The Open Infrastructure Foundation is out with the release of StarlingX 10.0, a significant update to the open-source distributed cloud platform designed for IoT, 5G, O-RAN and edge computing applications. This latest version introduces substantial improvements to networking capabilities, security features and management tools.
StarlingX got its start back in 2018 as a telecom and networking focused version of the open-source OpenStack cloud platform. StarlingX is a fully-integrated cloud infrastructure platform, which includes core building blocks such as the Linux kernel, Kubernetes and OpenStack, along with other open-source components.
Key new features in StarlingX 10.0 include:
- IPv4/IPv6 dual-stack support for seamless migration between network protocols
- Enhanced network security through IPsec protection for management traffic
- Unified Software Management framework that consolidates updates and upgrades
- Increased scalability supporting up to 5,000 managed nodes (5x improvement)
- Real-time network statistics via the new Node Interface Metrics Exporter
Dual-stack networking bridges IPv4 and IPv6 environments
One of the most significant networking enhancements in StarlingX 10.0 is the addition of IPv4/IPv6 dual-stack support, addressing a critical challenge faced by network operators. While IPv6 was originally intended to replace IPv4, this transition remains incomplete, requiring platforms to support both protocols simultaneously in production environments.
“StarlingX has been capable of supporting the use of IPv6 in the platform,” Ildikó Váncsa, director of community at the Open Infrastructure Foundation, told Network World. “The latest enhancements now allow users to switch between single-stack and dual-stack networking configurations to allow using both IPv4 and IPv6 address spaces.”
Váncsa said that StarlingX is widely adopted in the telecommunications segment and also used by cloud service providers. Users in these areas have been transitioning more and more to rely on IPv6 for its capabilities. However, she noted that IPv6 is not widely adopted and supported enough for most of these operators to be able to leave the IPv4 address space behind, which is why the addition of dual-stack support was important for the StarlingX community in the 10.0 release cycle.
IPv6 dual-stack enables distributed cloud architectures
Dual-stack IPv4 and IPv6 networks can be set up in StarlingX cloud deployments in several ways.
Váncsa said that users are now able to configure the platform to use both IPv4 and IPv6 address spaces without service disruptions. Once the first address pool is allocated to a network upon creation it will become the primary, which cannot be later removed. The secondary address pool can be dynamically allocated or removed to transition the system between dual-stack and single-stack modes as needed. Users can perform additional configuration on the deployment, including DNS setup and load balancing based on the equipment used in their environment and the demands of their particular use cases.
Of note, Váncsa explained that the flagship feature in StarlingX is the Distributed Cloud architecture model, where users can deploy sub-clouds in remote locations to be managed from a central site. “As users upgrade to the latest version of the platform, they will now be able to configure sub-clouds to take advantage of the dual-stack networking configuration,” she said.
StarlingX gets a new ‘safe’ Harbor
Another key addition to the StarlingX 10 updates is the integration of the Harbor container registry. Cloud-native deployments largely rely on the use of containers. A container registry is a central repository where an operator can pull container images for cloud deployment.
“Security has been a high priority for the StarlingX community, which drove the decision to integrate the Harbor container registry into the platform as well,” Váncsa said.
She noted that the Harbor provides various features to improve the security of how StarlingX handles container images, open policy agents (OPA), and Helm charts. OPA is an open-source policy engine used in Kubernetes deployments to define and write policy for containers. Helm charts are a widely used open-source deployment technology for containers in Kubernetes.
Harbor is capable of vulnerability scanning, allowing users to rely on trusted and verified images, Váncsa said. Harbor also provides the capability to sign container images and artifacts.
Streamlined network operations with unified management
Network operators managing StarlingX deployments will benefit from the new Unified Software Management framework. Previously, software patching and upgrades were handled by separate subsystems requiring different procedures and commands. StarlingX 10.0 consolidates these functions into a single framework with unified APIs, CLIs and workflows.
This integration delivers substantial improvements in both upgrade duration and service impact. For updates, the framework leverages OSTree to install the new software’s root filesystem while the host continues running on the existing filesystem. A simple reboot then transitions to the new software, dramatically reducing downtime compared to previous approaches that required wiping disks and reinstalling software.
StarlingX promises tight resource constraints management
There are multiple driving factors for platforms such as StarlingX to be more mindful of resources. Edge deployments tend to have limited resources, and, in general, organizations are moving towards green networks and reducing the amount of power an end-to-end deployment is using.
Váncsa noted that StarlingX had already been enhanced in different ways to be able to handle resource constraints as well as optimize resource usage across sites. Among the existing capabilities was the ability to run platform services on 1 CPU core, when the hardware support is available, as well as defining power profiles within the system.
“The 10.0 release further enhances capabilities in this area by adding support for a Power Metrics Application to collect data about hardware usage in the platform to be able to further optimize the system to different use cases,” she said.
Source:: Network World