Creating Full-Mesh and Partial-Mesh topologies

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Full-Mesh and Partial-Mesh topologies are built using topology tags that you assign to CPE devices. You can only assign topology tags to standard devices. If two devices are assigned the same topology tag, a tunnel is automatically created between them.

In a Full-Mesh topology, all devices are assigned the same topology tag.

In a Partial-Mesh topology, devices are divided into groups based on the tags assigned to them, and communication between the devices happens through transit devices, which are devices to which tags from all groups are assigned.

You can assign a topology tag in a CPE template or to an individual device. When you assign a topology tag in a CPE template, the tag is automatically assigned to all devices that are using that template. To assign topology tags, use the following instructions:

• Assigning a topology tag in a CPE template.

  To assign a topology tag in a CPE template:

  1. In the menu, go to the SD-WAN → CPE templates subsection.

     A table of CPE templates is displayed.

  2. Click the CPE template.

     The settings area is displayed in the lower part of the page. You can expand the settings area to fill the entire page by clicking the expand icon . By default, the Information tab is selected, which displays general information about the CPE template.

  3. Select the Topology tab.

     The topology tag settings are displayed.

  4. Make sure that in the Role drop-down list, the CPE option is selected. The Gateway is not used to build Full-Mesh and Partial-Mesh topologies.
  5. If you want to build a Partial-Mesh topology, to use a device as a transit device, select the Transit CPE check box. Transit devices are necessary to connect groups of devices together and make it possible for other devices to establish tunnels through these transit devices.
  6. In the Topology tags field, enter a topology tag and click the add button . Devices with the same topology tags automatically establish direct tunnels with each other.

     To build a Full-Mesh topology, assign the same topology tags to all devices.

     To build a Partial-Mesh topology, assign topology tags to devices based on which group they belong to. Also assign all tags used in the topology to the transit device to make sure that all device groups are added to the topology.

     The topology tag is assigned and displayed below the Topology tags field.

  7. In the upper part of the settings area, click Save to save CPE template settings.
• Assigning a topology tag to an individual CPE device.

  To assign a topology tag to an individual CPE device:

  1. In the menu, go to the Infrastructure section.

     This opens the resource management page. By default, the Network resources tab is selected, which displays the table of SD-WAN and SDN Controllers.

  2. Click Management → Configuration menu next to the SD-WAN Controller.

     This opens the Controller configuration menu. By default, you are taken to the Controller nodes section, which displays a table of Controller nodes.

  3. Go to the Topology tags section.

     The topology tag settings are displayed.

  4. In the Switch drop-down list, select the CPE device.
  5. Make sure that in the Role drop-down list, the CPE option is selected. The Gateway is not used to build Full-Mesh and Partial-Mesh topologies.
  6. If you want to build a Partial-Mesh topology, to use a device as a transit device, select the Transit CPE check box. Transit devices are necessary to connect groups of devices together and make it possible for other devices to establish tunnels through these transit devices.
  7. In the Topology tags field, enter a topology tag and click the add button . Devices with the same topology tags automatically establish direct tunnels with each other.

     To build a Full-Mesh topology, assign the same topology tags to all devices.

     To build a Partial-Mesh topology, assign topology tags to devices based on which group they belong to. Also assign all tags used in the topology to the transit device to make sure that all device groups are added to the topology.

     The topology tag is assigned and displayed below the Topology tags field.

  8. In the upper part of the page, click Save.

  You can also assign a topology tag in the CPE device configuration.

  To assign a topology tag in the CPE device configuration:

  1. In the menu, go to the SD-WAN → CPE section.

     A table of CPE devices is displayed.

  2. Click the CPE device.

     The settings area is displayed in the lower part of the page. You can expand the settings area to fill the entire page by clicking the expand icon . By default, the Configuration tab is selected, which displays the current configuration of the CPE device. This tab also displays the table of Out-of-band management CPE device configurations.

  3. Select the Topology tab.

     The topology tag settings are displayed.

  4. Select the Override check box to ignore the applied CPE template and make the settings in the selected tab editable. This check box is cleared by default.
  5. In the Switch drop-down list, select the CPE device.
  6. Make sure that in the Role drop-down list, the CPE option is selected. The Gateway is not used to build Full-Mesh and Partial-Mesh topologies.
  7. If you want to build a Partial-Mesh topology, to use a device as a transit device, select the Transit CPE check box. Transit devices are necessary to connect groups of devices together and make it possible for other devices to establish tunnels through these transit devices.
  8. In the Topology tags field, enter a topology tag and click the add button . Devices with the same topology tags automatically establish direct tunnels with each other.

     To build a Full-Mesh topology, assign the same topology tags to all devices.

     To build a Partial-Mesh topology, assign topology tags to devices based on which group they belong to. Also assign all tags used in the topology to the transit device to make sure that all device groups are added to the topology.

     The topology tag is assigned and displayed below the Topology tags field.

  9. In the upper part of the settings area, click Save to save CPE device settings.

If necessary, you can remove a topology tag in a CPE template or on an individual device. To remove topology tags, use the following instructions:

• Removing a topology tag in a CPE template.

  To remove a topology tag in a CPE template:

  1. In the menu, go to the SD-WAN → CPE templates subsection.

     A table of CPE templates is displayed.

  2. Click the CPE template.

     The settings area is displayed in the lower part of the page. You can expand the settings area to fill the entire page by clicking the expand icon . By default, the Information tab is selected, which displays general information about the CPE template.

  3. Select the Topology tab.

     The topology tag settings are displayed.

  4. Click the delete button next to the topology tag.

     The topology tag is removed and is no longer displayed.

  5. In the upper part of the settings area, click Save to save CPE template settings.
• Removing a topology tag from an individual CPE device.

  To remove a topology tag from an individual CPE device:

  1. In the menu, go to the Infrastructure section.

     This opens the resource management page. By default, the Network resources tab is selected, which displays the table of SD-WAN and SDN Controllers.

  2. Click Management → Configuration menu next to the SD-WAN Controller.

     This opens the Controller configuration menu. By default, you are taken to the Controller nodes section, which displays a table of Controller nodes.

  3. Go to the Topology tags section.

     The topology tag settings are displayed.

  4. In the Switch drop-down list, select the CPE device.
  5. Click the delete button next to the topology tag.

     The topology tag is removed and is no longer displayed.

  6. In the upper part of the page, click Save.

  You can also remove a topology tag in the CPE device configuration.

  To remove a topology tag in the CPE device configuration:

  1. In the menu, go to the SD-WAN → CPE section.

     A table of CPE devices is displayed.

  2. Click the CPE device.

     The settings area is displayed in the lower part of the page. You can expand the settings area to fill the entire page by clicking the expand icon . By default, the Configuration tab is selected, which displays the current configuration of the CPE device. This tab also displays the table of Out-of-band management CPE device configurations.

  3. Select the Topology tab.

     The topology tag settings are displayed.

  4. Select the Override check box to ignore the applied CPE template and make the settings in the selected tab editable. This check box is cleared by default.
  5. Click the delete button next to the topology tag.

     The topology tag is removed and is no longer displayed.

  6. In the upper part of the settings area, click Save to save CPE device settings.