How to Create Private Network for Interconnecting VPSes on Linux Based Server

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In this wiki article, we'll walk you through the process of setting up a private network to interconnect multiple Virtual Private Servers (VPS). A private network allows these servers to communicate securely and efficiently, fostering collaboration and data transfer between them. By communicating directly within the private network, VPS instances can experience lower latency compared to traversing external networks. This reduction in latency contributes to faster data transfer and response times, making efficient use of available bandwidth.

Prerequisites:

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• VPS with a supported Linux distribution installed (e.g., Ubuntu, AlmaLinux).

• Root or sudo access to the VPS instances

• To set up a private network, your VPS must be assigned a private IP address. To allocate a private IP address for your VPS, please reach out to us via a support ticket.

Steps to configure a Private Network on VPS:

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Identify Network Interface

ip a

In the output, look for the network interface you want to configure (e.g., ens3).

If your current public network is with DHCP and you want to keep it that way, choose Method 1 Conversely, if you'd rather set both the Public Network and Private Network to 'Static', opt for Method 2

Method 1: Keeping public IP as DHCP and internal IP as static

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As your server is already with DHCP, there is no need to change with public network interface file.

RHEL / CentOS / Fedora

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Create Network Configuration File for Private Network:

sudo nano /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-ens3:1

Add the following configuration to the file, adjusting the values according to your specific network requirements:

TYPE=Ethernet
BOOTPROTO=none
IPADDR=VPS_PRIVATE_IP   # Set your desired private IP address
NETMASK=IP_NETMASK      # Set your subnet mask
GATEWAY=IP_GATEWAY"     # Set your gateway address
DNS1=8.8.8.8            # Set your primary DNS server
DNS2=8.8.4.4            # Set your secondary DNS server
NAME=ens3:1
DEVICE=ens3:1
ONBOOT=yes

Save the changes and exit the text editor.

Restart NetworkManager:

sudo systemctl restart NetworkManager

Check the Configuration

ip a

Debian / Ubuntu

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Create Network Configuration File for Private Network:

sudo nano /etc/netplan/00-private-netcfg.yaml

Add the following configuration to the file, adjusting the values according to your specific network requirements:

network:
  version: 2
  renderer: networkd
  ethernets:
    ens3:
      addresses:
        - YOUR_PRIVATE_IP_with_PREFIX
      routes:
        - to: default
          via: YOUR_PRIVATE_IP_GATEWAY
      nameservers:
        addresses:
          - 8.8.8.8
          - 8.8.4.4

Save the changes and exit the text editor.

Apply the Changes

sudo netplan apply

Restart Networking Service

sudo systemctl restart systemd-networkd

Check the Configuration

ip addr

Method 2: Configure both public IP and internal IP as static

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If your server network is with DHCP, you can easily switch it to a static IP address by following the below mentioned steps,

RHEL / CentOS / Fedora

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Open the Network Configuration File:

sudo nano /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-ens3

Edit the Configuration:

TYPE=Ethernet
PROXY_METHOD=none
BROWSER_ONLY=no
BOOTPROTO=static
DEFROUTE=yes
IPV4_FAILURE_FATAL=no
IPV6INIT=yes
IPV6_AUTOCONF=yes
IPV6_DEFROUTE=yes
IPV6_FAILURE_FATAL=no
IPV6_ADDR_GEN_MODE=eui64
NAME=ens3
UUID=62de617a-5f83-4ecb-a54c-89afd27ee4a7
DEVICE=ens3
ONBOOT=yes
IPADDR=YOUR_SERVER_PUBLIC_IP_ADDRESS    # The desired static IPv4 address for the interface
NETMASK=IP_SUBNET_MASK                  # The subnet mask for your network
GATEWAY=YOUR_GATEWAY_IP                 # The IP address of your gateway.
DNS1=8.8.8.8                            # The IP address of your primary DNS server.
DNS2=8.8.4.4                            # The IP address of your secondary DNS server

Save the changes and exit the text editor.

Create Network Configuration File for Private Network:

sudo nano /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-ens3:1

Add the following configuration to the file, adjusting the values according to your specific network requirements:

TYPE=Ethernet
BOOTPROTO=none
IPADDR=VPS_PRIVATE_IP   # Set your desired private IP address
NETMASK=IP_NETMASK      # Set your subnet mask
GATEWAY=IP_GATEWAY"     # Set your gateway address
DNS1=8.8.8.8            # Set your primary DNS server
DNS2=8.8.4.4            # Set your secondary DNS server
NAME=ens3:1
DEVICE=ens3:1
ONBOOT=yes

Save the changes and exit the text editor.

Restart NetworkManager

sudo systemctl restart NetworkManager

Check the Configuration

ip a

Debian / Ubuntu

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Open the Network Configuration File:

sudo nano /etc/netplan/<your_network_config_file>

Replace the with actual name of your network file (e.g., '00-network-manager-all.yaml' or '00-installer-config.yaml') To navigate the 'network' file, List the files in the directory /etc/netplan/. If you see multiple files, choose the one that corresponds to your network setup.

Edit the Configuration:

network:
  version: 2
  renderer: networkd
  ethernets:
    ens3:
      addresses:
        - YOUR_SERVER_IP_with_PREFIX
      routes:
        - to: default
          via: YOUR_IP_GATEWAY
      nameservers:
        addresses:
          - 8.8.8.8
          - 8.8.4.4

Save the changes and exit the text editor.

Create Network Configuration File for Private Network:

sudo nano /etc/netplan/00-private-netcfg.yaml

Add the following configuration to the file, adjusting the values according to your specific network requirements:

network:
  version: 2
  renderer: networkd
  ethernets:
    ens3:
      addresses:
        - YOUR_PRIVATE_IP_with_PRIFIX
      routes:
        - to: default
          via: YOUR_PRIVATE_IP_GATEWAY
      nameservers:
        addresses:
          - 8.8.8.8
          - 8.8.4.4

Save the changes and exit the text editor.

Apply the Changes

sudo netplan apply

Restart Networking Service

sudo systemctl restart systemd-networkd

Check the Configuration

ip addr

You can verify the connectivity of your private IP by pinging it

ping your_private_ip_address

If you have multiple VPSes within the same datacenter with us, you can establish interconnectivity between them by assigning private IP addresses to each of your VPSes by following the above mentioned steps.