Abstract: Some embodiments provide a method for a set of central controllers that manages forwarding elements operating in a plurality of datacenters. The method receives a configuration for a bridge between (i) a logical L2 network that spans at least two datacenters and (ii) a physical L2 network. The configuration specifies a particular one of the datacenters for implementation of the bridge. The method identifies multiple managed forwarding elements that implement the logical L2 network and are operating in the particular datacenter. The method selects one of the identified managed forwarding elements to implement the bridge. The method distributes bridge configuration data to the selected managed forwarding element.

Abstract: Certain embodiments described herein are generally directed to enabling a group of host machines within a network to securely communicate an unknown unicast packet. In some embodiments, a key policy is defined exclusively for the secure communication of unknown unicast packets. The key policy is transmitted by a central controller to the group of host machines for negotiating session keys among each other when communicating unknown unicast packets.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a centralized overlay-network cloud gateway and a set of centralized services in a transit virtual cloud network (VCN) connected to multiple other compute VCNs hosting compute nodes (VMs, containers, etc.) that are part of (belong to) the overlay network. The centralized overlay-network cloud gateway provides connectivity between compute nodes of the overlay network (e.g., a logical network spanning multiple VCNs) and compute nodes in external networks. Some embodiments use the centralized overlay-network cloud gateway to provide transitive routing (e.g., routing through a transit VCN) in the absence of direct peering between source and destination VCNs. The overlay network, of some embodiments, uses the same subnetting and default gateway address for each compute node as the cloud provider network provided by the virtual private cloud provider.

Abstract: A physical host machine of a public cloud system includes a set of processing units for executing instructions stored in non-transitory machine readable media. The physical host machine also includes a physical network interface cars (PNIC) and a non-transitory machine readable medium that stores a data compute node (DCN). The DCN includes first and second applications, first and second logical interfaces, a network stack, and a managed forwarding element (MFE). The first application is connected to the pNIC through the network stack, the first logical interface, and the MFE. The second application is connected to the PNIC through the network stack, the second logical interface, and the MFE.

Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure relate to adaptive and user-defined security against side-channel attacks in a virtual network. Traffic in the virtual network can be monitored at the hypervisor level and network security levels, such as padding and inclusion of dummy packets in the traffic stream, may be adaptively switched based on the monitored traffic information. In addition, user-defined security policies can be input to a management console. Thus, the security levels can be adaptive to real-time traffic bandwidth usage in the network and also flexibly specified by the user/administrator, which may be more efficient.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a method of operating several logical networks over a network virtualization infrastructure. The method defines a managed physical switching element (MPSE) that includes several ports for forwarding packets to and from a plurality of virtual machines. Each port is associated with a unique media access control (MAC) address. The metho defines several managed physical routing elements (MPREs) for the several different logical networks. Each MPRE is for receiving data packets from a same port of the MPSE. Each MPRE is defined for a different logical network and for routing data packets between different segments of the logical network. The method provides the defined MPSE and the defined plurality of MPREs to a plurality of host machines as configuration data.

Abstract: A distributed computer system and method for managing secret information for virtual entities in the distributed computer system utilizes multiple secret storage service entities to provide secret information to a virtual entity to be hosted in a host computer in the distributed computer system. At least one piece of the secret information for the virtual entity is distributed to the multiple secret storage service entities to provide the secret information to the virtual entity using the at least one piece of the secret information from one of the multiple secret storage service entities.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a method for a set of central controllers that manages forwarding elements operating in a plurality of datacenters. The method receives a configuration for a bridge between (i) a logical L2 network that spans at least two datacenters and (ii) a physical L2 network. The configuration specifies a particular one of the datacenters for implementation of the bridge. The method identifies multiple managed forwarding elements that implement the logical L2 network and are operating in the particular datacenter. The method selects one of the identified managed forwarding elements to implement the bridge. The method distributes bridge configuration data to the selected managed forwarding element.

Abstract: Virtualization software that includes a VDRB (virtual distributed router/bridge) module for performing L3 routing and/or bridging operations is provided. At least some of the VDRBs are configured as VDBs (virtual distributed bridge) for performing bridging operations between different network segments in a distributed manner. The bridging tasks of a network are partitioned among several VDBs of the network based on MAC addresses. MAC addresses of VMs or other types of network nodes belonging to an overlay logical network are partitioned into several shards, each shard of MAC addresses assigned to a VDB in the network. Each VDB assigned a shard of MAC addresses performs bridging when it receives a packet bearing a MAC address belonging to its assigned shard. A VDB does not perform bridging on packets that do not have MAC address that falls within the VDB's shard of MAC addresses.

