Controller side method of generating and updating a controller assignment list

摘要

Some embodiments provide a novel method for distributing control-channel communication load between multiple controllers in a network control system. In some embodiments, the controllers manage physical forwarding elements that forward data between several computing devices (also called hosts or host computers), some or all of which execute one or more virtual machines (VMs). The method of some embodiments distributes a controller assignment list to the host computers. The host computers use this list to identify the controllers with which they need to interact to perform some of the forwarding operations of their associated logical forwarding elements. In some embodiments, agents executing on the host computers (1) review the controller assignment list to identify the appropriate controllers, and (2) establish control channel communications with these controllers to obtain the needed data for effectuating the forwarding operations of their associated physical forwarding elements. These agents in some embodiments are responsible for out-of-band control channel communication with the controllers.

主权项

1. For a network control system that includes a plurality of host computers that execute a plurality of physical forwarding elements (PFEs) that collectively implement a plurality of logical forwarding elements (LFEs), a method of managing the LFEs comprising:
defining a range of index values for different types of LFEs; identifying a plurality of controllers to manage the LFEs; generating a controller assignment list that associates each controller with at least one index value sub-range that contains at least one index value derivable from the identifier of at least one LFE; distributing the controller assignment list to host computers, wherein the host computers use the list to identify which controllers to request data necessary for effectuating a subset of the operations of the LFEs, wherein when first and second index values derived from first and second identifiers of first and second LFEs fall within a particular sub-range of index values, a controller associated with the particular index value sub-range manages both the first and second LFEs.