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About advertising for the IP address pools

You can configure MetalLB so that the IP address is advertised with layer 2 protocols, the BGP protocol, or both. With layer 2, MetalLB provides a fault-tolerant external IP address. With BGP, MetalLB provides fault-tolerance for the external IP address and load balancing.

MetalLB supports advertising using L2 and BGP for the same set of IP addresses.

MetalLB provides the flexibility to assign address pools to specific BGP peers effectively to a subset of nodes on the network. This allows for more complex configurations, for example facilitating the isolation of nodes or the segmentation of the network.

About the BGPAdvertisement custom resource

The fields for the BGPAdvertisements object are defined in the following table:

Table 1. BGPAdvertisements configuration
Field Type Description

metadata.name

string

Specifies the name for the BGP advertisement.

metadata.namespace

string

Specifies the namespace for the BGP advertisement. Specify the same namespace that the MetalLB Operator uses.

spec.aggregationLength

integer

Optional: Specifies the number of bits to include in a 32-bit CIDR mask. To aggregate the routes that the speaker advertises to BGP peers, the mask is applied to the routes for several service IP addresses and the speaker advertises the aggregated route. For example, with an aggregation length of 24, the speaker can aggregate several 10.0.1.x/32 service IP addresses and advertise a single 10.0.1.0/24 route.

spec.aggregationLengthV6

integer

Optional: Specifies the number of bits to include in a 128-bit CIDR mask. For example, with an aggregation length of 124, the speaker can aggregate several fc00:f853:0ccd:e799::x/128 service IP addresses and advertise a single fc00:f853:0ccd:e799::0/124 route.

spec.communities

string

Optional: Specifies one or more BGP communities. Each community is specified as two 16-bit values separated by the colon character. Well-known communities must be specified as 16-bit values:

  • NO_EXPORT: 65535:65281

  • NO_ADVERTISE: 65535:65282

  • NO_EXPORT_SUBCONFED: 65535:65283

    You can also use community objects that are created along with the strings.

spec.localPref

integer

Optional: Specifies the local preference for this advertisement. This BGP attribute applies to BGP sessions within the Autonomous System.

spec.ipAddressPools

string

Optional: The list of IPAddressPools to advertise with this advertisement, selected by name.

spec.ipAddressPoolSelectors

string

Optional: A selector for the IPAddressPools that gets advertised with this advertisement. This is for associating the IPAddressPool to the advertisement based on the label assigned to the IPAddressPool instead of the name itself. If no IPAddressPool is selected by this or by the list, the advertisement is applied to all the IPAddressPools.

spec.nodeSelectors

string

Optional: NodeSelectors allows to limit the nodes to announce as next hops for the load balancer IP. When empty, all the nodes are announced as next hops.

spec.peers

string

Optional: Peers limits the BGP peer to advertise the IPs of the selected pools to. When empty, the load balancer IP is announced to all the BGP peers configured.

Configuring MetalLB with a BGP advertisement and a basic use case

Configure MetalLB as follows so that the peer BGP routers receive one 203.0.113.200/32 route and one fc00:f853:ccd:e799::1/128 route for each load-balancer IP address that MetalLB assigns to a service. Because the localPref and communities fields are not specified, the routes are advertised with localPref set to zero and no BGP communities.

Example: Advertise a basic address pool configuration with BGP

Configure MetalLB as follows so that the IPAddressPool is advertised with the BGP protocol.

Prerequisites

  • Install the OpenShift CLI (oc).

  • Log in as a user with cluster-admin privileges.

Procedure

  1. Create an IP address pool.

    1. Create a file, such as ipaddresspool.yaml, with content like the following example:

      apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: IPAddressPool
metadata:
  namespace: metallb-system
  name: doc-example-bgp-basic
spec:
  addresses:
    - 203.0.113.200/30
    - fc00:f853:ccd:e799::/124

    2. Apply the configuration for the IP address pool:

      $ oc apply -f ipaddresspool.yaml

  2. Create a BGP advertisement.

    1. Create a file, such as bgpadvertisement.yaml, with content like the following example:

      apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: BGPAdvertisement
metadata:
  name: bgpadvertisement-basic
  namespace: metallb-system
spec:
  ipAddressPools:
  - doc-example-bgp-basic

    2. Apply the configuration:

      $ oc apply -f bgpadvertisement.yaml

Configuring MetalLB with a BGP advertisement and an advanced use case

Configure MetalLB as follows so that MetalLB assigns IP addresses to load-balancer services in the ranges between 203.0.113.200 and 203.0.113.203 and between fc00:f853:ccd:e799::0 and fc00:f853:ccd:e799::f.

