Summary

In this chapter, we covered a lot of topics related to OpenFlow. We learned about the basics and the history of the OpenFlow protocol. We were able to set up a lab with Mininet, which is a lightweight network-emulation tool that can create a full network with virtual Open vSwitch and Linux hosts. We also learned about the command-line tools that can interact directly with Open vSwitch for information gathering and troubleshooting. We continued on to look at two Python-based OpenFlow controllers, Ryu and POX. The POX controller was a clone of the original NOX controller reference design written in Python. Due to its academic nature, among other reasons, the project has lagged behind on the latest OpenFlow features, such as OpenFlow 1.3. Ryu, on the other hand, was sponsored by NTT and benefited from the production usage and experience of the service provider. We focused on the Ryu controller components and looked at how we can easily switch between Ryu applications by pointing Ryu...