Cisco vManage / SD-WAN Manager: The Operator's Walkthrough
Cisco vManage (now SD-WAN Manager) is the management plane of Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN. Templates, policies, dashboards, the REST API, HA model, and the operational realities at scale.
Jaime
Latest posts — page 40
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Architecture: vManage, vSmart, vBond, WAN Edge
The four-component Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN (formerly Viptela) architecture: vManage, vSmart, vBond, and WAN Edge. OMP routing protocol, cEdge vs vEdge, fabric bring-up walkthrough.
SD-WAN Architecture: Control, Data, and Management Planes Explained
Every SD-WAN platform shares the same three-plane architecture: management, control, and data. The vendor-specific components (vManage, vSmart, FortiManager, etc.) compared.
SD-WAN vs MPLS: When Each Wins in 2026
SD-WAN and MPLS are not pure substitutes. The technical differences, cost story without the marketing spin, when MPLS still wins, and the hybrid pattern most enterprises end up with.
MP-BGP: Multiprotocol BGP Address Families Explained
MP-BGP (RFC 4760) is what lets a single BGP session carry IPv6, VPNv4, EVPN, and more. The AFI/SAFI model, route distinguishers, and how modern data center fabrics use MP-BGP for everything.
STP vs RSTP: Convergence, Port Roles, and When to Switch
Classic 802.1D STP vs 802.1w RSTP. The convergence differences (30s vs sub-second), the port state and role changes, and the one-command Cisco migration from PVST+ to Rapid PVST+.
BGP Neighbor States: The 6-State FSM and How to Diagnose It
BGP's finite state machine has six states: Idle, Connect, Active, OpenSent, OpenConfirm, Established. What each means, why Active is a problem state, and the diagnostic that maps each stuck state to a real cause.
Tagged vs Untagged VLANs: How Trunks and Access Ports Really Work
Tagged and untagged frames are the half of every VLAN problem nobody explains clearly. The mental model, when each is correct, the native VLAN, and the cross-vendor (Cisco / Aruba / Juniper) cheat sheet.
VLAN Hopping Attacks Explained: Switch Spoofing and Double Tagging
VLAN hopping bypasses Layer 2 isolation. The two attacks (switch spoofing via DTP, double tagging via the native VLAN) and the four-line Cisco configuration that defeats both.
802.1Q VLAN Tag Explained: The 4 Bytes That Make Trunking Work
The 802.1Q VLAN tag is 4 bytes inserted into Ethernet frames to carry VLAN identity across trunks. TPID, TCI, PCP, DEI, VID, and the native VLAN explained byte by byte.
Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol (RSTP): What Changed from 802.1D STP
RSTP (802.1w) replaced classic 802.1D's 30-50 second convergence with sub-second failover. The five key changes that make it possible, and how to deploy Rapid PVST+ on Cisco IOS XE.
BGP vs OSPF: When to Use Each Routing Protocol
BGP and OSPF solve different problems and almost always run together in production. The technical differences, when each is the right answer, and the architecture pattern most enterprises end up with.