SPAN and ERSPAN

SPAN (Switched Port Analyzer) enables you to mirror all packets that come in from or go out of an interface (the SPAN source), and copy and transmit the packets out of a local port or CPU (the SPAN destination) for monitoring. The SPAN destination port is also referred to as a mirror-to-port (MTP). The original packet is still switched, while a mirrored copy of the packet is sent out of the MTP.

ERSPAN (Encapsulated Remote SPAN) enables the mirrored packets to be sent to a monitoring node located anywhere across the routed network. The switch finds the outgoing port of the mirrored packets by looking up the destination IP address in its routing table. The original layer 2 packet is encapsulated with GRE for IP delivery. The encapsulated packets have the following format:

 ----------------------------------------------------------
| MAC_HEADER | IP_HEADER | GRE_HEADER | L2_Mirrored_Packet |
 ----------------------------------------------------------

You can configure SPAN and ERSPAN in one of the following ways:

• With NCLU commands (Mellanox switches only)
• With ACL rules (Mellanox and Broadcom switches)
• Manually by editing the /etc/cumulus/switchd.d/port-mirror.conf file - for advanced users (Mellanox switches only)

All three methods are described below.

NCLU Configuration

• To configure SPAN with NCLU, run the net add port-mirror session <session-id> (ingress|egress) span src-port <interface> dst-port <interface> command.
• To configure ERSPAN with NCLU, run the net add port-mirror session <session-id> (ingress|egress) erspan src-port <interface> src-ip <interface> dst-ip <ip-address> command.

The command parameters are described below.

The NCLU commands save the configuration in the /etc/cumulus/switchd.d/port-mirror.conf file.

Example Commands

The following example commands mirror all packets received on swp1, and copy and transmit the packets to swp2 for monitoring:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add port-mirror session 1 ingress span src-port swp1 dst-port swp2
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

The following example commands mirror all packets that are sent out of swp1, and copy and transmit the packets to swp2 for monitoring:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add port-mirror session 1 egress span src-port swp1 dst-port swp2
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

The following example commands mirror all packets recieved on swp1, and copy and transmit the packets from source IP address 10.10.10.1 to destination IP address 10.10.10.234 through a GRE tunnel:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add port-mirror session 1 ingress erspan src-port swp1 src-ip 10.10.10.1 dst-ip 10.10.10.234
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

The following example commands mirror all packets that are sent out of swp1, and copy and transmit the packets from source IP address 10.10.10.1 to destination IP address 10.10.10.234 through a GRE tunnel:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add port-mirror session 1 egress erspan src-port swp1 src-ip 10.10.10.1 dst-ip 10.10.10.234
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

Show Session Configuration

Run the following commands to show the currently configured SPAN and ERSPAN sessions:

To show SPAN and ERSPAN configuration for a specific session:

cumulus@switch:~$ net show port-mirror session 1
session-id  direction  type  src   dest
----------  ---------  ----  ----  -----
         1  ingress    span  swp1  swp2

To show SPAN and ERSPAN configuration for all sessions:

cumulus@switch:~$ net show port-mirror session all
session-id  direction  type  src   dest
----------  ---------  ----  ----  -----
         1  ingress    span  swp1  swp2

Delete Sessions

To delete a SPAN or ERSPAN session, run the net del port-mirror session <session-id> command. For example:

cumulus@switch:~$ net del port-mirror session 1
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

You can delete all SPAN or ERSPAN sessions with the net del port-mirror session all command. For example:

cumulus@switch:~$ net del port-mirror session all
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

cl-acltool Configuration

You can configure SPAN and ERSPAN with cl-acltool, the same utility used for security ACL configuration. The match criteria for SPAN and ERSPAN is usually an interface; for more granular match terms, use selective spanning. The SPAN source interface can be a port, a subinterface, or a bond interface. Ingress traffic on interfaces can be matched, and on switches with Spectrum ASICs, egress traffic can be matched.

Limitations

• For Broadcom switches, Cumulus Linux supports a maximum of two SPAN destinations.
• For Mellanox switches with the Spectrum-2 ASIC or later, Cumulus Linux supports four SPAN destinations in atomic mode or eight SPAN destinations in non-atomic mode. On a switch with the Spectrum 1 ASIC, Cumulus Linux supports only a single SPAN destination in atomic mode or three SPAN destinations in non-atomic mode.
• To configure SPAN or ERSPAN on a Tomahawk or Trident3 switch, you must enable non-atomic update mode.
• Mellanox Spectrum switches reject SPAN ACL rules for an output interface that is a subinterface.
• Multiple rules (SPAN sources) can point to the same SPAN destination, but a given SPAN source cannot specify two SPAN destinations.

