README.rst

   1 .. NOTE(stephenfin): If making changes to this file, ensure that the line
   2    numbers found in 'Documentation/intro/what-is-ovs' are kept up-to-date.
   3
   4 ============
   5 Open vSwitch
   6 ============
   7
   8 .. image:: https://travis-ci.org/openvswitch/ovs.png
   9     :target: https://travis-ci.org/openvswitch/ovs
  10
  11 What is Open vSwitch?
  12 ---------------------
  13
  14 Open vSwitch is a multilayer software switch licensed under the open source
  15 Apache 2 license.  Our goal is to implement a production quality switch
  16 platform that supports standard management interfaces and opens the forwarding
  17 functions to programmatic extension and control.
  18
  19 Open vSwitch is well suited to function as a virtual switch in VM environments.
  20 In addition to exposing standard control and visibility interfaces to the
  21 virtual networking layer, it was designed to support distribution across
  22 multiple physical servers.  Open vSwitch supports multiple Linux-based
  23 virtualization technologies including Xen/XenServer, KVM, and VirtualBox.
  24
  25 The bulk of the code is written in platform-independent C and is easily ported
  26 to other environments.  The current release of Open vSwitch supports the
  27 following features:
  28
  29 - Standard 802.1Q VLAN model with trunk and access ports
  30 - NIC bonding with or without LACP on upstream switch
  31 - NetFlow, sFlow(R), and mirroring for increased visibility
  32 - QoS (Quality of Service) configuration, plus policing
  33 - Geneve, GRE, VXLAN, STT, and LISP tunneling
  34 - 802.1ag connectivity fault management
  35 - OpenFlow 1.0 plus numerous extensions
  36 - Transactional configuration database with C and Python bindings
  37 - High-performance forwarding using a Linux kernel module
  38
  39 The included Linux kernel module supports Linux 3.10 and up.
  40
  41 Open vSwitch can also operate entirely in userspace without assistance from
  42 a kernel module.  This userspace implementation should be easier to port than
  43 the kernel-based switch. OVS in userspace can access Linux or DPDK devices.
  44 Note Open vSwitch with userspace datapath and non DPDK devices is considered
  45 experimental and comes with a cost in performance.
  46
  47 What's here?
  48 ------------
  49
  50 The main components of this distribution are:
  51
  52 - ovs-vswitchd, a daemon that implements the switch, along with a companion
  53   Linux kernel module for flow-based switching.
  54 - ovsdb-server, a lightweight database server that ovs-vswitchd queries to
  55   obtain its configuration.
  56 - ovs-dpctl, a tool for configuring the switch kernel module.
  57 - Scripts and specs for building RPMs for Citrix XenServer and Red Hat
  58   Enterprise Linux.  The XenServer RPMs allow Open vSwitch to be installed on a
  59   Citrix XenServer host as a drop-in replacement for its switch, with
  60   additional functionality.
  61 - ovs-vsctl, a utility for querying and updating the configuration of
  62   ovs-vswitchd.
  63 - ovs-appctl, a utility that sends commands to running Open vSwitch daemons.
  64
  65 Open vSwitch also provides some tools:
  66
  67 - ovs-ofctl, a utility for querying and controlling OpenFlow switches and
  68   controllers.
  69 - ovs-pki, a utility for creating and managing the public-key infrastructure
  70   for OpenFlow switches.
  71 - ovs-testcontroller, a simple OpenFlow controller that may be useful for
  72   testing (though not for production).
  73 - A patch to tcpdump that enables it to parse OpenFlow messages.
  74
  75 What other documentation is available?
  76 --------------------------------------
  77
  78 .. TODO(stephenfin): Update with a link to the hosting site of the docs, once
  79    we know where that is
  80
  81 To install Open vSwitch on a regular Linux or FreeBSD host, please read the
  82 `installation guide <Documentation/intro/install/general.rst>`__. For specifics
  83 around installation on a specific platform, refer to one of the `other
  84 installation guides <Documentation/intro/install/index.rst>`__
  85
  86 For answers to common questions, refer to the `FAQ <Documentation/faq>`__.
  87
  88 To learn about some advanced features of the Open vSwitch software switch, read
  89 the `tutorial <Documentation/tutorials/ovs-advanced.rst>`__.
  90
  91 Each Open vSwitch userspace program is accompanied by a manpage.  Many of the
  92 manpages are customized to your configuration as part of the build process, so
  93 we recommend building Open vSwitch before reading the manpages.
  94
  95 Contact
  96 -------
  97
  98 bugs@openvswitch.org