Configure NetScaler BLX managed host

You can use the NetScaler BLX managed host feature to manage the Linux host through BLX. This feature automatically adds all the NIC ports of the Linux host as dedicated ports to BLX. If the ports are DPDK compatible and supported by BLX, they are bound to the DPDK VFIO module on the Linux host.

BLX selects one of the dedicated NIC ports with the default route that has the highest precedence on the Linux host. The IP address and default route of the selected port is added as the NSIP address and default route for BLX.

If the default route is not configured for the NIC ports on the Linux host, BLX randomly selects a dedicated port assigned with an IP address. The IP address of the selected port is added as the NSIP address for BLX.

By default, SSH access to the Linux host is enabled on port 9022 of the NSIP address.

Notes:

• BLX does not automatically add a Linux host bond interface (link aggregation channels), but it adds all the members of the bond interfaces to BLX.
• If multiple IP addresses are assigned for the default port, BLX displays an error message on the CLI to set the NSIP address manually in the blx.conf file.
• When you restart BLX, all the active SSH sessions to the Linux host are closed. To restore the connection, you must retry connecting to the host.
• If you manually set the NSIP address in the blx.conf file, the default route available on the Linux host is not automatically added to BLX.
• The configuration in the ns.conf file takes precedence over the blx.conf file.

Enable NetScaler BLX managed host with SSH access to the Linux host

You must use the Linux host CLI to enable BLX managed host.

1. Open the blx.conf file by running the following command:

   Note:

   You can use any text editor to edit the blx.conf file.

   nano /etc/blx/blx.conf
   <!--NeedCopy-->
   

2. Uncomment the blx-managed-host parameter and set it to 1.

   blx-system-config
   {
       ...
       blx-managed-host: 1
       ...
   }
   <!--NeedCopy-->
   

3. Ensure that other parameters are commented in the blx.conf file.

4. Save the blx.conf file.

5. Restart BLX.

   systemctl restart blx
   <!--NeedCopy-->
   

After BLX restarts, you can use an SSH client to access the Linux host and BLX on the following IP addresses.

• Linux host - <NSIP address>:9022
• BLX - <NSIP address>:22

If you want SSH access to the Linux host on port 22, you can manually set different IP addresses for NSIP and the Linux host. For more information, see Set different IP addresses for NSIP and the Linux host.

Set different IP addresses for NSIP and the Linux host

In addition to the configuration mentioned in the previous section, you must use the ipaddress, default, and host-ipaddress parameters to set different IP addresses for NSIP and the Linux host (Host IP).

You must use the Linux host CLI to enable SSH access on port 22.

1. Open the blx.conf file by running the following command:

   Note:

   You can use any text editor to edit the blx.conf file.

   nano /etc/blx/blx.conf
   <!--NeedCopy-->
   

2. Uncomment the ipaddress parameter and specify the NSIP address on which you want to access BLX.

   blx-system-config
   {
       ...
       ipaddress: <IP address>
       ...
   }
   <!--NeedCopy-->
   

3. Uncomment the host-ipaddress parameter and specify the host IP address on which you want to access the Linux host.

   Note:

   The IP address must be in the NSIP subnet.

   blx-system-config
   {
       ...
       host-ipaddress: <IP address>
       ...
   }
   <!--NeedCopy-->
   

4. Uncomment the default parameter and specify the default route.

   static-routes
   {
       …
       default <gateway IP address>
       …
   }
   <!--NeedCopy-->
   

5. Save the blx.conf file.

6. Restart BLX.

   systemctl restart blx
   <!--NeedCopy-->
   

7. After BLX restarts, verify the Host IP address by running the show nsip command in the NetScaler CLI.

   

You can use an SSH client to access the Linux host and BLX on the following IP addresses.

• Linux host - <Host IP address>:22

• BLX - <NSIP address>:22