Introduction to VPC Networks

Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) Networks are fundamental to understanding how networking works in Google Cloud Platform (GCP). A VPC network is a virtual version of a physical network, implemented within GCP's infrastructure. It provides connectivity for your Google Cloud resources, such as Compute Engine instances, Kubernetes clusters, and more.

Key Concepts

Subnets: Subnetworks (subnets) are subdivisions of a VPC network. Each subnet is associated with a region and a specific IP address range.
IP Addressing: VPC networks support both IPv4 and IPv6 addressing. Each instance in a VPC network can have both internal and external IP addresses.
Routes: Routes define paths for traffic leaving an instance. They determine how packets are forwarded within the network.
Firewall Rules: Firewall rules control traffic to and from instances based on specified configurations.
Peering: VPC peering allows you to connect VPC networks to each other, enabling private communication across different projects or organizations.

Creating a VPC Network

To create a VPC network, follow these steps:

Navigate to the VPC Networks Section:
- Go to the GCP Console.
- Select "VPC network" from the navigation menu.
Create a New VPC Network:
- Click on "Create VPC network".
- Provide a name for your VPC network.
- Choose the "Automatic" or "Custom" subnet creation mode.
  - Automatic: GCP automatically creates subnets in each region.
  - Custom: You manually define subnets.
Configure Subnets:
- If you chose "Custom", add subnets by specifying the region and IP address range for each subnet.
Configure Additional Settings:
- Enable or disable Private Google Access.
- Configure DNS settings if needed.
Create the Network:
- Click "Create" to finalize the VPC network creation.

Example: Creating a Custom VPC Network

# This example uses the gcloud command-line tool to create a custom VPC network

# Step 1: Create the VPC network
gcloud compute networks create my-custom-vpc --subnet-mode=custom

# Step 2: Create a subnet in the VPC network
gcloud compute networks subnets create my-subnet \
    --network=my-custom-vpc \
    --region=us-central1 \
    --range=10.0.0.0/24

Practical Exercise

Exercise: Create a custom VPC network with two subnets in different regions.

Create the VPC Network:
- Name: my-multi-region-vpc
- Subnet Mode: Custom
Create Subnets:
- Subnet 1:
  - Name: subnet-us-central1
  - Region: us-central1
  - IP Range: 10.0.0.0/24
- Subnet 2:
  - Name: subnet-europe-west1
  - Region: europe-west1
  - IP Range: 10.1.0.0/24

Solution:

# Step 1: Create the VPC network
gcloud compute networks create my-multi-region-vpc --subnet-mode=custom

# Step 2: Create the first subnet in us-central1
gcloud compute networks subnets create subnet-us-central1 \
    --network=my-multi-region-vpc \
    --region=us-central1 \
    --range=10.0.0.0/24

# Step 3: Create the second subnet in europe-west1
gcloud compute networks subnets create subnet-europe-west1 \
    --network=my-multi-region-vpc \
    --region=europe-west1 \
    --range=10.1.0.0/24

Common Mistakes and Tips

IP Range Overlaps: Ensure that the IP ranges of your subnets do not overlap.
Region Selection: Choose regions that are geographically close to your users to reduce latency.
Firewall Rules: Remember to configure firewall rules to allow necessary traffic to and from your instances.

Conclusion

In this section, you learned about VPC networks, their key components, and how to create a custom VPC network with subnets in different regions. Understanding VPC networks is crucial for managing and securing your resources in GCP. In the next section, we will explore Cloud Load Balancing, which helps distribute traffic across your instances to ensure high availability and reliability.

VPC Networks

Introduction to VPC Networks

Key Concepts

Creating a VPC Network

Example: Creating a Custom VPC Network

Practical Exercise

Common Mistakes and Tips

Conclusion

Google Cloud Platform (GCP) Course

Module 1: Introduction to Google Cloud Platform

Module 2: Core GCP Services

Module 3: Networking and Security

Module 4: Data and Analytics

Module 5: Machine Learning and AI

Module 6: DevOps and Monitoring

Module 7: Advanced GCP Topics

Module 8: Capstone Project