User Manual

Driver FeaturesRev 2.2-1.0.1

Mellanox Technologies

For example, to configure a host to discover GWs on three partitions 0xffff,0xfff1 and 0x3 add

the following line to modprobe configuration file:

options mlx4_vnic discovery_pkeys=0xffff,0xfff1,0x3

When using this feature combined with host administrated vnics, each vnic should also be con-

figured with the partition it should be created on.

For example, for creating host admin vnic on I/F eth20, with pkey 0xfff1 add the following line

to ifcg-eth20:

GW_PKEY=0xfff1

When using a non default partition, the GW partitions should also be configured on the

GW in the BridgeX. Additionally, the Subnet Manager must be configured accordingly.

4.3.3.6 ALL VLAN

In Ethernet over InfiniBand (EoIB), a vNic is a member of a vHUB that uniquely defines its Vir-

tual Local Area Networks (VLAN) tag. The VLAN tag is used in the VLAN header within the

EoIB packets, and is enforced by EoIB hosts when handling the EoIB packets.

The tag is also

extended to the Ethernet fabric when packets pass through the BridgeX®. This model of opera-

tion ensures a high level of security however, it requires each VLAN tag used to have its own

individual vNic to be created and each vHub requires InfiniBand fabric resources like multicast

groups (MGIDs).

If many VLANs are needed, the resources required to create and manage them are large. ALL

VLAN vHub enables the user to use its resources ef

ficiently by creating a vNic that can support

multiple VLAN tags without creating multiple vNics. However, it reduces VLAN separation

compared to the vNic /vHub model.

ALL VLAN Functionality

When ALL VLAN is enabled, the address lookup on the BridgeX® consists of the MAC address

only (without the VLAN), so all packets with the same MAC regardless of the VLAN, are sent to

the same InfiniBand address. Same behavior can be expected from the host EoIB driver, which

also sends packets to the relevant InfiniBand addresses while disregarding the VLAN. In both

scenarious, the Ethernet packet that is embedded in the EoIB packet includes the VLAN header

enabling VLAN enforcement either in the Ethernet fabric or at the receiving EoIB host.

ALL VLAN must be supported by both the BridgeX® and by the host side.

When enabling ALL VLAN, all gateways (LAG or legacy) that have eports belonging

to a gateway group (GWG) must be configured to the same behavior.

For example it is impossible to have gateway A2 configured to all-vlan mode and A3

to regular mode, because both belong to GWG A.