Abstract: A data compute node executes (i) a set of tenant applications connected to a third party overlay network, (ii) a set of network manager applications, and (iii) a managed forwarding element that includes a pair of overlay and underlay network virtual adapters. A packet that is received from a network manager application and addressed to an underlay network destination is sent to the underlay network destination address through a physical NIC of the host without network address translation or encapsulation. A packet that is received from a tenant application and addressed to an underlay network destination is subject to SNAT and is sent to the underlay network destination address. A packet that is received from a tenant application and is addressed an overlay destination address is encapsulated with the header of the overlay network and is sent to the overlay network destination address through the underlay virtual adapter.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a method and system for configuring a plurality of managed forwarding elements (MFEs) in a plurality of cloud-provider virtual networks (CPVNs) to make routing decisions that efficiently use a peered transit CPVN and peering with other CPVNs in the plurality of CPVNs. In some embodiments, a controller set receives an identification of peering relationships between CPVNs in the plurality of CPVNs and generates configuration data for configuring each MFE. The configuration data is used to configure the MFE to forward data messages received at the MFE using a peering between a source CPVN and a destination CPVN when possible and to forward data messages received at the MFE to a transit gateway device in a transit CPVN when it is not possible to use a peering between the source and destination CPVNs.

Abstract: A port is dynamically added to and removed from a virtual switch. The new port may be allocated when there is sufficient free memory in a pool of memory associated with the virtual switch. When an existing port is deallocated, the portion of the pool of memory allocated to that existing port is freed up. As a result, a virtual machine that requires one or more ports on the virtual switch may be provisioned on a host so long as the pool of memory is sized properly and memory usage on the host is not excessive.

Abstract: Certain embodiments described herein are generally directed to enabling a group of host machines within a network to securely communicate an unknown unicast packet. In some embodiments, a key policy is defined exclusively for the secure communication of unknown unicast packets. The key policy is transmitted by a central controller to the group of host machines for negotiating session keys among each other when communicating unknown unicast packets.

Abstract: The technology disclosed herein enables high availability bridging between Layer 2 (L2) networks. In a particular embodiment, a method includes high availability bridge cluster comprising a first bridge node and a second bridge node. The first and second bridge nodes include first and second active bridges and first and second standby bridges, respectively. The method provides, in the first active bridge, bridging network communications between two or more L2 networks. The second standby bridge acts as a failover bridge for the first active bridge. The method further provides generating a failure detection message that incorporates a hardware address of the first bridge node and transferring the failure detection message from the first bridge node to the second bridge node. In the second standby bridge, the method provides receiving the failure detection message and using the hardware address to synchronize bridging information between the first active bridge and the second standby bridge.

Abstract: Described herein are systems, methods, and software to enhance flow operations on a host computing system. In one implementation, a virtual switch on a host identifies a packet from a virtual node. In response to identifying the packet, the virtual switch determines whether the packet corresponds to a cached result action based on traits of the packet. If the packet corresponds to a cached result action, then the virtual switch may process the packet in accordance with the cached result action. In contrast, if the packet does not correspond to a cached result action, then the virtual switch may process the packet in accordance with first flow operations to determine a result action, and cache the result action for use with future packets.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a method for a public cloud manager that interacts with a management system of a public datacenter. The method receives a notification from a network controller that a second data compute node is compromised. The second data compute node operates on a host machine in the public datacenter and executes a forwarding element managed by network controller. The method interacts with application programming interfaces (APIs) of the public datacenter to quarantine the data compute node.

Abstract: A system and method for managing a trusted connection within a public cloud comprises transmitting a first token and a second token from a cloud service manager to a public cloud controller, initializing a public cloud manager in response to receipt of the first token and the second token, and generate a cloud certificate, and transmitting the cloud certificate and the second token from the public cloud manager to a management plane. The method further comprises establishing a trusted connection between the public cloud controller and the management plane in response to receipt of the cloud certificate and the second token by the management plane.

Abstract: A LRE (logical routing element) that have LIFs that are active in all host machines spanned by the LRE as well as LIFs that are active in only a subset of those spanned host machines is provided. A host machine having an active LIF for a particular L2 segment would perform the L3 routing operations for network traffic related to that L2 segment. A host machine having an inactive LIF for the particular L2 segment would not perform L3 routing operations for the network traffic of the L2 segment.

Abstract: For a managed network including multiple host machines implementing multiple logical networks, some embodiments provide a method that reduces the memory and traffic load required to implement the multiple logical networks. The method generates configuration data for each of multiple host machines including (i) data to configure a host machine to implement a set of logical forwarding elements that belong to a set of routing domains and (ii) identifiers for each routing domain in the set of routing domains. The method then receives data regarding tunnels endpoints operating on each of the host machines and an association with the routing identifiers sent to the host machines. The method then generates a routing domain tunnel endpoint list for each routing domain based on the data received from each of the host machines including a list of the tunnel endpoints associated with the routing domain which the host machines can use to facilitate packet processing.

Abstract: The present disclosure generally relates to applying global unified security policies across a plurality of virtual private clouds of a logical network. The logical network is deployed on a software-defined datacenter that constitute one or more private and/or public datacenters. The plurality of virtual private clouds of the logical network may have one or more overlapping internet protocol address blocks, with each virtual private cloud deploying one or more virtual machines and/or containers. A global unified security policy is disseminated to endpoints throughout the logical network using logical ports of the virtual machines and/or containers.