Bond Configuration Reference

The appliance carries cluster traffic and Piraeus storage replication over a bonded interface, bond0, that aggregates two physical NICs into one logical link. This page documents each field of the Local UI Network Interfaces > Bonds > Create form. The values must match how your data-center switch is configured on the ports the appliance is plugged into; confirm them with your network administrator before you apply them.

For the step-by-step procedure, refer to Install the Appliance. For the rationale for using a bond rather than a bridge, refer to Installation Architecture.

Fields

Two fields are often confused. The Bond type sets how the bond gets its IP address (static, dhcp, or none), while the Bonding mode sets the link-aggregation algorithm (802.3ad). They are separate settings. Set the bond type to static and the bonding mode to 802.3ad.

Bond name

Recommended value: a name you type yourself, for example bond0.

The name field shows bond0 as grayed-out placeholder text, not a saved value. Click into the field and type the name before you continue; otherwise, the bond can be submitted without a name. Use bond0 unless you already have a bond of that name.

Bond type

Recommended value: static.

Sets how the bond obtains its IP address: static (you enter the IP, subnet, and gateway), dhcp (the bond requests an address), or none (no IP, Layer 2 only). Choose static so the appliance keeps a fixed address. The IP, gateway, and DNS fields appear only when the type is static or dhcp.

Members

Recommended value: the two data NICs, for example enP1s3f0np0 and enP1s3f1np1.

Select the member NICs manually from the list of physical interfaces. These are the NICs the Palette TUI showed during initial configuration. Do not include the out-of-band management NIC. Both member NICs must be cabled to switch ports that belong to the same LAG group.

Bond mode

Recommended value: 802.3ad.

Selects dynamic Link Aggregation (LAG), the industry-standard bonding mode negotiated with the switch by the Link Aggregation Control Protocol (LACP). Both NICs are active at the same time, and the switch treats the pair as one logical port. This mode requires the switch to be configured with a matching LAG group with LACP enabled on the two switch ports.

Do not select active-backup (uses only one NIC at a time) or balance-alb (works without switch configuration but interacts poorly with Piraeus's continuous replication traffic).

Hash policy

Recommended value: layer3+4.

The rule the bond uses to decide which of the two NICs sends any given outbound packet. layer3+4 hashes on the source and destination IP address plus the TCP or UDP port, so many long-lived flows spread evenly across both NICs. The simpler layer2 policy (MAC-only) sends all traffic through one NIC when the peer is a single router, which caps the bond at one NIC's bandwidth. Confirm the switch is set to the same hash policy. This field applies only to the 802.3ad bonding mode.

Link monitoring interval

Recommended value: 100.

The interval, in milliseconds, at which the bond driver checks each member NIC's link state, set through the MIIMonitorSec option. Local UI populates this field with a default of 100. Keep the default unless your network team requires a different value.

LACP transmit rate

Recommended value: fast.

The rate at which the appliance exchanges LACP heartbeat frames with the switch. fast sends one heartbeat per second, so a failed link is detected within a few seconds. slow (the LACP default) sends one every 30 seconds; use it only if your switch team requires it. The overhead of fast is negligible. This field applies only to the 802.3ad bonding mode.

Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU)

Recommended value: your network's MTU, for example 1500, or 9000 for jumbo frames.

The maximum transmission unit applied to the bond interface. Match the value your data-center switch uses on the same ports. Jumbo frames are optional and are not required for the appliance.

IP address (static bonds)

Recommended value: the host IP on the bond, as CIDR, for example 10.0.21.106/24.

The address the node uses on the untagged (native) VLAN, shown only when the bond type is static. Local UI moves the IP you set on the individual NIC in the Palette TUI onto the bond when you apply the form, so the node keeps the same address, only on a different interface.

Gateway and DNS servers

Recommended value: the default gateway and DNS servers you set in the Palette TUI.

Local UI carries these over so the node keeps outbound connectivity and name resolution once the bond takes over.

VLAN sub-interface (optional)

Recommended value (when needed): bond0.<vlan-id> with its own CIDR, for example bond0.393 with 10.0.22.110/24.

Add one only if you need to reach a tagged VLAN, such as an external NFS storage network. The switch ports that carry the bond must be configured to trunk the tagged VLAN through to the appliance.

Cilium interface selection

Recommended value: leave empty.

Cilium is the Kubernetes networking layer the cluster installs later. It auto-detects the interface that owns the default gateway (the bond) and uses it, so no explicit selection is needed. Only override this if Spectro Cloud support directs you to.

Quick reference

Bond name    : type it yourself, for example bond0 (the field shows bond0 as a placeholder)
Bond type    : static
Members      : the data NICs, selected manually, for example enP1s3f0np0 and enP1s3f1np1
Bonding mode : 802.3ad
Hash policy  : layer3+4
Link monitor : 100 (MIIMonitorSec, milliseconds)
LACP rate    : fast
MTU          : your network MTU, for example 1500
IP           : the host IP on the bond, for example 10.0.21.106/24 (untagged, static bonds)
Gateway/DNS  : the default gateway and DNS servers
VLAN (opt.)  : bond0.<vlan-id>, for example bond0.393 with 10.0.22.110/24