What is the Data Plane?
The data plane (also known as the forwarding plane) is responsible for:- Traffic Forwarding: Moving packets between network endpoints based on routing decisions
- Encryption/Decryption: Handling IPsec and other encryption protocols for secure communication
- Network Address Translation (NAT): Performing source and destination NAT operations
- Traffic Inspection: Supporting integration with firewall and security services
- Quality of Service (QoS): Managing traffic prioritization and bandwidth allocation
Data Plane Components
The Aviatrix data plane consists of several key components:Gateways
Aviatrix Gateways are the primary data plane elements deployed in your cloud environments. They handle:- VPN tunnel termination
- Traffic routing between VPCs/VNets
- Encryption and decryption of traffic
- Network segmentation enforcement
Edge Gateways
Edge Gateways extend the Aviatrix data plane to on-premises environments and branch locations:- Connect physical data centers to cloud networks
- Support high-availability deployments
- Provide consistent networking features across hybrid environments
ActiveMesh
ActiveMesh is the Aviatrix technology that enables:- Active-active gateway deployment for high availability
- Optimal path selection for traffic
- Automatic failover without manual intervention
Data Plane vs Control Plane
| Aspect | Data Plane | Control Plane |
|---|---|---|
| Function | Forwards traffic | Makes routing decisions |
| Components | Gateways, tunnels | Controller, CoPilot |
| Performance | High throughput, low latency | Management operations |
| Scaling | Horizontal (more gateways) | Vertical (larger instance) |
Key Features
High Performance
- Support for high-throughput instances
- Hardware acceleration where available
- Optimized packet processing
Security
- End-to-end encryption
- Integration with cloud-native firewalls
- Support for third-party security appliances
Visibility
- Flow logging and analytics
- Real-time monitoring through CoPilot
- Detailed traffic statistics