To explain the two BGP advertisements, consider an instance when MetalLB assigns the IP address of 203.0.113.200 to a service. With that IP address as an example, the speaker advertises two routes to BGP peers:

  • 203.0.113.200/32, with localPref set to 100 and the community set to the numeric value of the NO_ADVERTISE community. This specification indicates to the peer routers that they can use this route but they should not propagate information about this route to BGP peers.

  • 203.0.113.200/30, aggregates the load-balancer IP addresses assigned by MetalLB into a single route. MetalLB advertises the aggregated route to BGP peers with the community attribute set to 8000:800. BGP peers propagate the 203.0.113.200/30 route to other BGP peers. When traffic is routed to a node with a speaker, the 203.0.113.200/32 route is used to forward the traffic into the cluster and to a pod that is associated with the service.

As you add more services and MetalLB assigns more load-balancer IP addresses from the pool, peer routers receive one local route, 203.0.113.20x/32, for each service, as well as the 203.0.113.200/30 aggregate route. Each service that you add generates the /30 route, but MetalLB deduplicates the routes to one BGP advertisement before communicating with peer routers.

Example: Advertise an advanced address pool configuration with BGP

Configure MetalLB as follows so that the IPAddressPool is advertised with the BGP protocol.

Prerequisites

  • Install the OpenShift CLI (oc).

  • Log in as a user with cluster-admin privileges.

Procedure

  1. Create an IP address pool.

    1. Create a file, such as ipaddresspool.yaml, with content like the following example:

      apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: IPAddressPool
metadata:
  namespace: metallb-system
  name: doc-example-bgp-adv
  labels:
    zone: east
spec:
  addresses:
    - 203.0.113.200/30
    - fc00:f853:ccd:e799::/124
  autoAssign: false

    2. Apply the configuration for the IP address pool:

      $ oc apply -f ipaddresspool.yaml

  2. Create a BGP advertisement.

    1. Create a file, such as bgpadvertisement1.yaml, with content like the following example:

      apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: BGPAdvertisement
metadata:
  name: bgpadvertisement-adv-1
  namespace: metallb-system
spec:
  ipAddressPools:
    - doc-example-bgp-adv
  communities:
    - 65535:65282
  aggregationLength: 32
  localPref: 100

    2. Apply the configuration:

      $ oc apply -f bgpadvertisement1.yaml

    3. Create a file, such as bgpadvertisement2.yaml, with content like the following example:

      apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: BGPAdvertisement
metadata:
  name: bgpadvertisement-adv-2
  namespace: metallb-system
spec:
  ipAddressPools:
    - doc-example-bgp-adv
  communities:
    - 8000:800
  aggregationLength: 30
  aggregationLengthV6: 124

    4. Apply the configuration:

      $ oc apply -f bgpadvertisement2.yaml

Advertising an IP address pool from a subset of nodes

To advertise an IP address from an IP addresses pool, from a specific set of nodes only, use the .spec.nodeSelector specification in the BGPAdvertisement custom resource. This specification associates a pool of IP addresses with a set of nodes in the cluster. This is useful when you have nodes on different subnets in a cluster and you want to advertise an IP addresses from an address pool from a specific subnet, for example a public-facing subnet only.

Prerequisites

  • Install the OpenShift CLI (oc).

  • Log in as a user with cluster-admin privileges.

