Q: What does it mean for an Open vSwitch release to be LTS (long-term support)?
A: All official releases have been through a comprehensive testing process and are suitable for production use. Planned releases occur twice a year. If a significant bug is identified in an LTS release, we will provide an updated release that includes the fix. Releases that are not LTS may not be fixed and may just be supplanted by the next major release. The current LTS release is 2.17.x.
For more information on the Open vSwitch release process, refer to :doc:`/internals/release-process`.
Q: What Linux kernel versions does each Open vSwitch release work with?
A: The following table lists the Linux kernel versions against which the given versions of the Open vSwitch kernel module will successfully build. The Linux kernel versions are upstream kernel versions, so Linux kernels modified from the upstream sources may not build in some cases even if they are based on a supported version. This is most notably true of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) kernels, which are extensively modified from upstream.
Open vSwitch Linux kernel 1.4.x 2.6.18 to 3.2 1.5.x 2.6.18 to 3.2 1.6.x 2.6.18 to 3.2 1.7.x 2.6.18 to 3.3 1.8.x 2.6.18 to 3.4 1.9.x 2.6.18 to 3.8 1.10.x 2.6.18 to 3.8 1.11.x 2.6.18 to 3.8 2.0.x 2.6.32 to 3.10 2.1.x 2.6.32 to 3.11 2.3.x 2.6.32 to 3.14 2.4.x 2.6.32 to 4.0 2.5.x 2.6.32 to 4.3 2.6.x 3.10 to 4.7 2.7.x 3.10 to 4.9 2.8.x 3.10 to 4.12 2.9.x 3.10 to 4.13 2.10.x 3.16 to 4.17 2.11.x 3.16 to 4.18 2.12.x 3.16 to 5.0 2.13.x 3.16 to 5.0 2.14.x 3.16 to 5.5 2.15.x 3.16 to 5.8 2.16.x 3.16 to 5.8 2.17.x 3.16 to 5.8 3.0+ N/A Open vSwitch userspace should also work with the Linux kernel module built into Linux 3.3 and later.
Open vSwitch userspace is not sensitive to the Linux kernel version. It should build against almost any kernel, certainly against 2.6.32 and later.
Open vSwitch branches 2.10 through 2.14 will still compile against the RHEL and CentOS 7 3.10 based kernels since they have diverged from the Linux kernel.org 3.10 kernels.
Building the Linux kernel module from the Open vSwitch source tree was deprecated starting with Open vSwitch 2.15. And the kernel module source code was completely removed from the Open vSwitch source tree in 3.0 release.
Q: Are all features available with all datapaths?
A: Open vSwitch supports different datapaths on different platforms. Each datapath has a different feature set: the following tables try to summarize the status.
Supported datapaths:
- Linux upstream
- The datapath implemented by the kernel module shipped with Linux upstream. Since features have been gradually introduced into the kernel, the table mentions the first Linux release whose OVS module supports the feature.
- Linux OVS tree
- The datapath implemented by the Linux kernel module distributed with the OVS source tree. This datapath is deprecated starting with OVS 2.15.x and support capped at Linux kernel version 5.8. As of OVS 3.0.x the Linux OVS tree is no longer supported.
- Userspace
- This datapath supports conventional system devices as well as DPDK and AF_XDP devices when support for those is built. This is the only datapath that works on NetBSD, FreeBSD and Mac OSX.
- Hyper-V
- Also known as the Windows datapath.
The following table lists the datapath supported features from an Open vSwitch user's perspective. The "Linux upstream" column lists the Linux kernel version that introduced a given feature into its kernel module. The "Linux OVS tree" and "Userspace" columns list the Open vSwitch release versions that introduced a given feature into the included kernel module or the userspace datapath, respectively.
Feature Linux upstream Linux OVS tree Userspace Hyper-V Connection tracking 4.3 2.5 2.6 YES Connection tracking-IPv6 YES YES YES 3.0 Conntrack Fragment Reass. 4.3 2.6 2.12 YES Conntrack IPv6 Fragment 4.3 2.6 2.12 3.1 Conntrack Timeout Policies 5.2 2.12 2.14 NO Conntrack Zone Limit 4.18 2.10 2.13 YES Conntrack NAT 4.6 2.6 2.8 YES Conntrack NAT6 4.6 2.6 2.8 3.0 Tunnel - LISP NO 2.11 NO NO Tunnel - STT NO 2.4 NO YES Tunnel - GRE 3.11 1.0 2.4 YES Tunnel - VXLAN 3.12 1.10 2.4 YES Tunnel - Geneve 3.18 2.4 2.4 YES Tunnel - GRE-IPv6 4.18 2.6 2.6 NO Tunnel - VXLAN-IPv6 4.3 2.6 2.6 NO Tunnel - Geneve-IPv6 4.4 2.6 2.6 3.0 Tunnel - ERSPAN 4.18 2.10 2.10 NO Tunnel - ERSPAN-IPv6 4.18 2.10 2.10 NO Tunnel - GTP-U NO NO 2.14 NO Tunnel - SRv6 NO NO 3.2 NO Tunnel - Bareudp 5.7 NO NO NO QoS - Policing YES 1.1 2.6 NO QoS - Shaping YES 1.1 NO NO sFlow YES 1.0 1.0 NO IPFIX 3.10 1.11 1.11 YES Set action YES 1.0 1.0 PARTIAL NIC Bonding YES 1.0 1.0 YES Multiple VTEPs YES 1.10 1.10 YES Meter action 4.15 2.10 2.7 NO check_pkt_len action 5.2 2.12 2.12 NO Do note, however:
- Only a limited set of flow fields is modifiable via the set action by the Hyper-V datapath.
