Teaming or bonding modes are configurations used primarily in networking to provide redundancy and increase throughput by combining multiple network interfaces at the hardware or operating system level. This setup is often referred to as link aggregation, network bonding, or NIC (Network Interface Card) teaming. It can be crucial for environments requiring high availability, fault tolerance, or higher bandwidth.
Key Concepts
Redundancy: Ensures continuous network availability even if one of the network interfaces fails.
Load Balancing: Distributes traffic across multiple network links to utilize the full potential of network bandwidth.
Aggregation: Combines multiple network connections into a single logical link to increase the bandwidth beyond what a single connection could deliver.
Mode | Policy | Fault Tolerance (FT) | Load Balancing (LB) | Features |
mode=0 | Round-Robin | Yes | Yes | Default mode where packets are transmitted/received in a round-robin fashion. |
mode=1 | Active-Passive | Yes | No | Only one secondary is active. If active NIC fails, then this secondary acts as the active NIC. |
mode=2 | Exclusive OR (XOR) | Yes | Yes | Transmits based on the XOR formula. Once the connection between NIC and matched device is established, the same NIC is used to transmit/receive to the destination MAC. |
mode=3 | Broadcast | Yes | No | All packets are sent on all secondary interfaces for an ultra-reliable network. |
mode=4 | IEEE 802.3 ad Dynamic Link Aggregation | Yes | Yes | Creates aggregation groups that share the same duplex settings and speed. |
mode=5 | Adaptive Transmit Load Balancing (TLB) | Yes | Yes | Outgoing traffic is distributed according to the current load on each secondary. |
mode=6 | Adaptive Load Balancing (ALB) | Yes | Yes | Receive load balancing is achieved through Address Resolution Protocol negotiation. |
Conclusion:
NIC teaming or bonding is a versatile tool in network management, enhancing connectivity reliability and optimizing the performance of network links. When planning to implement teaming, consider your specific network needs, the capabilities of your infrastructure, and the support for different modes in your operating system and network equipment.