Neutron (software)

Neutron (software)
source
Name	Neutron
Title	Neutron
Developer	OpenStack Foundation
Released	2012
Programming language	Python
Operating system	Linux
License	Apache License 2.0

Neutron (software) is the OpenStack project that provides networking as a service between interface devices managed by other OpenStack services such as Nova (software), Cinder (software), Glance (software), Keystone (software). Neutron aims to deliver programmable, API-driven network connectivity to virtual machines and containers, enabling integration with Linux Foundation, Red Hat, Canonical (company), Mirantis. Its modular model supports multiple backends and plugins used by operators in public clouds such as Rackspace, IBM Cloud, OVHcloud and private clouds deployed by enterprises like Walmart, Comcast, AT&T.

Overview

Neutron provides an Application programming interface used by OpenStack Nova to attach interfaces to instances while integrating with external systems such as Juniper Networks, Cisco Systems, Arista Networks, Mellanox Technologies, Brocade Communications Systems. Designed under the governance of the OpenStack Foundation, Neutron separates control-plane logic from data-plane implementations, enabling compatibility with Linux Kernel, Open vSwitch, DPDK, SR-IOV and NVMe-oF acceleration technologies. Early contributors included developers from Rackspace, Red Hat, HP Enterprise, IBM and SUSE.

Architecture and Components

Neutron's core architecture centers on a policy-driven server offering RESTful APIs, database persistence using PostgreSQL, MySQL, or MariaDB, and pluggable agents that implement forwarding and services. Key components include the Neutron server, ML2 plugin, mechanism drivers for Open vSwitch, Linux Bridge, and vendor drivers for Cisco Nexus, Juniper Contrail, Huawei CloudEngine. Service plugins provide L3 routing, DHCP, Load Balancer as a Service (LBaaS), Firewall as a Service (FWaaS), and VPN as a Service (VPNaaS) integrated with projects like haproxy, Keepalived, strongSwan, and IPsec. Neutron agents operate on compute nodes and network nodes interacting with systemd and configuration management tools developed by Ansible, Puppet (software), Chef (software). Telemetry and troubleshooting integrate with Ceilometer, Prometheus, Grafana, ELK Stack and Wireshark.

Deployment and Configuration

Operators deploy Neutron in architectures ranging from single-node All-in-One testbeds to multi-region production clouds using orchestration frameworks like OpenStack-Ansible, Kolla, TripleO, Juju. Configuration involves defining networks, subnets, routers, security groups and policies stored in SQLAlchemy-backed databases and exposed via the RESTful API authenticated through Keystone (OpenStack). High-availability patterns employ Pacemaker, Keepalived, and active-active clustering with backend integrations to Open vSwitch Database (OVSDB), hardware virtual routing using BGP in conjunction with FRRouting, and automation via Terraform, SaltStack.

Use Cases and Integrations

Neutron supports multi-tenant virtual networking for use cases including IaaS, PaaS platforms such as Cloud Foundry, Kubernetes, edge computing deployments by Cisco Systems and Nokia, and NFV orchestration with OSM (Open Source MANO), OPNFV. Integration fingerprints include container networking plugins for Container Network Interface, SDN controllers like ONOS, OpenDaylight, orchestration with Heat (software), and integration with Ceph storage via Cinder for stateful services. Telecommunications operators leverage Neutron for mobile core network functions connecting to 5G infrastructure, while research institutions such as CERN and NASA have validated Neutron in large-scale science clouds.

Performance, Scalability, and Reliability

Scalability strategies for Neutron include using the Modular Layer 2 (ML2) driver to distribute forwarding across agents, hardware offload with SR-IOV, dataplane acceleration via DPDK, and integration with BGP-based routing fabrics. Large deployments use multi-region Keystone federation, database sharding patterns supported by Galera Cluster, caching with Memcached and horizontal scaling of API nodes behind load balancers like HAProxy. Troubleshooting and performance measurement draw on OpenStack Telemetry, Zabbix, and packet capture tools; reliability patterns emphasize automated failover, rolling upgrades coordinated with Kolla-Ansible and CI pipelines employed by vendors such as Red Hat and Canonical.

Security and Networking Features

Neutron enforces network isolation using tenant networks, VLAN segmentation, VXLAN overlays, GRE tunnels, and security groups that map to iptables rules or Open vSwitch flows. Firewall as a Service and Distributed Firewall models integrate with iptables, nftables, and vendor security appliances from Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks. Identity and access control are managed through Keystone (OpenStack), role-based access control, and audit logging with Auditd and ELK Stack integrations. Encryption for tenant traffic can be provided via IPsec tunnels, TLS for API endpoints, and hardware root-of-trust integrations from Intel and ARM vendors.

Development and Community

Neutron development is coordinated through the OpenStack Foundation with contributions from corporations including Red Hat, Cisco, Huawei, Mirantis, SUSE and individuals collaborating on Gerrit and Launchpad repositories, with continuous integration provided by Zuul and Jenkins. The project follows OpenStack release cycles and participates in cross-project working groups addressing SDN, NFV and interoperability, with specifications reviewed in open meetings aligned with the OpenStack Technical Committee. Documentation, blueprints and community support are available via the OpenStack community, technical summits attended by participants from USENIX, IETF, IEEE, and regional user groups.

Category:OpenStack