X-ion Elevates Cloud Infrastructure with VyOS: From Complexity to Scalability

Customer Overview

X-ion, a leading provider of GDPR-compliant cloud infrastructures, has been deploying cutting-edge technology to ensure the highest levels of performance and scalability in their data center operations. They operate cloud setups on their own hardware on 3 continents and can therefore also offer their customers GDPR-compliant solutions internationally. Based in Germany and operating globally, x-ions team has always focused on using open-source solutions to manage their cloud infrastructure.

Challenge

Prior to implementing VyOS, x-ion faced several challenges, particularly in scaling and automating their routing infrastructure. They had been using a combination of Ubuntu and BIRD for routing, but they encountered issues with kernel drivers and network debugging as their bandwidth and operational complexity grew. With nearly 100 routers to reconfigure, x-ion's reliance on Ubuntu, while flexible, lacked the specialized network support needed for high-performance environments, causing delays in troubleshooting and growing concerns as their infrastructure demanded more.

Why VyOS

Martin Bosner, CEO of x-ion, had long sought an open-source routing solution robust enough for enterprise deployment. After experimenting with various options such as OpenWrt, pfSense, and OPNsense, Martin discovered VyOS. He appreciated VyOS for its professional approach, active community, and rapid fixes. The decision to move to VyOS was driven by its:

Powerful BGP and OSPF support
Built-in automation tools
Added benefit of professional support

Implementation

Stefan Parzentny and Fabian Thöne, the network team leaders at x-ion, began transitioning their core network infrastructure to VyOS. The migration process was methodical, focusing on incremental updates to minimize risks. Key implementation highlights included:

Rollback capabilities: Ensuring smooth transitions during update
Traffic Shaping: Leveraging sophisticated routing configurations crucial for handling growing traffic demands.
Automation: Using VyOS's support for automation and APIs to scale network configurations more efficiently.

Results

Since implementing VyOS, x-ion has seen significant improvements in their network stability, with fewer incidents related to routing or kernel issues. The VyOS rollback feature has been particularly valuable, allowing the team to quickly recover from configuration changes. The professional support provided by VyOS has also been a key factor in x-ion's success. The ability to directly interact with senior network engineers has dramatically reduced the time required to troubleshoot complex issues. The scalability and reliability of VyOS have made it the go-to solution for x-ion's core infrastructure, and the team is now looking forward to implementing even more advanced features, such as VyOS's support for Vector Packet Processing (VPP), which will further enhance network performance.

Looking Ahead

X-ion plans to continue expanding their use of VyOS across their entire infrastructure. With plans to fully automate their deployments and integrate VyOS's upcoming controller and SaaS-based orchestration tools, x-ion is positioned to further enhance the efficiency and scalability of their network operations.