How to Use `nmcli` to Create NIC Bonding

1. Introduction

Network bonding (or NIC bonding) combines multiple network interfaces into one logical interface to improve redundancy and throughput. Let’s use nmcli to create NIC bonding on a Linux system! 🚀

2. Step 1: Check Existing Network Interfaces 🖥️

First, list all your network interfaces:

nmcli device status

🔍 Identify the interfaces you want to bond (e.g., eth0, eth1).

3. Step 2: Create the Bond Interface 🔗

Create the bond interface using nmcli:

nmcli connection add type bond con-name bond0 ifname bond0 mode active-backup

Explanation:

con-name bond0: Name of the bonded connection.
ifname bond0: Name of the bonded interface.
mode active-backup: Bonding mode. You can choose modes like balance-rr, 802.3ad, etc.

4. Step 3: Add Slaves to the Bond Interface ➕

Add the identified interfaces as slaves to the bond:

nmcli connection add type ethernet con-name slave-eth0 ifname eth0 master bond0
nmcli connection add type ethernet con-name slave-eth1 ifname eth1 master bond0

🔗 This attaches eth0 and eth1 as slaves to the bond0 interface.

5. Step 4: Configure IP Settings 🌐

Assign an IP address to the bond:

nmcli connection modify bond0 ipv4.addresses 192.168.1.100/24
nmcli connection modify bond0 ipv4.method manual
nmcli connection up bond0

Replace 192.168.1.100/24 with the correct IP and subnet for your network.

6. Step 5: Bring Up the Bonded Interface 🆙

Activate the bond and its slaves:

nmcli connection up bond0
nmcli connection up slave-eth0
nmcli connection up slave-eth1

🎉 Your bonded interface is now active!

7. Step 6: Verify Your Setup ✅

Check if everything is working correctly:

nmcli connection show

You can also check the bonding details:

cat /proc/net/bonding/bond0

8. Conclusion 🎯

You’ve successfully created NIC bonding using nmcli! Your setup should now provide better network resilience and potentially increased throughput.

How to Use `nmcli` to Create NIC Bonding