A step-by-step walkthrough shows how to extend Layer 2 networks into Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization using BGP and EVPN with MAC-VRFs. The approach lets teams import VMs from legacy bare-metal infrastructure without changing their IP or MAC addresses, and enforces strict multi-tenant network isolation even when tenant networks use overlapping IP spaces. The guide covers enabling BGP in the OpenShift network operator, configuring static IPs on secondary NICs, creating VTEP and FRRConfiguration custom resources, defining a ClusterUserDefinedNetwork with EVPN transport, setting up route advertisements, and verifying connectivity and live migration behavior against an external FRR-based router.
Table of contents
How to configure EVPN in OpenShiftBGP for EVPN step by stepExternal router configurationConclusionQuestions this post answers
How can I migrate a VM to OpenShift Virtualization without changing its IP and MAC address?
Extend the Layer 2 broadcast domain into OpenShift using EVPN with MAC-VRFs so the imported VM retains its original IP and MAC. Configure a ClusterUserDefinedNetwork with transport EVPN, a VTEP custom resource, and BGP route advertisements so the VM can boot on the new cluster and immediately communicate with legacy application tiers without re-addressing. See how daily.dev surfaces practical networking guides for teams planning bare-metal-to-OpenShift VM migrations.
How does EVPN keep overlapping tenant IP address spaces isolated in a shared OpenShift cluster?
EVPN enforces strict end-to-end network segmentation by mapping each tenant's ClusterUserDefinedNetwork to its own VXLAN VNI and MAC-VRF, so tenants like HR and Finance can use overlapping IP ranges without collisions. This extends isolation from the legacy physical network directly into the shared cluster without manual configuration drift. Developers weighing multi-tenant network designs can track EVPN and OpenShift networking updates on daily.dev.
Does a VM's MAC address change when it live-migrates between OpenShift nodes with EVPN configured?
No, the MAC address stays the same after live migration. In a tested example, a VM moved from node 3 to node 1 while keeping MAC address 0a:58:16:64:00:03; the external router received a BGP/EVPN update pointing the route to the new node's VTEP IP, so external connectivity continued without interruption. daily.dev helps engineers verifying VM live-migration behavior stay current on OpenShift networking techniques.