Procedure

  1. Create an IP address pool by using a custom resource:

    apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: IPAddressPool
metadata:
  namespace: metallb-system
  name: pool1
spec:
  addresses:
    - 4.4.4.100-4.4.4.200
    - 2001:100:4::200-2001:100:4::400

  2. Control which nodes in the cluster the IP address from pool1 advertises from by defining the .spec.nodeSelector value in the BGPAdvertisement custom resource:

    apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: BGPAdvertisement
metadata:
  name: example
spec:
  ipAddressPools:
  - pool1
  nodeSelector:
  - matchLabels:
      kubernetes.io/hostname: NodeA
  - matchLabels:
      kubernetes.io/hostname: NodeB

In this example, the IP address from pool1 advertises from NodeA and NodeB only.

About the L2Advertisement custom resource

The fields for the l2Advertisements object are defined in the following table:

Table 2. L2 advertisements configuration
Field Type Description

metadata.name

string

Specifies the name for the L2 advertisement.

metadata.namespace

string

Specifies the namespace for the L2 advertisement. Specify the same namespace that the MetalLB Operator uses.

spec.ipAddressPools

string

Optional: The list of IPAddressPools to advertise with this advertisement, selected by name.

spec.ipAddressPoolSelectors

string

Optional: A selector for the IPAddressPools that gets advertised with this advertisement. This is for associating the IPAddressPool to the advertisement based on the label assigned to the IPAddressPool instead of the name itself. If no IPAddressPool is selected by this or by the list, the advertisement is applied to all the IPAddressPools.

spec.nodeSelectors

string

Optional: NodeSelectors limits the nodes to announce as next hops for the load balancer IP. When empty, all the nodes are announced as next hops.

Limiting the nodes to announce as next hops is a Technology Preview feature only. Technology Preview features are not supported with Red Hat production service level agreements (SLAs) and might not be functionally complete. Red Hat does not recommend using them in production. These features provide early access to upcoming product features, enabling customers to test functionality and provide feedback during the development process.

For more information about the support scope of Red Hat Technology Preview features, see Technology Preview Features Support Scope.

spec.interfaces

string

Optional: The list of interfaces that are used to announce the load balancer IP.

Configuring MetalLB with an L2 advertisement

Configure MetalLB as follows so that the IPAddressPool is advertised with the L2 protocol.

Prerequisites

  • Install the OpenShift CLI (oc).

  • Log in as a user with cluster-admin privileges.

Procedure

  1. Create an IP address pool.

    1. Create a file, such as ipaddresspool.yaml, with content like the following example:

      apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: IPAddressPool
metadata:
  namespace: metallb-system
  name: doc-example-l2
spec:
  addresses:
    - 4.4.4.0/24
  autoAssign: false

    2. Apply the configuration for the IP address pool:

      $ oc apply -f ipaddresspool.yaml

  2. Create a L2 advertisement.

    1. Create a file, such as l2advertisement.yaml, with content like the following example:

      apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: L2Advertisement
metadata:
  name: l2advertisement
  namespace: metallb-system
spec:
  ipAddressPools:
   - doc-example-l2

    2. Apply the configuration:

      $ oc apply -f l2advertisement.yaml

Configuring MetalLB with a L2 advertisement and label

The ipAddressPoolSelectors field in the BGPAdvertisement and L2Advertisement custom resource definitions is used to associate the IPAddressPool to the advertisement based on the label assigned to the IPAddressPool instead of the name itself.

This example shows how to configure MetalLB so that the IPAddressPool is advertised with the L2 protocol by configuring the ipAddressPoolSelectors field.

Prerequisites

  • Install the OpenShift CLI (oc).

  • Log in as a user with cluster-admin privileges.

Procedure

  1. Create an IP address pool.

    1. Create a file, such as ipaddresspool.yaml, with content like the following example:

      apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: IPAddressPool
metadata:
  namespace: metallb-system
  name: doc-example-l2-label
  labels:
    zone: east
spec:
  addresses:
    - 172.31.249.87/32

    2. Apply the configuration for the IP address pool:

      $ oc apply -f ipaddresspool.yaml

  2. Create a L2 advertisement advertising the IP using ipAddressPoolSelectors.

    1. Create a file, such as l2advertisement.yaml, with content like the following example:

      apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: L2Advertisement
metadata:
  name: l2advertisement-label
  namespace: metallb-system
spec:
  ipAddressPoolSelectors:
    - matchExpressions:
        - key: zone
          operator: In
          values:
            - east

    2. Apply the configuration:

      $ oc apply -f l2advertisement.yaml

Configuring MetalLB with an L2 advertisement for selected interfaces

By default, the IP addresses from IP address pool that has been assigned to the service, is advertised from all the network interfaces. The interfaces field in the L2Advertisement custom resource definition is used to restrict those network interfaces that advertise the IP address pool.