SPAN for Switch Ports

Follow the procedure below to set up, install, and verify SPAN rules.

The example commands span (mirror) swp1 input traffic and swp1 output traffic to destination swp2.

1. Create a rules file in /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/:

   cumulus@switch:~$ sudo bash -c 'cat <<EOF > /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/span.rules
   [iptables]
   -A FORWARD --in-interface swp1 -j SPAN --dport swp2
   -A FORWARD --out-interface swp1 -j SPAN --dport swp2
   EOF'
   

   Using cl-acltool with the --out-interface rule applies to transit traffic only; it does not apply to traffic sourced from the switch.

2. Verify all the rules that are currently installed:

   cumulus@switch:~$ sudo iptables -L -v
   Chain INPUT (policy ACCEPT 0 packets, 0 bytes)
     pkts bytes target     prot opt in     out     source               destination
        0     0 DROP       all  --  swp+   any     240.0.0.0/5          anywhere
        0     0 DROP       all  --  swp+   any     loopback/8           anywhere
        0     0 DROP       all  --  swp+   any     base-address.mcast.net/8  anywhere
        0     0 DROP       all  --  swp+   any     255.255.255.255      anywhere
        0     0 SETCLASS   ospf --  swp+   any     anywhere             anywhere             SETCLASS  class:7
        0     0 POLICE     ospf --  any    any     anywhere             anywhere             POLICE  mode:pkt rate:2000 burst:2000
        0     0 SETCLASS   tcp  --  swp+   any     anywhere             anywhere             tcp dpt:bgp SETCLASS  class:7
        0     0 POLICE     tcp  --  any    any     anywhere             anywhere             tcp dpt:bgp POLICE  mode:pkt rate:2000 burst:2000
        0     0 SETCLASS   tcp  --  swp+   any     anywhere             anywhere             tcp spt:bgp SETCLASS  class:7
        0     0 POLICE     tcp  --  any    any     anywhere             anywhere             tcp spt:bgp POLICE  mode:pkt rate:2000 burst:2000
        0     0 SETCLASS   tcp  --  swp+   any     anywhere             anywhere             tcp dpt:5342 SETCLASS  class:7
        0     0 POLICE     tcp  --  any    any     anywhere             anywhere             tcp dpt:5342 POLICE  mode:pkt
   ...
   Chain FORWARD (policy ACCEPT 0 packets, 0 bytes)
     pkts bytes target     prot opt in     out     source               destination
        0     0 DROP       all  --  swp+   any     240.0.0.0/5          anywhere
        0     0 DROP       all  --  swp+   any     loopback/8           anywhere
        0     0 DROP       all  --  swp+   any     base-address.mcast.net/8  anywhere
        0     0 DROP       all  --  swp+   any     255.255.255.255      anywhere
    26864 4672K SPAN       all  --  swp1   any     anywhere             anywhere             dport:swp2  <---- input packets on swp1
   
   40722   47M  SPAN       all  --  any    swp1     anywhere             anywhere             dport:swp2  <---- output packets on swp1
   
   Chain OUTPUT (policy ACCEPT 67398 packets, 5757K bytes)
     pkts bytes target     prot opt in     out     source               destination
   

3. Install the rules:

   cumulus@switch:~$ sudo cl-acltool -i
   Reading rule file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/00control_plane.rules ...
   Processing rules in file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/00control_plane.rules ...
   Reading rule file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/99control_plane_catch_all.rules ...
   Processing rules in file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/99control_plane_catch_all.rules ...
   Reading rule file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/span.rules ...
   Processing rules in file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/span.rules ...
   Installing acl policy
   done.
   

   Running the following command is incorrect. The command removes all existing control-plane rules or other installed rules and only installs the rules defined in span.rules:

   cumulus@switch:~$ sudo cl-acltool -i  -P /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/span.rules
   

4. Verify that the SPAN rules are installed:

   cumulus@switch:~$ sudo cl-acltool -L all | grep SPAN
   38025 7034K SPAN       all  --  swp1   any     anywhere             anywhere             dport:swp2
   50832   55M SPAN       all  --  any    swp1    anywhere             anywhere             dport:swp2
   

SPAN Sessions that Reference an Outgoing Interface

SPAN sessions that reference an outgoing interface create the mirrored packets based on the ingress interface before the routing decision. For example, the following rule captures traffic that is ultimately destined to leave swp1 but mirrors the packets when they arrive on swp49. The rule transmits packets that reference the original VLAN tag and source/destination MAC address at the time the packet is originally received on swp49.

