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Understand routers

Understanding the role of routers is helpful for ensuring seamless connectivity within your cloud infrastructure. Routers in an Rumble Cloud are components that direct traffic between different networks, enabling communication between instances and the outside world. By understanding how routers work and how to configure them effectively, you can ensure that your cloud instances remain connected and accessible, supporting your business operations in the cloud. With the added flexibility of floating IP addresses, you can dynamically manage external access to your instances, adapting to changing needs and demands.

What are routers

Routers are virtual networking devices that connect different networks within the cloud environment. They are responsible for routing traffic between internal private networks and external networks, such as the internet. Routers in Rumble Cloud are managed by the Network service, which provides networking-as-a-service capabilities.

Key functions

  • Connecting networks: Routers link private networks (project / tenant networks) to external networks, allowing instances within the private networks to access external resources and services.

  • Floating IPs: Routers enable the use of floating IP addresses, which are public IP addresses that can be dynamically associated with instances. This allows instances to be accessible from the internet for purposes like remote access, web hosting, or providing public APIs.

  • Network Address Translation (NAT): Routers perform NAT, translating private IP addresses of instances to a public IP address (floating IP) for outbound traffic, and vice versa for inbound traffic. This enables instances with private IP addresses to communicate with external networks.

  • Routing policies: Routers can enforce routing policies and rules, determining how traffic is directed between networks. This includes support for static routes and dynamic routing protocols.

Setting up routers

  • Create a router: Start by creating a virtual router in the cloud console or using the CLI. You'll need to specify a name and optionally choose an external network for internet connectivity.

  • Set gateway: Assign a gateway to the router, which will be the external network providing access to the internet. This is where your pool of floating IP addresses comes into play.

  • Attach Internal Networks: Connect your private networks (project / tenant networks) to the router. This will allow instances within these networks to use the router for external connectivity.

  • Associate floating IPs: Allocate and associate floating IP addresses from your pool to instances that require external access. The router will handle the NAT for these IPs.

Tips for using routers

  • Security groups: Implement security groups and firewall rules to control traffic to and from your instances and networks.

  • Redundancy: Consider deploying routers with redundancy or in a high-availability configuration to ensure uninterrupted network connectivity in case of router failures.

  • Monitoring: Regularly monitor your routers and network traffic to detect and address any performance or security issues.

  • Scalability: Plan your network architecture to accommodate growth. As your cloud environment expands, you may need to add additional routers or adjust your routing policies.

See also