WORKSHEET

Virtual Local Area

Network
Edited By Sneha (IDRPIoT001)

CSL7510
5th September, 2021
Introduction
The worksheet is designed as different activities for creating and configuring virtual local area
networks on VMware ESXi and Cisco Packet Tracer. The term virtual local area network (VLAN) is
a logical concept of dividing broadcast addresses. As we know, a switch is a physical device that
consists of ports where each port connected to a host is assigned the same network i.e. every
broadcast message is transmitted to every other host connected to the same switch ports. To
eliminate this vulnerability of flooding, other switches can be deployed with different network
addresses but will lead to a high number of switches causing a lot of expenditure. To overcome
these challenges, logical connections can be used on single or multiple switches by using VLAN.
To understand the implementation of VLAN various activities are defined as follows:

1. Vmware Workstation Installation

2. Vmware ESXi Installation
3. Datastore Creation
4. VM Creation on ESXi Host
5. Virtual Switch
6. VLAN Configuration
7. VLAN Trunking
8. Cisco Packet Tracer
9. VLAN Configuration using Cisco Packet Tracer
10. VLAN Trunking using Cisco Packet Tracer

All the activities will be covering the basics of configuring VLAN on Virtual Switch using VMware
ESXi as well as the Cisco Packet Tracer network simulator. The worksheet is sketched to first
guide you in implementing the concept of virtual switches with VLAN and then moves deeper
into the network simulation part for realizing a logical picture of VLAN at the network level.

Prerequisite: Basic understanding of virtual machine creation and IP Addressing.

Vmware Workstation Installation

Vmware workstation is a hypervisor that comes in both commercial and non-commercial
packages. Here, we will be using a non-commercial VMware workstation player which is easy to
install just like Oracle VM VirtualBox.

Link to download VMware workstation -

https://www.vmware.com/in/products/workstation-pro/workstation-pro-evaluation.html

If you are unable to download the setup, create your account and manually download the
60-days trial setup for experimental work -
https://console.cloud.vmware.com/csp/gateway/portal/#/self-onboarding/create-user

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Since nested virtualization of AMD and Intel processors (AMD-V and Intel-V) both are supported
in VMware workstations unlike Oracle VM VirtualBox which is inefficient in nesting Intel-V on
some machines, we will be using VMware as the host hypervisor.

VMware ESXi Installation

In the first part of the worksheet, we will be installing VMware ESXi bare-metal hypervisor on top
of another hypervisor to avoid any kind of hardware-related uncertainties. You can prefer to
install it directly on your system for better performance.

For installing the VMware ESXi, you need to create the account on the above-given link from
where you can download the setup with 60 days trial license key and the required hash values
https://customerconnect.vmware.com/web/vmware/evalcenter?p=free-esxi6. After downloading
the .iso file you can either install it on a VMware workstation or can directly burn it to Flash drive
for installation on the host system using Hyper-V.

Steps for Installing ESXi are as follows

1. Click on create a new virtual machine and browse to the downloaded .iso image directory
where you need to declare user credentials, RAM, and Disk size the way we did in Oracle
VM Virtual machine creation. The minimum requirement for installing ESXi is 4GB of RAM
and at least 48GB of hard disk space. Once the details are specified the machine will
start.

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 Fig 1. Installing ESXi

2. To continue your installation,

press Enter and (Fn + F12) to

accept the agreement.

Fig 2. ESXi Splash Screen

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 Fig 3. End-User License Agreement

3. Press Enter to continue with the selected disk type.

Fig 4. Disk Selection

4. Select the US default as keyboard layout and create a password for root. These
credentials will be used to access the host server.

Fig 5. Keyboard Layout Fig 6. User Credentials

5. On completion of the installation, press Enter to reboot the system which will prompt you
with the host IP address. You need to enter this IP address into the host operating system
web browser.

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 Fig 7. Installation Complete

Fig 8. IP Address to access the ESXi host

6. After rebooting the virtual machine, enter your credentials and open the web browser of
the host system. Now, open a new tab and enter the displayed IP address which is
https://192.168.152.128/ in this worksheet demonstration.

Note: On installation of ESXi on your system, you will get an IP Address which you need
for accessing the server.

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 Fig 9. Authentication

Fig 10. Accessing ESXi Host

Datastore Creation
Login into the ESXi host and create a datastore point from Storage ⟶Devices⟶Select the
required disk⟶ Click on New Datastore. We will require this datastore for creating VM’s.

Note: The selected disk should be a single disk space without partitions for creating a new
datastore. In case the disk space is low and already partitioned, you can add extra virtual hard
disk space to the host ESXi.

The worksheet will be illustrating the use of Local VMware, Disk (mpx.vmhba0:C0:T1:L0) with
100GB disk space where both virtual machines will be stored.

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 Fig 11. Datastore

Now, assign a name to the

datastore which you want to create
and then select partitioning options
where VMFS6 will be used on Full
Disk for creating new partitions.
VMFS stands for Virtual Machine
File System for server-based
virtualization with enhanced
features. Now, click on next which
will complete the datastore
creation process.