- Userspace datapath support, in some cases, is dependent on the associated interface types. For example, DPDK interfaces support ingress and egress policing, but not shaping.
The following table lists features that do not directly impact an Open vSwitch user, e.g. because their absence can be hidden by the ofproto layer (usually this comes with a performance penalty).
Feature Linux upstream Linux OVS tree Userspace Hyper-V SCTP flows 3.12 YES YES YES MPLS 3.19 YES YES YES UFID 4.0 YES YES NO Megaflows 3.12 YES YES NO Masked set action 4.0 YES YES NO Recirculation 3.19 YES YES YES TCP flags matching 3.13 YES YES NO Validate flow actions YES YES N/A NO Multiple datapaths YES YES YES NO Tunnel TSO - STT N/A YES NO YES
Q: What DPDK version does each Open vSwitch release work with?
A: The following table lists the DPDK version against which the given versions of Open vSwitch will successfully build.
Open vSwitch DPDK 2.2.x 1.6 2.3.x 1.6 2.4.x 2.0 2.5.x 2.2 2.6.x 16.07.2 2.7.x 16.11.9 2.8.x 17.05.2 2.9.x 17.11.10 2.10.x 17.11.10 2.11.x 18.11.9 2.12.x 18.11.9 2.13.x 19.11.13 2.14.x 19.11.13 2.15.x 20.11.6 2.16.x 20.11.6 2.17.x 21.11.2 3.0.x 21.11.2 3.1.x 22.11.1 3.2.x 22.11.1
Q: Are all the DPDK releases that OVS versions work with maintained?
No. DPDK follows YY.MM.n (Year.Month.Number) versioning.
Typically, all DPDK releases get a stable YY.MM.1 update with bugfixes 3 months after the YY.MM.0 release. In some cases there may also be a YY.MM.2 release.
DPDK LTS releases start once a year at YY.11.0 and are maintained for two years, with YY.MM.n+1 releases around every 3 months.
The latest information about DPDK stable and LTS releases can be found at DPDK stable.
Q: I get an error like this when I configure Open vSwitch:
configure: error: Linux kernel in <dir> is version <x>, but version newer than <y> is not supported (please refer to the FAQ for advice)What should I do?
A: You have the following options:
- Use the Linux kernel module supplied with the kernel that you are using. (See also the following FAQ.)
- If there is a newer released version of Open vSwitch, consider building that one, because it may support the kernel that you are building against. (To find out, consult the table in the previous FAQ.)
- The Open vSwitch "master" branch may support the kernel that you are using, so consider building the kernel module from "master".
All versions of Open vSwitch userspace are compatible with all versions of the Open vSwitch kernel module, so you do not have to use the kernel module from one source along with the userspace programs from the same source.
Q: What features are not available in the Open vSwitch kernel datapath that ships as part of the upstream Linux kernel?
A: The kernel module in upstream Linux does not include support for LISP. Work is in progress to add support for LISP to the upstream Linux version of the Open vSwitch kernel module. For now, if you need this feature, use the kernel module from the Open vSwitch distribution instead of the upstream Linux kernel module.
Certain features require kernel support to function or to have reasonable performance. If the ovs-vswitchd log file indicates that a feature is not supported, consider upgrading to a newer upstream Linux release or using the kernel module paired with the userspace distribution.
Q: Why do tunnels not work when using a kernel module other than the one packaged with Open vSwitch?
A: Support for tunnels was added to the upstream Linux kernel module after the rest of Open vSwitch. As a result, some kernels may contain support for Open vSwitch but not tunnels. The minimum kernel version that supports each tunnel protocol is:
Protocol Linux Kernel GRE 3.11 VXLAN 3.12 Geneve 3.18 ERSPAN 4.18 LISP not upstream STT not upstream If you are using a version of the kernel that is older than the one listed above, it is still possible to use that tunnel protocol. However, you must compile and install the kernel module included with the Open vSwitch distribution rather than the one on your machine. If problems persist after doing this, check to make sure that the module that is loaded is the one you expect.
Q: Why are UDP tunnel checksums not computed for VXLAN or Geneve?
A: Generating outer UDP checksums requires kernel support that was not part of the initial implementation of these protocols. If using the upstream Linux Open vSwitch module, you must use kernel 4.0 or newer. The out-of-tree modules from Open vSwitch release 2.4 and later support UDP checksums.
Q: What features are not available when using the userspace datapath?
A: Tunnel virtual ports are not supported, as described in the previous answer. It is also not possible to use queue-related actions. On Linux kernels before 2.6.39, maximum-sized VLAN packets may not be transmitted.
Q: Should userspace or kernel be upgraded first to minimize downtime?
A. In general, the Open vSwitch userspace should be used with the kernel version included in the same release or with the version from upstream Linux. However, when upgrading between two releases of Open vSwitch it is best to migrate userspace first to reduce the possibility of incompatibilities.
Q: What happened to the bridge compatibility feature?
A: Bridge compatibility was a feature of Open vSwitch 1.9 and earlier. When it was enabled, Open vSwitch imitated the interface of the Linux kernel "bridge" module. This allowed users to drop Open vSwitch into environments designed to use the Linux kernel bridge module without adapting the environment to use Open vSwitch.
Open vSwitch 1.10 and later do not support bridge compatibility. The feature was dropped because version 1.10 adopted a new internal architecture that made bridge compatibility difficult to maintain. Now that many environments use OVS directly, it would be rarely useful in any case.
To use bridge compatibility, install OVS 1.9 or earlier, including the accompanying kernel modules (both the main and bridge compatibility modules), following the instructions that come with the release. Be sure to start the ovs-brcompatd daemon.