Subject: [nvo3] comments on

From: Lucy yong <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 13 Jun 2013 21:40:13 +0000

Hi Larry  et al,

I read this draft and have following comments and suggestions:

Text in section 3.1.2:
Note that a MAC address is required even for a pure L3 VN service
because VNICs filter out frames with destination MAC addresses that
do not match the VNIC's address; Therefore, the NVE providing an L3
service must first encapsulate an IP packet in an Ethernet frame with
the VNIC's destination MAC before it is sent to the End Device
containing the VNIC.
-end

This description leads to a particular solution. VNIC should support both internal and external NVE cases. In case of internal NVE, is that necessary? Furthermore, for ucast IP packets, the NVE need to encapsulate an IP packet in an Ethernet frame with the VNIC's destination MAC address; for a mcast IP packet, the NVE should encapsulate the packet in an Ethernet frame with the multicast MAC address, not the VNIC address and should not be filtered out.

Text in section 4
On the hypervisor-facing side of the NVE, a control plane protocol is
   necessary to provide an NVE with the information it needs to provide
   connectivity across the Virtual Network for a given VNIC.
   Specifically, the Hypervisor (or Network Service Appliance) utilizing
   an external NVE needs to "attach to" and "detach from" a VN, as well
   as communicate the addresses within that VN that are reachable within
   it.
-end

Suggested text:
On the hypervisor-facing side of the external NVE, a control plane protocol is
   necessary to provide the information that the NVE needs in providing
   connectivity across the Virtual Network for a given VNIC. For example,
   the Hypervisor (or Network Service Appliance) utilizing
   an external NVE needs to "attach to" and "detach from" a VN, as well
   as communicate the reachable addresses within that VN.
-end

Text in section 4.1
   In the previous figures, NVEs reside on an external networking device
   (e.g. an access switch).  When an NVE is external, a protocol is
   needed between the End Device (e.g.  Hypervisor) making use of the
   external NVE and the external NVE in order to make the NVE aware of
   the changing VN membership requirements of the Tenant Systems within
   the End Device.

    A key driver for using a protocol ...
-end

Some redundant text.

Suggested text:
   When an NVE is external, a control plane protocol is
   needed between the two devices. A key driver for using the protocol ...
-end

Text in 4.1
When a VN within a
   VDC is instantiated within a particular administrative domain, it can
   be allocated a VN Context which only the NVE needs to use.  Once an
   NVE receives a VN connect indication, the NVE needs a way to get a VN
   Context allocated (or receive the already allocated VN Context) for a
   given VN Name or ID (as well as any other information needed to
   transmit encapsulated packets).
-end

I don't know what it means. Does the "VN context" here have the same means defined in the framework document? It seems not to me.

Section 4.4 seems describe the situation when hypervisor and NVE are co-located. Suggest describing the external NVE case.

"IAM" need to be replaced by "NVA"

Cheers,
Lucy