How to set the IBM AIX server as a router for static routing

What is routing?

Routing is the process of moving a packet from the source computer to the destination computer. Routing is usually performed by a private device called a router. Routing is an important feature of the Internet because it is able to pass messages from one computer to another and eventually reach the destination computer. Each computer in the middle performs a route by passing messages to the next computer. Part of this process involves analyzing the routing table to determine the best path.

Type of route

There are two types of routes: static Routing and dynamic routing.

Static routing

Static routing is the process of manually entering routes into the routing table of a device through a loaded configuration file at the time the routing device starts. You can also enter these routes by the network administrator who manually configures the routes. Static routing is the simplest form of routing, and it is a manual process.

Static routing means specifying the location of a remote resource at design time. Requests for a specific resource are always routed to the same zone. Typically, when you use static routing, you specify the location of the resource in the resource definition that is installed.

Sample Scenarios

A virtual I/O server located on a private network (IP-192.168.10.101)

An IBM AIX server has two network adapters: one on the private network, the other on the VIOS, and the other on the public network. (Private network IP-192.168.10.32 and public network IP-9.3.129.14)

AIX clients on public network IP (public network IP-9.3.129.20/21/22/23)

Figure 1. Sample Scenarios

In this scenario, clients on the public network IP need to be accessed through VIOS located on the private network IP. The AIX server acts as a router, which routes all network packets from the VIOS (private network) to the client (public network).

To set an AIX server as a VIOS router or gateway, you must add routes to its routing table, route to the VIOS routing table, and add the routing table of the external system that will communicate with VIOS (so that the external system knows: when attempting to communicate with the 192.168.10.32 subnet, It needs to send traffic to 9.3.129.14 IP.

To view the current routing table on your host, use the following command:

#netstat-rn

Figure 2. VIOS routing Table

Figure 3. Client routing Table