Fig 12. Datastore Creation Window

Fig 13. Created Datastore point

On successful creation of a data store, you can check the datastore point under Storage.

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VM Creation on ESXi Host
Once the datastore is created
move on to Virtual
Machines⟶Create/Register VM
which will prompt a new window
asking you to create the VM or
register an existing VM. Since
there is no instance we will be
creating a new VM type of Linux
and Windows.

Note: For running any VM

instance on a host you need a
datastore point where the VM
will be stored.
Fig 14. New VM creation on ESXi Host

Select the OS type such as

Linux or Windows and
Compatibility as ESXi 7.x
according to your host. Now,
select the OS image which
will be installed like Ubuntu
64-bit in this case. Similarly,
create another VM instance
running Windows on it.

You can customize the VM

setting or leave it for later.
Now, click next after checking
the settings and the VM is
created now.

Fig 15. Customize VM Settings

For changing the settings after the VM is created, go to Actions and then edit settings.

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The below-given screenshot shows two virtual machines VM1 running with Ubuntu 64-bit
operating system and VM2 running with Windows 7 64-bit operating system.

Fig 16. VM1 Ubuntu 64-bit instance

Both these VM’s will be used for accessing the VLAN ports of the virtual switch which will be
discussed in the subsequent sections.

Virtual Switch
A virtual switch is a logical representation of physical switches which sends frames from one
virtual machine to another on the same network or local area network. To create a virtual switch
go to Networking⟶ Virtual Switches⟶Add Standard Virtual Switch where you need to provide a
name for the switch and click add.

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 Fig 17. Create Virtual Switch

To view the topology and details of the created virtual switch, click on it.

Since a virtual switch is similar to a physical switch, we need to create ports on it which will be
then divided into different port groups based on your VLAN configuration requirements.

VLAN Configuration
In this work, we have created two virtual LANs
(vlan10 and vlan20) running on the same virtual
switch (vSwitch0). To add port groups click on
Port groups⟶ Add port group⟶ Assign a name
to it and select the VLAN ID between 2 to 2000.
You can also check the security features and
then proceed with adding the port group. Fig 18. Add port group

All the configured VLANs and their ids can be

found under the port group section as given in
the below screenshot.

Fig 19. VLAN20 security details

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 Fig 20. Port Groups

VLAN Trunking
The concept of trunking is introduced when VLANs are configured on multiple switches i.e. to
forward traffic of different VLANs on a single switch requires a specific VLANs identification
header for port forwarding but in the case of multiple switches, we need VLAN tagging which
adds another header to the ethernet frame on the link between switches.

To associate VLAN with the respective

virtual instance, open Action and Edit
the settings. Under the Virtual
Hardware tab, select Network Adapter
and select the created vlan10 or
vlan20 according to your choice.

Save all the changes after updating

the settings. In a similar fashion, the
other virtual instance can also be
connected to the configured VLAN.

Fig 21. VLAN Configuration with VM Instance

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Open the virtual switch tab from Networking and check the defined topology. As you can see

Fig 22. Virtual Switch Topology

from the snapshot that vlano, vlan10, and vlan20 are created within a virtual switch where you
need to configure the ports for forwarding the traffic as well as you need to set a default VLAN. In
case, the forwarded frame does not contain any VLAN tag (header used for identifying the VLAN)
it is considered as part of the default VLAN.

Note: Connect the physical network adapter of virtual machine vmnic1 with the port which is
defined as the trunk.

Further, in this worksheet, we will be using Cisco Packet Tracer Network Simulator.

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Cisco Packet Tracer
It is a network simulator that can be used to experiment with different network configurations. It
comprises various network components such as end devices, network devices, wired/wireless
connections, and so on for simulating scenarios with visualization and assessment capabilities.

To install packet tracer, download the setup according to your operating system from -
https://www.computernetworkingnotes.com/ccna-study-guide/download-packet-tracer-for-windo
ws-and-linux.html and create an account on https://id.cisco.com/.

For installing Packet Tracer on Ubuntu, click the link below - explaining all the required steps
https://www.computernetworkingnotes.com/ccna-study-guide/how-to-install-and-start-packet-trac
er-in-ubuntu.html

Packet Tracer enables you to configure the end devices running with varied applications or
servers which simulates the real-world practices of configuring network devices with virtual LAN,
access control lists, routing tables, etc. In this work, we will be focusing on logical network
scenarios, not physical ones.

Note: Use guest

login to create the
scenarios on
Packet Tracer.

After installing the

packet tracer, you
will be asked to
sign in where you
can opt for guest
login if you are
unable to log in as
a user through
your credentials.

Fig 23. Login to Cisco Network Academy

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 Fig 24. Packet Tracer Simulation Board

At the bottom left corner, you can find all the network components which are required to build the
networking scenario logically - network devices (routers, switches, hubs, wireless devices, wan
emulation, security), end devices (PC, laptop, server, printer, IP phone, VoIP devices, phone, tv,
wireless tablet, smart devices, generic wireless, generic wired, sniffer), components (MCU boards,
sbc boards, things), connections (automatic, console, copper, cross-over, phone, coaxial, serial
dce, serial dte, octal, IoT custom, USB connections), miscellaneous comprising other devices and
multiuser.