-A FORWARD --out-interface swp1 -j SPAN --dport swp2

SPAN for Bonds

To configure SPAN for all packets going out of bond0 locally to bond1:

1. Create a rules file in /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/:

   cumulus@switch:~$ sudo bash -c 'cat <<EOF > /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/span_bond.rules
   [iptables]
   -A FORWARD --out-interface bond0 -j SPAN --dport bond1
   EOF'
   

   Using cl-acltool with the --out-interface rule applies to transit traffic only; it does not apply to traffic sourced from the switch.

2. Install the rules:

   cumulus@switch:~$ sudo cl-acltool -i
   [sudo] password for cumulus:
   Reading rule file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/00control_plane.rules ...
   Processing rules in file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/00control_plane.rules ...
   Reading rule file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/99control_plane_catch_all.rules ...
   Processing rules in file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/99control_plane_catch_all.rules ...
   Reading rule file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/span_bond.rules ...
   Processing rules in file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/span_bond.rules ...
   Installing acl policy
   done.
   

3. Verify that the SPAN rules are installed:

   cumulus@switch:~$ sudo iptables -L -v | grep SPAN
       19  1938 SPAN       all  --  any    bond0   anywhere         anywhere         dport:bond1
   

CPU port as the SPAN Destination

You can set the CPU port as a SPAN destination interface to mirror data plane traffic to the CPU. The SPAN traffic is sent to a separate network interface mirror where you can analyze it with tcpdump. This is a useful feature if you do not have any free external ports on the switch for monitoring. SPAN traffic does not appear on switch ports.

Cumulus Linux controls how much traffic reaches the CPU so that mirrored traffic does not overwhelm the CPU.

To use the CPU port as the SPAN destination, create a file in the /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/ directory and add the rules. The following example rule matches on swp1 ingress traffic that has the source IP Address 10.10.1.1. When a match occurs, the traffic is mirrored to the CPU:

[iptables]
     -A FORWARD -i swp1 -s 10.10.1.1 -j SPAN --dport cpu

This example rule matches on swp1 egress traffic that has the source IP Address 10.10.1.1. When a match occurs, the traffic is mirrored to the CPU:

[iptables]
     -A FORWARD -o swp1 -s 10.10.1.1 -j SPAN --dport cpu

Install the rules:

cumulus@switch:~$ sudo cl-acltool -i

You can use tcpcdump to monitor traffic mirrored to the CPU on the switch. You can also use filters for tcpdump. To use tcpcdump to monitor traffic mirrored to the CPU, run the following command:

cumulus@switch:~$ sudo tcpdump -i mirror

Example SPAN Rules

To mirror forwarded packets from all ports matching source IP address 20.0.1.0 and destination IP address 20.0.1.2 to port swp1s1:

-A FORWARD --in-interface swp+ -s 20.0.0.2 -d 20.0.1.2 -j SPAN --dport swp1s2

To mirror ICMP packets from all ports to swp1s2:

-A FORWARD --in-interface swp+ -s 20.0.0.2 -p icmp -j SPAN --dport swp1s2

To mirror forwarded UDP packets received from port swp1s0, towards destination IP address 20.0.1.2 and destination port 53:

-A FORWARD --in-interface swp1s0 -d 20.0.1.2 -p udp --dport 53 -j SPAN --dport swp1s2

To mirror all forwarded TCP packets with only SYN set:

-A FORWARD --in-interface swp+ -p tcp --tcp-flags ALL SYN -j SPAN --dport swp1s2

To mirror all forwarded TCP packets with only FIN set:

-A FORWARD --in-interface swp+ -p tcp --tcp-flags ALL FIN -j SPAN --dport swp1s2

ERSPAN

This section describes how to configure ERSPAN.

1. Create a rules file in /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/. The following rule configures ERSPAN for all packets coming in from swp1 to destination 10.10.10.234.

   cumulus@switch:~$ sudo bash -c 'cat <<EOF > /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/erspan.rules
   [iptables]
   -A FORWARD --in-interface swp1 -j ERSPAN --src-ip 10.0.0.1 --dst-ip 10.10.10.234  --ttl 64
   EOF'
   

2. Install the rules:

   cumulus@switch:~$ sudo cl-acltool -i
   Reading rule file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/00control_plane.rules ...
   Processing rules in file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/00control_plane.rules ...
   Reading rule file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/99control_plane_catch_all.rules ...
   Processing rules in file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/99control_plane_catch_all.rules ...
   Reading rule file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/erspan.rules ...
   Processing rules in file /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/erspan.rules ...
   Installing acl policy
   done.
   

