The Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol (VRRP) is designed to eliminate a single point of failure in a network configuration. The EdgeMarc can be configured to act as a redundant pair with another router if the other router supports VRRP. This enables you to have one or more backup routers in case one fails. 

One of the routers designated as Master and the other designated as Backup, all share a virtual IP. If the Master fails due to a network or hardware failure, the virtual IP address is mapped to the backup router’s IP address and the Backup will take over. 

VRRP only adds redundancy for the data path and will not fail over any voice calls, if high availability is needed for voice applications or between two EdgeMarcs using the HA component instead.

VRRP is incompatible with WAN Link Redundancy and High Availability.

To Configure VRRP

  1. Choose Network > VRRP.

  2. Select the Enable VRRP checkbox.

  3. Manage settings using the information in the table below as a guide. When you have finished configuring settings, click Submit to make your changes take effect.

    VRRP Configuration Parameters

    ItemDescription
    LAN Virtual IP AddressThe common virtual IP address to be used on the LAN interface. This is the IP address clients will see and use. 
    LAN Virtual Routing IDA unique number in the range 1-255 that identifies the virtual router (shared by each physical router) for the LAN virtual IP.
    Enable VRRP PreemptionEnable if VRRP preemption is desired. If enabled, the higher priority host will preempt the lower priority host when it recovers from a fault state. When Preemption is disabled, a router currently in the master state remains as “Master”.
    VRRP Default State

    The default state of VRRP when this system boots. Either Master or Backup.

    Note: This field appears only when VRRP preemption is enabled.

    VRRP Priority

    The priority of the physical router sending the VRRP packets. Higher numbers mean higher priority. The range is 1-255.

    If preemption is enabled, the router with the highest priority will become the Master. If the priorities of all the router interfaces acting in the VRRP group are the same, the router with the highest IP address is given precedence.

    VRRP Advertise Interval(s)Specifies how often (in seconds) VRRP packets should be sent. The default value is 3s and the expected range is from 1s to 300s. 
    VRRP Authentication PasswordPassword used to authenticate routers in a VRRP group. Please note that the password must not be greater than 8 characters in length.
    Gratuitous ARP Delay(s)

    Specifies how long (in seconds) an EdgeMarc should wait after a switch-over before sending Gratuitous ARPs packets. The default value is 5s and the expected range is from 1s to 300s.

    Note: One group of Gratuitous ARPs are sent right away and another set is sent after the configured delay.

    Ping IP Address

    The IP address to be used on the WAN data interface to track Layer 3 failure. If an IP address is configured, Layer 3 tracking is enabled.

    For Layer 3 tracking, VRRP checks if the configured IP address is reachable using ICMP protocol. If the IP is not reachable, VRRP will consider this a failure and the State is changed. If the IP address is configured, it is used as the common ping address for all the VRRP subnets. If the IP address is not configured, the default interface tracking method is used.

    Ping IntervalSpecifies how often (in seconds) ping packets should be sent for Layer 3 tracking. If configured, this IP address is used as the ping interval for all the VRRP subnets. The default value is 3s and the expected range is from 1s to 300s.
    Route Address

    The IP address of the default route or gateway to be used on the WAN data interface for tracking Layer 3 failure. If an IP address is configured, Layer 3 tracking is enabled for the configured IP address.

    For Layer 3 tracking, VRRP checks if this IP address is present in the routing table as the default route address. If it is not found, VRRP State becomes “FAULT”.

    You can also configure the network address of a route instead of the default route address (for example, a route advertised by BGP). In this case, VRRP will check if an entry for the network is present in the routing table for Layer 3 tracking. If BGP is used, you can check the routing table for routes advertised. From the routing table, select either the default route address or any other network address and configure it as “Route Address” for tracking.

    The network address options available are:

    • Default Gateway Address: Default route or gateway address to be monitored.
    • Network Address: A remote network address to be monitored in the routing table.
    Route Address Subnet Mask/Prefix

    If you configure the address of the default route as the “Route Address”, configure the Subnet Mask/Prefix as either “255.255.255.255” or “32”.

    “32” is the default Subnet Mask/Prefix for tracking the default route. If you configure a network address of a route as “Route Address”, configure the corresponding Subnet Mask/Prefix.

    The available options are:

    • 255.255.255.255 or 32: This is for tracking the default route or gateway address. This is the default mask.
    • Network Mask or Prefix: This is for tracking a remote network address. Provide a mask or prefix corresponding to a network.
    Route Check Interval

    Specifies how often (in seconds) the routing table is traversed to check if the configured route is present for Layer 3 tracking. If configured, this interval is used as the route check interval for all VRRP subnets.
    The default value is 3s and the expected range is from 1s to 300s.