A disclosed example of managing a network includes a packet receiver to receive a packet at a second switch from a first switch via an inter-switch link between the first and second switches; a packet analyzer to determine whether the packet includes a load-based teaming (LBT) egress control value; a packet transmitter to handle the packet according to an LBT policy when the packet analyzer determines the packet does not include the LBT egress control value; and a packet modifier to terminate the packet at the second switch when the packet analyzer determines the packet does include the LBT egress control value.

An example first server host includes processor circuitry to: connect a virtual network interface card (vNIC) of the first server host to a first physical network interface card (pNIC) and a second pNIC of the first server host; establish an inter-switch link between first and second switches, the first switch and the first server host in a first network fabric, the second switch and a second server host in a second network fabric; and cause transmission of a first and second network packets from the vNIC of the first server host, the first and second network packets to be delivered to the second server host via the inter-switch link, the first network packet to be transmitted via the first pNIC when utilization of the first pNIC does not satisfy a threshold, the second network packet to be transmitted via the second pNIC when the utilization satisfies the threshold.

An endpoint group (EPG) can be stretched between the sites so that endpoints at different sites can be assigned to the same stretched EPG. Because the sites can use different bridge domains when establishing the stretched EPGs, the first time a site transmits a packet to an endpoint in a different site, the site learns or discovers a path to the destination endpoint. The site can use BGP to identify the site with the host and use a multicast tunnel to reach the site. A unicast tunnel can be used to transmit future packets to the destination endpoint. Additionally, a stretched EPG can be segmented to form a micro-stretched EPG. Filtering criteria can be used to identify a subset of the endpoints in the stretched EPG that are then assigned to the micro-stretched EPG, which can have different policies than the stretched EPG.

An example first server host includes processor circuitry to: connect a virtual network interface card (vNIC) of the first server host to a first physical network interface card (pNIC) and a second pNIC of the first server host; establish an inter-switch link between first and second switches, the first switch and the first server host in a first network fabric, the second switch and a second server host in a second network fabric; and cause transmission of a first and second network packets from the vNIC of the first server host, the first and second network packets to be delivered to the second server host via the inter-switch link, the first network packet to be transmitted via the first pNIC when utilization of the first pNIC does not satisfy a threshold, the second network packet to be transmitted via the second pNIC when the utilization satisfies the threshold.

An endpoint group (EPG) can be stretched between the sites so that endpoints at different sites can be assigned to the same stretched EPG. Because the sites can use different bridge domains when establishing the stretched EPGs, the first time a site transmits a packet to an endpoint in a different site, the site learns or discovers a path to the destination endpoint. The site can use BGP to identify the site with the host and use a multicast tunnel to reach the site. A unicast tunnel can be used to transmit future packets to the destination endpoint. Additionally, a stretched EPG can be segmented to form a micro-stretched EPG. Filtering criteria can be used to identify a subset of the endpoints in the stretched EPG that are then assigned to the micro-stretched EPG, which can have different policies than the stretched EPG.

An example system including a first top-of-rack (ToR) switch, and a second ToR switch, the second ToR switch is to receive a network packet from a first host, the network packet to include a destination address of a second host, and after a failure of a physical network interface card (pNIC) at the second host eliminates a first link between the second host and the second ToR switch, send the network packet to the first ToR switch via an inter-switch link between the first and second ToR switches to cause the first ToR switch to forward the network packet to the second host via a second link between the first ToR switch and the second host.

A method includes receiving, from an origin computing node, a first communication addressed to multiple destination computing nodes in a processor interconnect fabric, measuring a first set of one or more communication metrics associated with a transmission path to one or more of the multiple destination computing nodes, and for each of the destination computing nodes, based on the set of communication metrics, selecting between a multicast transmission mode and unicast transmission mode as a transmission mode for transmitting the first communication to the destination computing node.

A disclosed example of managing a network includes a packet receiver to receive a packet at a second switch from a first switch via an inter-switch link between the first and second switches; a packet analyzer to determine whether the packet includes a load-based teaming (LBT) egress control value; a packet transmitter to handle the packet according to an LBT policy when the packet analyzer determines the packet does not include the LBT egress control value; and a packet modifier to terminate the packet at the second switch when the packet analyzer determines the packet does include the LBT egress control value.

A method includes receiving, from an origin computing node, a first communication addressed to multiple destination computing nodes in a processor interconnect fabric, measuring a first set of one or more communication metrics associated with a transmission path to one or more of the multiple destination computing nodes, and for each of the destination computing nodes, based on the set of communication metrics, selecting between a multicast transmission mode and unicast transmission mode as a transmission mode for transmitting the first communication to the destination computing node.

A disclosed example of managing a network include receiving a packet at a first top-of-rack (ToR) switch via a first load-based teaming (LBT) port; determining whether a network location of a destination node of the packet is unknown; based on the network location being unknown, setting an LBT egress control value in the packet, the LBT egress control value to indicate that the packet is not to be transmitted via a second LBT port of a second ToR switch; and sending the packet from the first ToR switch to the second ToR switch via an inter-switch link between the first and second ToR switches and from the first ToR switch to at least a first host that is identified in the packet as the destination node.