Networking with network-bridge
network-bridge is the currently accepted standard way of handling networking for guest domains in Xen. It uses the bridge tools in Linux to create a virtual layer 2 switch, to which it "plugs in" Xen virtual interfaces, as shown in Figure 5-1. It has the advantage of working with protocols that expect unadulterated Ethernet frames. This includes AoE, the pre-TCP/IP version of AppleTalk, NetBEUI, IPX, and a host of other protocols that date from the dark ages. It'll also work seamlessly with DHCP, which relies on broadcast packets. It's simple, logical, and robust.
The biggest disadvantage of network-bridge (apart from its complexity) is that it tears down and rebuilds the real network interface when xend starts. In ...
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