RackConnect v2.0 with Cloud Networks FAQ

RackConnect support for Cloud Networks is available as of January 16, 2013.

Attaching/detaching a Cloud Network on a running RackConnected Cloud Server reset the network stack, which breaks the cloud server's RackConnect connectivity. Therefore, we don't recommend attaching or detaching Cloud Networks to running RackConnect servers. If you need to attach or detach a network, contact your Support team before making the change.

2. You must make sure to create cloud servers with the PublicNet and ServiceNet networks enabled, in addition to your Cloud Network. These PublicNet and ServiceNet networks are selected by default, and as a RackConnect customer, you cannot uncheck them in the my.rackspace.com portal or the Cloud Control Panel. But, if you are using the Cloud Servers API to create cloud servers, you can use API options to create cloud servers without the PublicNet or ServiceNet networks to avoid RackConnect failures. Be sure not to disable the PublicNet or ServiceNet networks when using the API to create new cloud servers.

3. Because RackConnect controls the software firewalls on your cloud servers through Network Policies, you also need to create a RackConnect Network Policy to allow communication between the cloud servers across the Cloud Network. Configure the Network Policy as follows:

• Set Access Scenario to Dedicated to Cloud Server(s).
• Set Source Server Network to the network configured for your Cloud Network.

Note: You need to create this Network Policy, even if you already have a Cloud Server(s) to Cloud Server(s) Network Policy allowing all traffic.

Cloud Networks itself normally supports any network range, but if you plan to use the Cloud Network with RackConnected cloud servers, we suggest you limit the network ranges you use to the following Private Address Spaces:

• 10.x.x.x/8 *
• 172.16.x.x/12 -> 172.31.x.x/12 *
• 192.168.x.x/16 *

Note: When you create Cloud Networks, adhere to the following guidelines to avoid connectivity issues:

• Avoid using a network range that overlaps with 10.176.0.0/12 or 10.208.0.0/12.
• **Avoid using a network range that is already in use in your Dedicated environment.**
• **Avoid using Public IP address network ranges.**

In other words, can you have a single network, let's say **192.168.x.x/24**, for your dedicated servers and also for your cloud servers so that they can communicate as if they are all on the same network? Currently, the answer is **no**. Your cloud servers connect to RackConnect through a ServiceNet NIC and use a separate Cloud Networks NIC for Cloud Networks connectivity. The ServiceNet Network and the Cloud Network are two distinct networks that do not directly connect.