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ST_Wong's avatar
ST_Wong
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Jul 12, 2023

Multiple IP addresses ranges on external network

Hello,

We've LTM (14.1.4.2) running for years, serving VLAN with addresses 192.168.8.0/24.

Recently the same VLAN 'expanded' with another address range (192.168.31.0/23).

We tried to define virtual server in this address/netmask range but failed (invalid destination/mask setting).

Possible to serve this new IP address range on the same LTM ?

Thanks a lot.

Regards

 

application delivery
  • mihaic's avatar
    mihaic
    Icon for MVP rankMVP
    Jul 12, 2023

    Is this new subnet used only for Virtual servers?

    If you point this subnet via routing to the F5 it should work. 

    You can define this subnet as a blackhole type of network on the F5.,and then you should be able to create VS from this subnet.

     

    https://my.f5.com/manage/s/article/K13833

     

  • CA_Valli's avatar
    CA_Valli
    Icon for MVP rankMVP
    Jul 12, 2023

    You should be able to define the Virtual Server listener IP on any network, F5 will automatically create a Virtual Address object to match it.

    It's not required to have a self-ip on that network as long as routing points to F5, like mihaic said. 

    • JRahm's avatar
      JRahm
      Icon for Admin rankAdmin
      Jul 12, 2023

      Good call, CA_Valli. In fact, early days of v9 when I was a customer, my SEs recommended as a best practice to avoid defining a self-IP on the public facing interface for DMZ-deployed boxes.

  • ST_Wong's avatar
    ST_Wong
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    Jul 13, 2023

    Hi all,

    Thanks for all your help.

    Inbound traffic now works, however, the default gateway on original subnet 192.168.8.0/24 seems won't help routing traffic for 192.168.31.0/23.    All outbound traffic to non-local network got timeout.   

    Can we forward outbound traffic for the new IP range 192.168.31.0/23 to corresponding gateway 192.168.31.254 ?

    Thanks and Best Rgds

    • JRahm's avatar
      JRahm
      Icon for Admin rankAdmin
      Jul 13, 2023

      a diagram of what's local and what's remote and where you're wanting traffic to route would be helpful.

      Just note a couple things:

      1. auto-lasthop will return application traffic responses to where it came from unless you disable that behavior, so for response traffic anyway, you don't even need a default route from BIG-IP.
      2. An effective route is not enough to forward traffic through BIG-IP, you need to enable a network forwarding virtual server that is enabled on the ingress vlan in order for traffic initiating from that ingress network to egress the BIG-IP to another vlan.
  • mihaic's avatar
    mihaic
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    Jul 14, 2023

    first, the VS should be /32, usually if it is only one.

    Second I would split that /23 in 2  /24 for example. And use one for the VS if you plan to have many VS's.

    Then you could use some static routing for example on F5 and the router .

    If you let auto-lasthop enabled on F5 , you won't need a route on the F5.

  • ST_Wong's avatar
    ST_Wong
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    Jul 13, 2023

    Hi all,

    Thanks for your help.

    I tried to define a VS using the new subnet address before I did anything, with destination/mask setting to. say. 192.168.31.250/23 or 192.168.31.250/255.255.254.0.   But LTM complaints the value is invalid.    I can only provide a mask of 255.255.255.255 or simply no mask at all.  

    Possible to specify the correct netmask (/23) in virtual server destination ?

    Thanks again.

    Best Regards

    • JRahm's avatar
      JRahm
      Icon for Admin rankAdmin
      Jul 13, 2023

      Hi ST_Wong  the virtual server listens on a host or range of hosts as a CIDR block. So if you are trying to establish a /23 network for the virtual server to listen on, then it needs to be a valid network address to do so. If you are only wanting to listen to the 192.168.31.250 host, then you do not need to specify the mask on the destination at all. 

      The virtual server is not an L3 routing table. Routes assure that traffic gets to/from the BIG-IP, the virtual server is how traffic flows through the BIG-IP.

  • ST_Wong's avatar
    ST_Wong
    Icon for Cirrus rankCirrus
    Jul 14, 2023

    Hi all,

    Here comes a simple diagram:

                   VLAN 123
   ________________|_______________
   |                               |
192.168.8.0/24	             192.168.30.0/23
(gw 192.168.8.67)            (gw 192.168.31.254)
   |
  LTM (self IP on 192.168.8.0/24)
   |
  VS (192.168.31.250/23)

    Some test results when ping from host (192.168.31.250)

    * To 192.168.8.0/24:  OK, except the gateway 192.168.8.67

    * To all other networks: no response

    Inbound traffic from anywhere to the VS is okay.

    Since the outbound packet goes through gw 192.168.8.67, i wonder if the gw will route any reply to 192.168.30.0/23, where the packets will be discarded to prevevnt IP spoofing.  Just wild guess...

    Can I configure LTM to send outbound packets for 192.168.30.0/23 through gw 192.168.31.254 instead of using default gateway of LTM 192.168.8.67 ?     Sorry for the newbie question.

    Thanks and Best Rgds