Another key Dell end-to-end storage solution that Dell Enterprise SONiC supports comes in the form of Dell PowerFlex cluster deployment support.
Dell Enterprise SONiC supports two different networking architectures: Hybrid, and a pure Layer 2.
The following figure shows a hybrid network architecture, where Layer 3 (EVPN BGP VXLAN) and Layer 2 (MC-LAG) are deployed between leaf and spine and leaf switches respectively. There are key networks that must be stretched and routed from rack to rack. Using EVPN BGP VXLAN these Layer 2 networks are stretched across the EVPN fabric.
As far as integrating and obtaining DNS, NTP services for the PowerFlex cluster, this is done using Layer 3 or Layer 2 uplinks from the border leaf switches. The figure below shows these uplinks coming from Leaf 1 and Leaf 2.
If Layer 3 uplinks are used, then a /31 subnet is recommended as it allows for two IP addresses to be configured point-to-point. The PowerFlex networks consider the leaf switches as the gateway if these networks need to exist in the fabric. If Layer 2 uplinks are used, then the uplinks are configured as trunks carrying all the necessary PowerFlex networks up to the external network device.
The next option, as shown in the following figure, implements a three-tier network architecture. This option resembles a legacy or traditional architecture where an access, aggregation, and core layers are configured, and all the networks that are required by the PowerFlex cluster are carried up to the aggregation layer.
At the aggregation layer, MC-LAG is implemented on the aggregation switches. The uplinks towards the core layer are typically Layer 3.
At the access, traditional Layer 2 networking features such as VLANs, spanning-tree, and MC-LAG are configured.
DNS or NTP services are connected through the core layer.
![Dell Enterprise SONiC and PowerFlex - Layer 2 fabric](/static/media/d965a7c7-89ae-484f-b348-639bbd0d799c.png)
Deployment best practices
Dell PowerFlex requires a high-performance, and low-latency fabric. To do this, the following best networking practices should be followed :
- Implement Jumbo frames throughout the fabric.
- Implement spanning-tree basic features such as edge port to speed up link connectivity and BPDU Guard to avoid network loops.
- Link and device redundancy features should be enabled using MC-LAG on the switches and LAGs on the PowerFlex appliance.
- SNMP should be enabled with the community string set to 'public'.
- Deploy redundant links from leaf to spine or access to aggregation switches.
- The downstream links from leaf switches or access are configured as trunks.