3. Verify that the ERSPAN rules are installed:

   cumulus@switch:~$ sudo iptables -L -v | grep SPAN
   69  6804 ERSPAN     all  --  swp1   any     anywhere      anywhere       ERSPAN src-ip:10.0.0.1 dst-ip:10.10.10.234
   

The src-ip option can be any IP address, even if it does not exist in the routing table. The dst-ip option must be an IP address reachable through the routing table. The destination IP address must be reachable from a front-panel port; not the management port. Use ping or ip route get <ip> to verify that the destination IP address is reachable. Setting the --ttl option is recommended.

If a SPAN destination IP address is not available, or if the interface type prevents using a laptop as a SPAN destination, refer to knowledge base article.

Example ERSPAN Rules

To mirror forwarded packets from all ports matching the source IP address 10.0.0.1 and the destination IP address 10.10.10.234:

-A FORWARD --in-interface swp+ -s 20.0.0.2 -d 20.0.1.2 -j ERSPAN --src-ip 10.0.0.1 --dst-ip 10.10.10.234

To mirror ICMP packets from all ports:

-A FORWARD --in-interface swp+ -s 20.0.0.2 -p icmp -j ERSPAN --src-ip 10.0.0.1 --dst-ip 10.10.10.234

To mirror forwarded UDP packets received from port swp1s0, towards destination IP address 10.10.10.234 and destination port 53:

-A FORWARD --in-interface swp1s0 -d 20.0.1.2 -p udp --dport 53 -j ERSPAN --src-ip 10.0.0.1 --10.10.10.234

To mirror all forwarded TCP packets with only SYN set:

-A FORWARD --in-interface swp+ -p tcp --tcp-flags ALL SYN -j ERSPAN --src-ip 10.0.0.1 --dst-ip 10.10.10.234

To mirror all forwarded TCP packets with only FIN set:

-A FORWARD --in-interface swp+ -p tcp --tcp-flags ALL FIN -j ERSPAN --src-ip 10.0.0.1 --dst-ip 10.10.10.234

Selective Spanning

To reduce the volume of copied data, you can configure SPAN and ERSPAN traffic rules to limit the traffic spanned.

Cumulus Linux supports selective spanning for iptables only. ip6tables and ebtables are not supported.

The following matching fields are supported:

• IPv4 SIP/DIP
• IP protocol
• Layer 4 (TCP/UDP) src/dst port
• TCP flags
• An ingress port/wildcard (swp+) can be specified in addition

With ERSPAN, a maximum of two --src-ip --dst-ip pairs are supported. Exceeding this limit produces an error when you install the rules with cl-acltool.

Remove Rules

To remove your SPAN or ERSPAN rules, remove the rules file, then reload the default rules. For example:

cumulus@switch:~$ sudo rm  /etc/cumulus/acl/policy.d/span.rules
cumulus@switch:~$ sudo cl-acltool -i

To verify that the rules are removed:

cumulus@switch:~$ sudo cl-acltool -L all | grep SPAN

Manual Configuration (Advanced)

You can configure SPAN and ERSPAN by editing the /etc/cumulus/switchd.d/port-mirror.conf file. The NCLU commands save SPAN and ERSPAN configuration to this file.

The following example SPAN configuration mirrors all packets received on swp1, and copies and transmits the packets to swp2 for monitoring:

cumulus@switch:~$ sudo nano /etc/cumulus/switchd.d/port-mirror.conf
...
#
# [session_n]
# session-id = n
# mirror.session.n.direction = (ingress | egress)
# mirror.session.n.src = <swpx, bond>
# mirror.session.n.dest = (swpx | <src-ip> <dst-ip>)
# mirror.session.n.type = (span | erspan | none)
#
# Default is all sessions off
# mirror.session.all.type = none
[session_1]
session-id = 1
mirror.session.1.direction = ingress
mirror.session.1.src = swp1
mirror.session.1.dest = swp2
mirror.session.1.type = span

After you edit the configuration file, run the following command to the load the configuration:

cumulus@switch:~$ /usr/lib/cumulus/switchdctl --load /etc/cumulus/switchd.d/port-mirror.conf -prefix mirror