The (almost completely)
Open Source Whitebox Router
ONF Connect
Session: Next-Gen SDN (P4 & Stratum & UPAN)
Santa Clara
December 6th, 2018
Hagen Woesner
Building an Open Source Router on (BCM) whiteboxes
Routing engine
What you need:
SDN controller
- routing engine
- controller
- whitebox switch with OS
all in one box scalability (use more
simple than one switch as one)
configuration ability to modify code
no need to write on the router if needed,
BCM SDK SDKLT
own code fix bugs
CPU
add features
ASIC
So where are we with this?
Open Source Operating System
Open Network Linux.
• Debian-based, x86-oriented
• Lots of useful work in ONLP (ONL platform specifics: LED, SFP
support, fan control)
• but inherently useless for the purpose,
• unless you have the .deb package with ofagent/ofdpa/OpenNSL
• Thankfully, ONF (Saurav) has put up some on the CORD pages
• Only for Accton/Edge-core switches, though
So where are we with this?
BISDN Linux
• We have developed BISDN Linux
• Same, but different
• Yocto-based
• Linux Foundation Project, regular updates, recipes, kernels
• ONIE image with OF-DPA 3 EA5, ofagent
• Tested with ryu and ONOS 1.11.2, 1.12
• Running on Delta/Agema 7648, 8032 (Trident-II) 9032 (Tomahawk), 5648
(Tomahawk+), Qumran coming…
• Also: Edge-core 5712, Quanta LY8, Redstone XP
http://repo.bisdn.de/pub/onie and http://repo.bisdn.de/pub/onie-testing
SDN Controllers
• OpenDayLight and ONOS:
• Powerful – and bulky – adapters between north-bound APIs and south-bound
protocols
• Need to re-implement all network functions that are available in Linux kernel or user
space
• You want LACP, LLDP? Write an APP
• You want Spanning Tree Protocol? Write an APP
• You want VXLAN? OK, is it on the ASIC? Yes? Write an APP.
• You want BGP, OSPF, IS-IS? …
• Ok, by now, most apps have been written, but rarely are feature-complete
Use kernel code and functions for SDN networking
Introducing baseboxd
• Idea dates back to RouteFlow, or even earlier…
• Baseboxd controller
• Taps into Linux netlink, translates to OF-DPA 3.05,
• Create tap interfaces for remote switch ports in Linux host
• Create VLAN aware bridge
• Use systemd/networkd to persist network configuration
• grpc/protobuf and IETF/ONF yang models to the north of the HOST
• grpc-ofdpa interface for non-OpenFlow calls to the switch
• VXLAN interfaces
• Mirror ports
http://github.com/bisdn/basebox
Routing engine
Quagga: extinct since 1863
• FreeRangeRouting is a recent fork of quagga
• Very active OSS project
• Latest IETF drafts quickly implemented
• Provides
• Zebra (kernel interaction)
• BGP daemon
• OSPF
• IS-IS Natural History Museum, Berlin
• RIP dead quagga.
• Many more
There are options…
On-switch is cooler. Off-switch is easier Centralized control scales
• Feels like a „real“ router • less kernel dependencies • Control OF-DPA switches
• Works out of the box, no initial • More space, infinite compute power • Re-implement NF on top
configuration required
Routing engine (e.g., FRR) Routing engine (e.g., FRR) Routing app
netlink netlink
SDN Controller SDN Controller
(baseboxd) (baseboxd)
OpenFlow
OpenFlow
grpc
grpc
BISDN
Linux
(yocto) ofagent
BISDN ofagent
OpenFlow
OpenFlow
grpc
grpc
OF-DPA OF-DPA
Linux ofagent ofagent
BCM SDK BCM SDK BISDN BISDN
(yocto)
OF-DPA OF-DPA
Linux Linux
CPU ASIC CPU ASIC (yocto)
CPU
BCM SDK
ASIC
(yocto)
CPU
BCM SDK
ASIC
Basic components ready and tested
BASEBOXD BISDN LINUX
• L2 (incl. source-MAC learning) • Support for optical SFP modules
• L3 (v4 and v6 unicast) • Scripted controller configuration
• switch statistics via gRPC and openconfig- (“basebox-change-config”)
interfaces • FRR as systemd service
• Fedora 28 systems (off-switch) • OF-DPA grpc endpoint
• yocto 2.5 (sumo) (on-switch) • onlpdump support
• VXLAN • OF-DPA 3.0 (including group
modifications)
• Mirror port (ingress/egress)
Building a Free and Open Source Router
1. Free for download ONIE image for switch
• users can still build baseboxd and FRR to run off-switch
2. Package management system
• Users can add and update packages via remote package repository
3. Expose SDK and let users build own functions
• Broadcom SDK to be provided as binary
Q: It‘s Open Source now, so where‘s your business?
A1: in Open Source
We offer support licenses and custom function development,
e.g., mirror ports
A2: The OS is commodity, we develop applications on top
e.g., BNG
Way forward: p4runtime, gNMI, gNOI
We are now members of
Gradually move over from OF-DPA to p4runtime, gNMI seems close.
Contribute bug fixes for OF-DPA Community version
What we wanted to tell you…
Climb on the shoulders of giants!
Use existing software from living OSS projects!
We can – together – actually fulfill the promises of Open
Source Routing
baseboxd may be the glue to make it happen. Check it out:
https://github.com/bisdn/basebox
https://basebox.org
https://docs.bisdn.de/setup/setup_standalone.html
https://github.com/bisdn/basebox/tree/master/examples
