Cloud Native Data Center Networking

Chapter 7. Container Networking

Architecture is basically a container of something. I hope they will enjoy not so much the teacup, but the tea.

Yoshio Taniguchi

The evolution of application architectures has led to the current trend of microservices. Containers are the teacup delivering the tea that is microservices. If networks exist to serve the applications, it is important to understand what are the networking constructs supported best by containers for an efficient distributed systems design. As a cloud native technology, containers support simpler, more scalable, and sophisticated network options. Thus, the juxtaposition of Kubernetes with open source routing suites allows the reconsideration of how networking is done. Traditional networking features such as routing and tunnels are no longer the sole purview of specialized routers and bridges. An understanding of container networking constructs will therefore help a network engineer or designer use them with traditional routers to build a network that is best suited to the organization’s business needs. Because Linux is the de facto leader and host OS in the modern data center, this chapter will focus on the constructs provided by Linux. The goal is not so much to encourage everyone to migrate to Linux and containers as it is to educate and to make you aware of the possibilities. And how some of the pioneers are taking advantage of these possibilities.

How is this chapter on container networking different from the dozens ...