For other 5.1 deep dives:

When deploying edge clusters from SDDC Manager, you are limited in the design options. When deployed via SDDC Manager, the workflow will always create a Tier-0 and Tier-1. Not very flexible, right?

With VCF 5.1, we are allowing for some customizations to be done during edge cluster deployments and expansions.

* All updates listed below are available via API only as of VCF 5.1 release *



 

  • Updated Tier-0 / Tier-1 Support
    • Deploy edge cluster without Tier-0 gateway
      • This also includes expansion and shrinkage of edge cluster with no Tier-0 gateway
    • Deploy edge cluster without Tier-1 gateway
      • This also includes expansion and shrinkage of edge cluster with no Tier-1 gateway

This means you can now deploy edge clusters from SDDC Manager with any combination of one Tier-0 and/or one Tier-1, or with no Tier gateways at all!

If a Tier-1 is created with no Tier-0, then the Tier-1 is created but not connected to any Tier-0.

If an edge cluster is deployed with a Tier-0, then the Tier-0 interfaces must be specified during creation.

If you have deployed an edge cluster without a Tier-0, then the edge cluster expansion will not allow adding Tier-0 interfaces to the newly-added edge nodes – even if the customer has added a Tier-0 by any other means.



 

  • Edge TEP IP Pool Support

During edge cluster creation and expansion, SDDC Manager now allows Edge TEPs to get the IP configuration from NSX IP pool(s) instead of the TEP IPs being statically assigned.

Individual Edge nodes get their TEP IPs from either static configuration (as before) or from a single NSX IP pool.

A single Edge cluster creation or expansion spec may include Edge nodes which use a mix of one or more NSX IP pools, and/or static IP configuration.

Optionally, if a creation or expansion spec includes Edge node(s) using NSX IP pools, those pools may also be specified and created as part of the Edge creation / expansion workflow.



 

  • Skip ICMP-based TEP Routability Validation

Today when you deploy an edge cluster, there are ICMP checks between the Host TEPs and the Edge TEP gateway to validate routing. In some secure environments, ICMP isn’t allowed from one subnet to another subnets gateway. With VCF 5.1, this check can be skipped. (You still need routing of course!)

This is skipped by adding skipTepRoutabilityCheck to the deployment/expansion spec.


 

  • Improved Edge TEP VLAN Choice

Previously, SDDC Manager required that all nodes of a single Edge cluster, hosted on a single vSphere cluster, must use the same TEP VLAN.

This requirement has been relaxed in VCF 5.1, multiple TEP VLANs may be used in an Edge cluster, hosted on a single vSphere cluster. However, both Edge TEPs of a single Edge node must be on the same VLAN!