Vmware, Inc.

Pavlush Margarian

Sachin Mohan Vaidya

Ganesan Chandrashekhar

Pankaj Thakkar

Abhishek Goliya

Amarnath Palavalli

Kausum Kumar

Mayur Dhas

Naveen Ramaswamy

Hamza Aharchaou

Josh Dorr

Suresh Babu Muppala

Farzad Ghannadian

Sukhdev Singh

Shrinivas Sharad Parashar

Nikhil Bokare

Rushikesh Wagh

Vaibhav Bhandari

Shailesh Makhijani

Alka Pendharkar

Disha Chopra

Pankaj Thankkar

Some embodiments provide a method for distributing a service rule that is to be enforced across a first set of sites and that is defined by reference to a group identifier that identifies a group of machines. The method distributes the service rule to each site in the first set of sites. The method identifies at least one site in the first set of sites that is not in a second set of sites that has already received a definition of the group. The method distributes the group definition to each identified site in the first set of sites that has not already received the definition of the group.

Parsing logical network definition for different sites

Some embodiments of the invention provide a method for deploying software-implemented resources in a software defined datacenter (SDDC). The method initially receives a hierarchical API command that, in a declarative format, specifies several operation requests for several software-defined (SD) resources at several resource levels of a resource hierarchy in the SDDC. The method parses the API command to identify the SD resources at the plurality of resource levels. Based on the parsed API command, the method deploys the SD resources by using a deployment process that ensures that any first SD resource on which a second SD resource depends is deployed before the second resource. In some embodiments, a second SD resource depends on a first SD resource when the second SD resource is a child of the first SD resource. Alternatively, or conjunctively, a second SD resource can also depend on a first SD resource in some embodiments when the second SD resource has some operational dependency on the first SD resource. In some embodiments, the method parses the API command by identifying several sets of SD resources, with each set having one or more SD resources at one resource level. The deployment in some embodiments deploys the identified SD resource sets at higher resource levels before deploying SD resources at lower resource levels.

Hierarchical API for a SDDC

Some embodiments of the invention provide a method for processing requests for performing operations on resources in a software defined datacenter (SDDC). The resources are software-defined (SD) resources in some embodiments. The method initially receives a request to perform an operation with respect to a first resource in the SDDC. The method identifies a policy that matches (i.e., is applicable to) the received request for the first resource by comparing a set of attributes of the request with sets of attributes of a set of policies that place constraints on operations specified for resources. In some embodiments, several sets of attributes for several policies can be expressed for resources at different hierarchal resource levels of the SDDC. The method rejects the received request when the identified policy specifies that the requested operation violates a constraint on operations specified for the first resource.

Policy constraint framework for an SDDC

Some embodiments provide a method for one of multiple shared API processing services in a container cluster that implements a network policy manager shared between multiple tenants. The method receives a configuration request from a particular tenant to modify a logical network configuration for the particular tenant. Configuration requests from the plurality of tenants are balanced across the plurality of shared API processing services. Based on the received configuration request, the method posts a logical network configuration change to a configuration queue in the cluster. The configuration queue is dedicated to the logical network of the particular tenant. Services are instantiated separately in the container cluster for each tenant to distribute configuration changes from the respective configuration queues for the tenants to datacenters that implement the tenant logical networks such that configuration changes for one tenant do not slow down processing of configuration changes for other tenants.

Sharing network manager between multiple tenants

Some embodiments provide a network management system for managing a logical network that spans multiple physical sites. The network management system includes a global network manager for receiving global logical network configuration data for the multiple physical sites. The network management system includes, at each of the physical sites, (i) a local network manager for receiving a logical network configuration for the physical site from the global network manager and (ii) a set of central controllers for distributing logical network configuration data to computing devices that implement the logical network at the physical site.

Network management system for federated multi-site logical network

Some embodiments provide a method for providing a user interface (UI) for a network management application. The method provides a first UI for accessing a global network manager through the network management application to configure a global logical network spanning multiple physical sites. For each respective site, the method provides an additional UI for accessing a respective local network manager for the site (i) to modify the global logical network at the respective site and (ii) to configure a local logical network at the respective site. The method provides a UI item for toggling between the first UI and the additional UIs. Multiple UI items available in the first UI are also available in the additional UIs.

User interface for accessing multi-site logical network

Some embodiments provide a method for distributing rules associated with a particular logical network element that is implemented across one or more physical sites. The method uses a set of attributes of a set of elements associated with the particular logical network element to identify a particular set of physical sites spanned by the particular logical network element. The method identifies a set of rules associated with the particular logical network element. The method distributes the identified set of rules to each site of the identified set of physical sites.

Determining span of logical network element

Some embodiments provide a method for a network management and control system that manages a virtual infrastructure deployed across a set of datacenters. Based on input from a top-level user of the virtual infrastructure, the method deploys a first logical network within the virtual infrastructure and defines one or more second-level users of the virtual infrastructure. The method receives input from a second-level user of the virtual infrastructure to define a second logical network and connect the second logical network to the first logical network. The first and second logical networks use a same data model and the second-level users are restricted from viewing configuration of the first logical network.

Multi-tenant network virtualization infrastructure

Hierarchical API for SDDC

Some embodiments provide a method for collecting data regarding realized state associated with a logical network spanning multiple physical sites. At a global manager that manages a logical network, the method receives a request to collect realized state for a set of one or more logical network elements, each of which spans a set of two or more physical sites. Each physical site is managed by a local manager. For each of the logical network elements, the method identifies the set of physical sites spanned by the logical network element. For each of the logical network elements, the method sends requests for realized state of the logical network element to the local manager of each identified physical site spanned by the logical network element. The method generates a report for presentation from the realized states received from the local managers.

Presenting realized state of multi-site logical network

Some embodiments provide a method for managing a logical network that spans multiple physical sites. The method creates a global tree data structure for defining the logical network. The method adds at least two physical sites to the global tree data structure. The physical sites added to the global tree structure are eligible to be spanned by the logical network. The method adds multiple logical network elements to the global tree data structure. At least a subset of the logical network elements reference the physical sites in the global tree data structure in order to span to the physical sites.

Data structure for defining multi-site logical network

Some embodiments provide a method for defining a logical network (LN) that spans multiple sites and is managed at each site by a local manager. At a global manager that manages the logical network, the method creates a tree from a definition of the LN that spans the sites. The tree includes nodes representing elements in the LN and connections between the nodes to express relationships between the elements. Each of at least a subset of nodes has a span attribute identifying sites spanned by an LN element corresponding to the node. The method uses the span attributes to create a parsed tree for each site. Based on the parsed tree of each site, the method identifies a portion of the LN definition that is relevant for the site. The method provides, to the local manager of each site, the portion of the LN definition identified for the site.

Growing community of inventors

Dublin, CA, United States of America

Pavlush Margarian