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Configuring End Hosts for Static Mode Gatekeeper Deployment

This guide provides step-by-step instructions for configuring end hosts with a /32 subnet mask and the Gatekeeper LAN/VLAN VIP as the default gateway. These steps are required for:

  • Static mode Gatekeeper deployments
  • Static end hosts in any Gatekeeper deployment

Ubuntu 22.04 Server Configuration​

Important: Execute all CLI commands as a sudo user. It is recommended to perform these operations from a direct console connection rather than SSH, as we will be modifying the default gateway.

Step 1: Verify Existing Network Configuration​

First, check your current netplan configuration and routing table:

sudo su
cat /etc/netplan/00-installer-config.yaml

# This is the network config written by 'subiquity'
network:
  ethernets:
    ens160:
      addresses:
        - 172.16.81.10/24
      nameservers:
        addresses: [ "8.8.8.8" ]
      routes:
        - to: default
          via: 172.16.81.1
  version: 2

Check your current routing table:

ip route

Example output:

default via 172.16.81.1 dev ens160 proto static 
172.16.81.0/24 dev ens160 proto kernel scope link src 172.16.81.10 
172.17.0.0/16 dev docker0 proto kernel scope link src 172.17.0.1 linkdown

Step 2: Edit Netplan Configuration​

Edit the netplan configuration file to set the mask as /32 and the default gateway as the Gatekeeper LAN/VLAN VIP. In this example, the Gatekeeper LAN/VLAN VIP is 172.16.81.254.

sudo vi /etc/netplan/00-installer-config.yaml

Update the configuration to look like this:

# This is the network config written by 'subiquity'
network:
  ethernets:
    ens160:
      addresses:
        - 172.16.81.10/32
      nameservers:
        addresses: [ "8.8.8.8" ]
      routes:
        - to: 172.16.81.254/32
          scope: link
        - to: 0.0.0.0/0
          via: 172.16.81.254
  version: 2

Step 3: Apply Netplan Configuration​

Apply the new network configuration:

sudo netplan apply

Step 4: Verify Routing Configuration​

Check that the default route has been configured correctly:

ip route

Expected output:

default via 172.16.81.254 dev ens160 proto static 
172.16.81.254 dev ens160 proto static scope link

Step 5: Verify Gateway Reachability​

Confirm that you can reach the new gateway:

ping 172.16.81.254

Example output:

PING 172.16.81.254 (172.16.81.254) 56(84) bytes of data.
64 bytes from 172.16.81.254: icmp_seq=1 ttl=64 time=0.480 ms
64 bytes from 172.16.81.254: icmp_seq=2 ttl=64 time=0.401 ms
64 bytes from 172.16.81.254: icmp_seq=3 ttl=64 time=0.406 ms
^C
--- 172.16.81.254 ping statistics ---
3 packets transmitted, 3 received, 0% packet loss, time 2029ms
rtt min/avg/max/mdev = 0.401/0.429/0.480/0.036 ms

Step 6: Verify External Network Reachability​

Verify that you can reach addresses outside of your current subnet/VLAN:

ping 10.11.96.247

Example output:

PING 10.11.96.247 (10.11.96.247) 56(84) bytes of data.
64 bytes from 10.11.96.247: icmp_seq=1 ttl=64 time=1.08 ms
64 bytes from 10.11.96.247: icmp_seq=2 ttl=64 time=0.568 ms
^C
--- 10.11.96.247 ping statistics ---
2 packets transmitted, 2 received, 0% packet loss, time 1001ms
rtt min/avg/max/mdev = 0.568/0.823/1.079/0.255 ms

Windows Desktop/Server Configuration​

Step 1: Identify Current Network Settings​

First, note your existing IP address and default gateway.

Current Network Settings

Current Network Settings

Step 2: Update Network Configuration​

  1. Open "Network and Internet Settings"
  2. Select "Change adapter options"
  3. Right-click on the Network interface
  4. Select "Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)"
  5. Click "Properties"
  6. Edit the subnet mask to 255.255.255.255
  7. Change the default gateway to the Gatekeeper LAN/VLAN VIP
  8. Click "OK" to apply changes and "YES" on the warning message (this is expected due to the /32 mask)

Update Network Configuration

Update Network Configuration

Update Network Configuration

Step 3: Verify Configuration​

  1. Open PowerShell or Command Prompt
  2. Run the following commands to verify your changes: 
    ipconfig /all
    route PRINT
  3. Test connectivity by pinging the default gateway: 
    ping [gatekeeper-lan-vip]
  4. Test external connectivity by pinging an address outside your network

Update Network Configuration

Ubuntu 22.04 Desktop Configuration​

Step 1: Access Network Settings​

  1. Open Settings
  2. Select Network
  3. Verify the existing IP address and default gateway

Step 2: Update Network Settings​

  1. Click on the IPv4 tab
  2. Change the subnet mask to 255.255.255.255 (or select /32)
  3. Change the gateway to the Gatekeeper LAN/VLAN VIP
  4. Click "Apply"

Update Network Configuration

Step 3: Restart Network Connection​

  1. Disable the "Wired Connection"
  2. Re-enable the "Wired Connection"

Step 4: Verify Configuration​

  1. Open a terminal
  2. Run the following commands to verify your changes: 
    ifconfig
    ip route
  3. Test connectivity by pinging the default gateway: 
    ping [gatekeeper-lan-vip]
  4. Test external connectivity by pinging an address outside your network

Update Network Configuration