Inter-VLAN Routing Operation
Summary
This topic describe options for configuring inter-VLAN routing. Start learning CCNA 200-301 for free right now!!
Note: Welcome: This topic is part of Module 4 of the Cisco CCNA 2 course, for a better follow up of the course you can go to the CCNA 2 section to guide you through an order.
Table of Contents
What is Inter-VLAN Routing?
VLANs are used to segment switched Layer 2 networks for a variety of reasons. Regardless of the reason, hosts in one VLAN cannot communicate with hosts in another VLAN unless there is a router or a Layer 3 switch to provide routing services.
Inter-VLAN routing is the process of forwarding network traffic from one VLAN to another VLAN.
There are three inter-VLAN routing options:
- Legacy Inter-VLAN routing – This is a legacy solution. It does not scale well.
- Router-on-a-Stick – This is an acceptable solution for a small to medium-sized network.
- Layer 3 switch using switched virtual interfaces (SVIs) – This is the most scalable solution for medium to large organizations.
Legacy Inter-VLAN Routing
The first inter-VLAN routing solution relied on using a router with multiple Ethernet interfaces. Each router interface was connected to a switch port in different VLANs. The router interfaces served as the default gateways to the local hosts on the VLAN subnet.
For example, refer to the topology where R1 has two interfaces connected to switch S1.
Notice in the example MAC address table of S1 is populated as follows:
- Fa0/1 port is assigned to VLAN 10 and is connected to the R1 G0/0/0 interface.
- Fa0/11 port is assigned to VLAN 10 and is connected to PC1.
- Fa0/12 port is assigned to VLAN 20 and is connected to the R1 G0/0/1 interface.
- Fa0/11 port is assigned to VLAN 20 and is connected to PC2.
MAC Address table for S1
| Port | MAC Address | VLAN |
|---|---|---|
| F0/1 | R1 G0/0/0 MAC | 10 |
| F0/11 | PC1 MAC | 10 |
| F0/12 | R1 G0/0/1 MAC | 20 |
| F0/24 | PC2 MAC | 20 |
When PC1 sends a packet to PC2 on another network, it forwards it to its default gateway 192.168.10.1. R1 receives the packet on its G0/0/0 interface and examines the destination address of the packet. R1 then routes the packet out its G0/0/1 interface to the F0/12 port in VLAN 20 on S1. Finally, S1 forwards the frame to PC2.
Legacy inter-VLAN routing using physical interfaces works, but it has a significant limitation. It is not reasonably scalable because routers have a limited number of physical interfaces. Requiring one physical router interface per VLAN quickly exhausts the physical interface capacity of a router.
In our example, R1 required two separate Ethernet interfaces to route between VLAN 10 and VLAN 20. What if there were six (or more) VLANs to interconnect? A separate interface would be required for each VLAN. Obviously, this solution is not scalable.
Note: This method of inter-VLAN routing is no longer implemented in switched networks and is included for explanation purposes only.
Router-on-a-Stick Inter-VLAN Routing
The ‘router-on-a-stick’ inter-VLAN routing method overcomes the limitation of the legacy inter-VLAN routing method. It only requires one physical Ethernet interface to route traffic between multiple VLANs on a network.
A Cisco IOS router Ethernet interface is configured as an 802.1Q trunk and connected to a trunk port on a Layer 2 switch. Specifically, the router interface is configured using subinterfaces to identify routable VLANs.
The configured subinterfaces are software-based virtual interfaces. Each is associated with a single physical Ethernet interface. Subinterfaces are configured in software on a router. Each subinterface is independently configured with an IP address and VLAN assignment. Subinterfaces are configured for different subnets that correspond to their VLAN assignment. This facilitates logical routing.
When VLAN-tagged traffic enters the router interface, it is forwarded to the VLAN subinterface. After a routing decision is made based on the destination IP network address, the router determines the exit interface for the traffic. If the exit interface is configured as an 802.1q subinterface, the data frames are VLAN-tagged with the new VLAN and sent back out the physical interface.
Click Play in the figure to view an animation of how a router-on-a-stick performs its routing function.
As seen in the animation, PC1 on VLAN 10 is communicating with PC3 on VLAN 30. When R1 accepts the tagged unicast traffic on VLAN 10, it routes that traffic to VLAN 30, using its configured subinterfaces. Switch S2 removes the VLAN tag of the unicast frame and forwards the frame out to PC3 on port F0/23.
Note: The router-on-a-stick method of inter-VLAN routing does not scale beyond 50 VLANs.
Inter-VLAN Routing on a Layer 3 Switch
The modern method of performing inter-VLAN routing is to use Layer 3 switches and switched virtual interfaces (SVI). An SVI is a virtual interface that is configured on a Layer 3 switch, as shown in the figure.
Note: A Layer 3 switch is also called a multilayer switch as it operates at Layer 2 and Layer 3. However, in this course we use the term Layer 3 switch.
Inter-VLAN SVIs are created the same way that the management VLAN interface is configured. The SVI is created for a VLAN that exists on the switch. Although virtual, the SVI performs the same functions for the VLAN as a router interface would. Specifically, it provides Layer 3 processing for packets that are sent to or from all switch ports associated with that VLAN.
The following are advantages of using Layer 3 switches for inter-VLAN routing:
- They are much faster than router-on-a-stick because everything is hardware switched and routed.
- There is no need for external links from the switch to the router for routing.
- They are not limited to one link because Layer 2 EtherChannels can be used as trunk links between the switches to increase bandwidth.
- Latency is much lower because data does not need to leave the switch in order to be routed to a different network.
- They more commonly deployed in a campus LAN than routers.
The only disadvantage is that Layer 3 switches are more expensive.
Glossary: If you have doubts about any special term, you can consult this computer network dictionary.
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