VXLAN is the dominant overlay protocol. It tunnels Layer frames over UDP/IP, enabling million virtual networks.
VXLAN structure:
- Original Ethernet frame is inner payload
- VXLAN header adds -bit VNI
- UDP header uses port
- Outer IP addresses tunnel endpoints
VNI: The -bit VNI replaces -bit VLAN ID. You get million networks instead of .
VTEP: VXLAN Tunnel Endpoint encapsulates and decapsulates traffic. VTEPs can be switches, hypervisors, or virtual switches.