Product manual

AX Series Network Partition: Solution Guide [Basic] Second Edition
© 2009-2010 ALAXALA Networks Corporation. All rights reserved.
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1.4 Inter-partition communication and shared networks
Network partition can be used to handle multiple logically distinguished networks. Basically, each partition has
an independent network. Partitions, however, are able to communicate with each other.
Communications between partitions are achieved through route-filtering setting enhanced for VRF. It is also
possible to use inter-partition communications to establish a separate network that can be connected from
independent partitions. A network through such partitions is called a shared network. A network that permits
inter-partition communication is also called an extranet.
A shared network effectively decreases the resources required for operation and administration of the entire
network, and enables you to unify the administrative information of each partition and collect all the information
on the shared network, while maintaining independence (access blocking) between partitions.
Figure 1.4-1 Concept of a shared network
User 2 User 1
Partition 2 Partition 1
L2 edge switch
VRF core switch
V
L
V
L
VRF
2
VRF
1
Shared network
User 2
blocked
User 1
blocked
Accessible by both
users 1 and 2
Separation even
when shared
Extranet with partition
2
Extranet with partition
1