered.

• Discover Status: Specifies the discovery status of the switch.

• Model: Specifies the switch model.

• Software Version: Specifies the software version of the switch.

• ThousandEyes Status: Specifies the status of the ThousandEyes Enterprise Agent.

• Last Updated: Specifies when the switch was last updated.

• Mode: Specifies the current mode of the switch.

• VPC Role: Specifies the vPC role of the switch.

• VPC Peer: Specifies the vPC peer of the switch.

The Switches tab has the following icons and buttons:

• Add switches: Click this icon to discover existing or new switches to the fabric. The Inventory Management dialog box appears.

  This option is also available in the fabric topology window. Click Add switches in the Actions pane.

  Refer the following sections for more information:

  • Adding Switches to a Fabric: Provides information on adding switches to easy fabrics.

  • Discovering New Switches: Provide information on adding Cisco Nexus switches to external fabrics.

  • Adding non-Nexus Devices to External Fabrics: Provide information on adding non-Nexus switches to external fabrics.

• Rediscover switch: Initiate the switch discovery process by DCNM afresh.

• Update discovery credentials: Update device credentials such as authentication protocol, username and password.

• Saving config and Reload: Save the configurations and reload the switch.

  Note	This option is grayed out if the fabric is in freeze mode, that is, if you have disabled deployments on the fabric.

• Copy running to startup config: From Cisco DCNM, Release 11.4(1), you can perform an on-demand copy running-configuration to startup-configuration operation for one or more switches.

  Note	This option will be grayed out if the fabric is in freeze mode, that is, if you have disabled deployments on the fabric.

• Remove switches: Remove the switch from the fabric.

  Note	This option will be grayed out if the fabric is in freeze mode, that is, if you have disabled deployments on the fabric.

• Preview: You can preview the pending configurations and the side-by-side comparison of running configurations and expected configurations.

• Policies: Add, update and delete a policy. The policies are template instances of templates in the template library. After creating a policy, you should deploy it on the switches using the Deploy option available in the Policies window. You can select more than one policy and view them.

  Note	If you select multiple switches and deploy a policy instance, then it will be deployed on all the selected switches.

• ThousandEyes Agent: You can start, stop, install, or uninstall ThousandEyes Enterprise Agent on the switch. You can choose single or multiple switches and select required operation from ThousandEyes Agent drop-down list.

  Note	When you choose multiple switches to perform ThousandEyes Enterprise Agent action, ensure that the status of selected switches are same.

• Interfaces: Deploy configurations on the switch interfaces.

• History: View the deployment history and the policy change history using this button. Choose one or more switches and click History.

  The Policy Change History tab lists the history of policies along with the users who made the changes like add, update, or delete.

  Under the Policy Change History tab, for a policy, click Detailed History under the Generated Config column to view the generated config before and after.

  The following table provides the summary of generated config before and after for Policy Template Instances (PTIs).

  PTI Operations	Generated Config Before	Generated Config After
  Add	Empty	Contains the config
  Update	Contains config before changes	Contains config after changes
  Mark-Delete	Contains the config to be removed	Contains the config to be removed with colour change
  Delete	Contains the config	Empty

  Note	When a policy or profile template is applied, an instance is created for each application of the template. This instance is known as Policy Template Instance or PTI.

• Deploy: Deploy switch configurations. From Cisco DCNM Release 11.3(1), you can deploy configurations for multiple devices using the Deploy button.

  Note	This option grays out if the fabric is in freeze mode, that is, if you have disabled deployments on the fabric. In an MSD fabric, you can deploy configurations only on the Border Gateway, Border Gateway Spine, Border Gateway Super-Spine, or External Fabric switches.

• Set Role: Choose one or more devices of the same device type and click Set Role to set roles for devices. The device types are:

  • NX-OS

  • IOS XE

  • IOS XR

  • Other

  Ensure that you have moved switches from maintenance mode to active mode or operational mode before setting roles. See the Switch Operations section for more information on setting roles.

• vPC Pairing: Choose a switch and click vPC Pairing to create, edit, or unpair a vPC pair. However, you can use this option only when you choose a Cisco Nexus switch. Refer the following sections for more information:

  • Creating a vPC Setup in the External Fabric: Provides information on how to create a vPC pair in external fabrics.

  • vPC Fabric Peering: Provides information on how to create a vPC pair in easy fabrics.

You can add links between border switches of different fabrics (inter-fabric links) or between switches in the same fabric (intra-fabric links). You can only create an inter-fabric connection (IFC) for a switch that is managed by DCNM.

There are scenarios where you might want to define links between switches before connecting them physically. The links could be inter-fabric or intra-fabric links. Doing so, you can express and represent your intent to add links. The links with intent are displayed in a different colour till they are actually converted to functional links. Once you physically connect the links, they are displayed as connected.

Management links might show up in the fabric topology as red colored links. To remove such links, right-click the link and click Delete Link.

From Cisco DCNM Release 11.1(1), the Border Spine and Border Gateway Spine roles are added to switch roles for border switches.

You can create links between existing and pre-provisioned devices as well by selecting the pre-provisioned device as the destination device.