This example shows how to configure MetalLB so that the IP address pool is advertised only from the network interfaces listed in the interfaces field of all nodes.

Prerequisites

  • You have installed the OpenShift CLI (oc).

  • You are logged in as a user with cluster-admin privileges.

Procedure

  1. Create an IP address pool.

    1. Create a file, such as ipaddresspool.yaml, and enter the configuration details like the following example:

      apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: IPAddressPool
metadata:
  namespace: metallb-system
  name: doc-example-l2
spec:
  addresses:
    - 4.4.4.0/24
  autoAssign: false

    2. Apply the configuration for the IP address pool like the following example:

      $ oc apply -f ipaddresspool.yaml

  2. Create a L2 advertisement advertising the IP with interfaces selector.

    1. Create a YAML file, such as l2advertisement.yaml, and enter the configuration details like the following example:

      apiVersion: metallb.io/v1beta1
kind: L2Advertisement
metadata:
  name: l2advertisement
  namespace: metallb-system
spec:
  ipAddressPools:
   - doc-example-l2
   interfaces:
   - interfaceA
   - interfaceB

    2. Apply the configuration for the advertisement like the following example:

      $ oc apply -f l2advertisement.yaml

The interface selector does not affect how MetalLB chooses the node to announce a given IP by using L2. The chosen node does not announce the service if the node does not have the selected interface.

Configuring MetalLB with secondary networks

From OpenShift Container Platform 4.14 the default network behavior is to not allow forwarding of IP packets between network interfaces. Therefore, when MetalLB is configured on a secondary interface, you need to add a machine configuration to enable IP forwarding for only the required interfaces.

OpenShift Container Platform clusters upgraded from 4.13 are not affected because a global parameter is set during upgrade to enable global IP forwarding.

To enable IP forwarding for the secondary interface, you have two options:

  • Enable IP forwarding for all interfaces.

  • Enable IP forwarding for a specific interface.

    Enabling IP forwarding for a specific interface provides more granular control, while enabling it for all interfaces applies a global setting.
Procedure

  1. Enable forwarding for a specific secondary interface, such as bridge-net by creating and applying a MachineConfig CR.

    1. Create the MachineConfig CR to enable IP forwarding for the specified secondary interface named bridge-net.

    2. Save the following YAML in the enable-ip-forward.yaml file:

      apiVersion: machineconfiguration.openshift.io/v1
kind: MachineConfig
metadata:
  labels:
    machineconfiguration.openshift.io/role: <node_role> (1)
  name: 81-enable-global-forwarding
spec:
  config:
    ignition:
      version: 3.2.0
    storage:
      files:
      - contents:
          source: data:text/plain;charset=utf-8;base64,`echo -e "net.ipv4.conf.bridge-net.forwarding = 1\nnet.ipv6.conf.bridge-net.forwarding = 1\nnet.ipv4.conf.bridge-net.rp_filter = 0\nnet.ipv6.conf.bridge-net.rp_filter = 0" | base64 -w0`
           verification: {}
        filesystem: root
        mode: 644
        path: /etc/sysctl.d/enable-global-forwarding.conf
  osImageURL: ""
      1 Node role where you want to enable IP forwarding, for example, worker

    3. Apply the configuration by running the following command:

      $ oc apply -f enable-ip-forward.yaml

  2. Alternatively, you can enable IP forwarding globally by running the following command:

    $ oc patch network.operator cluster -p '{"spec":{"defaultNetwork":{"ovnKubernetesConfig":{"gatewayConfig":{"ipForwarding": "Global"}}}}}

Additional resources