Explains static vs DHCP IP sources in pool mode, the two-DHCP-conversations
architecture, when to use each, and adds a DHCP homelab deployment example.
Also updates bridge setup section for veth pair approach.
Replace all br-external references with br-wan. Update setup-ovn.sh
command examples to use --wan-bridge/--wan-iface/--macvlan instead of
--external-bridge/--external-iface/--direct.
Part of mulga-742.
Direct bridge (WAN NIC added directly to OVS) is preferred when a
dedicated WAN NIC exists. Enables distributed NAT, no MAC workarounds,
host can reach VMs. Macvlan is fallback for single-NIC hosts only.
Three blockers fixed for VPC public subnet E2E on single-node:
1. OVN SB stale data: reset-dev-env.sh now deletes both NB+SB DB files
instead of individual NB cleanup. Eliminates ovn-controller commit
failure loop from stale chassis/port binding entries.
2. Chassis name mismatch: reset-dev-env.sh passes --chassis-id=chassis-node1
to setup-ovn.sh, aligning OVS system-id with vpcd's chassis-{nodeName}.
3. Macvlan unicast filtering: switched to centralized NAT (no external_mac
on DNAT rules), set nat-addresses=router on localnet ports, and vpcd
aligns macvlan MAC with OVN gateway router MAC on startup. Macvlan only
delivers unicast matching its own MAC — this ensures inbound traffic
from the LAN reaches OVS/OVN.
Also fixed: DNS for VMs. admin init auto-detects host DNS servers via
resolvectl, stores them in spinifex.toml dns_servers field, and vpcd
propagates them to OVN DHCP options. Fallback: 8.8.8.8 + 1.1.1.1.
Validated E2E: inbound ping, SSH, outbound ping, DNS, curl, apt update.
The single-nic IP migration path was fragile and caused connectivity
issues during setup. macvlan is now the only bridge strategy — always
creates spx-ext-{nic} on the WAN NIC. Removed --single-nic flag,
SingleNIC config/detection fields, and updated all docs.
Phase 8a: Wire all 5 EIP gateway actions (AllocateAddress, ReleaseAddress,
AssociateAddress, DisassociateAddress, DescribeAddresses) end-to-end through
gateway → NATS → daemon → EIP service.
Phase 8b: Wire all 7 SG gateway actions (Create/Delete/Describe SecurityGroup,
Authorize/Revoke Ingress/Egress) through the same pipeline.
Critical fix: handleIGWAttach was not calling SetGatewayChassis on the gateway
router port. Without this, OVN has no chassis binding for external traffic —
SNAT/default route exist logically but packets have nowhere to go physically.
This was the root cause of outbound routing failure (can't ping 8.8.8.8).
Default VPC now matches AWS behavior: auto-creates IGW (attached),
MapPublicIpOnLaunch=true on default subnet, and a default security group
with intra-SG inbound allow + all outbound allow.
Comprehensive VPC networking docs rewrite covering modes, bridge setup,
configuration, security groups, EIPs, OVN reference, and troubleshooting.
Julian Sommer