Fig 25. Network Components

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VLAN Configuration using Cisco Packet Tracer
To create a network scenario go to Files → New and then select the devices. For explaining the
concept of VLAN, the worksheet demonstrates a simple network simulation consisting of two
virtual LAN as discussed in the earlier activities of this sheet.

Scenario 1: Create two VLANs on a single switch having two access ports in both the VLANs.
Verify the VLAN configurations by pinging -

Fig 26. VLAN Configuration Network Scenario

a) One host of VLAN100 to another host of VLAN100.

b) One host of VLAN100 to any host of VLAN200.

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Steps to design the network scenarios are as follows:

1) Add four PC’s from end devices and assign them IP addresses.
2) For editing IP configurations of these added PC’s, click on the PC icon → Desktop → IP
Configurations.

Fig 27. IP Configuration of PC

3) Connect PC0 and PC1 to the same LAN i.e. VLAN100 with IP addresses in the range of
192.168.100.x where x can be any number from 1 - 254.

Gateway : 192.168.100.1

PC0 : 192.168.100.10

PC1 : 192.168.100.20

Note: Gateway address can be considered as a door to another network i.e. it is the address of
the interface which is connected locally to PC0 and PC1.

4) Leave the DNS configurations as it is and repeat the above step for PC1.
5) Now, configure the IP address of PC2 and PC3 with gateway address 192.168.200.1

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 Where PC2 - 192.168.200.10

PC3 - 192.168.200.20

6) Add a switch from network devices and connect all PCs with copper straight wire. While
connecting PCs with a switch, you will be asked to choose the interface type such as Fast
Ethernet or GigaEthernet.

We will be using fast ethernet connection where

PC0 - fa0/1

PC1 - fa0/2

PC2 - fa0/3

PC3 - fa0/4,

7) To configure the switch, click on switch and go to CLI.

Switch>en // command for enabling switch

Switch#confi //command for configuring, you can also use “config terminal” directly.
Configuring from terminal, memory, or network [terminal]? terminal
Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z.
Switch(config)#vlan 100 // creating vlan
Switch(config-vlan)#name VLAN100 // giving name to the vlan
Switch(config-vlan)#exit //exiting VLAN100 configuration
Switch(config)#vlan 200 //creating new vlan
Switch(config-vlan)#name VLAN200 //giving a name to the vlan
Switch(config-vlan)#exit
Switch(config)#exit
Switch#
%SYS-5-CONFIG_I: Configured from console by console

Switch#show vlan //show all the VLANs running on the switch

VLAN Name Status Ports

---- -------------------------------- --------- -------------------------------
1 default active Fa0/1, Fa0/2, Fa0/3, Fa0/4
Fa0/5, Fa0/6, Fa0/7, Fa0/8
Fa0/9, Fa0/10, Fa0/11, Fa0/12
Fa0/13, Fa0/14, Fa0/15, Fa0/16
Fa0/17, Fa0/18, Fa0/19, Fa0/20
Fa0/21, Fa0/22, Fa0/23, Fa0/24
Gig0/1, Gig0/2

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100 VLAN100 active
200 VLAN200 active
1002 fddi-default active
1003 token-ring-default active
1004 fddinet-default active
1005 trnet-default active

VLAN Type SAID MTU Parent RingNo BridgeNo Stp BrdgMode Trans1 Trans2
---- ----- ---------- ----- ------ ------ -------- ---- -------- ------ ------
1 enet 100001 1500 - - - - - 0 0
100 enet 100100 1500 - - - - - 0 0
200 enet 100200 1500 - - - - - 0 0
1002 fddi 101002 1500 - - - - - 0 0
1003 tr 101003 1500 - - - - - 0 0
1004 fdnet 101004 1500 - - - ieee - 0 0
1005 trnet 101005 1500 - - - ibm - 0 0

VLAN Type SAID MTU Parent RingNo BridgeNo Stp BrdgMode Trans1 Trans2
---- ----- ---------- ----- ------ ------ -------- ---- -------- ------ ------

Remote SPAN VLANs

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Primary Secondary Type Ports

------- --------- ----------------- ------------------------------------------
Switch#
Switch#
Switch#
Switch#confi
Configuring from terminal, memory, or network [terminal]?
Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z.
Switch(config)#interface fa0/1 //configuring interface fa0/1
Switch(config-if)#switchport access vlan 100 //creating access port on VLAN100 at fa0/1
Switch(config)#interface fa0/2 //configuring interface fa0/2
Switch(config-if)#switchport access vlan 100//creating access port on VLAN100 at fa0/2
Switch(config-if)#interface fa0/3 //configuring interface fa0/3
Switch(config-if)#switchport access vlan 200 //creating access port on VLAN200 at fa0/3
Switch(config-if)#interface fa0/4 //configuring interface fa0/4
Switch(config-if)#switchport access vlan 200 //creating access port on VLAN200 at fa0/4
Switch(config-if)#exit
Switch(config)#exit
Switch#
%SYS-5-CONFIG_I: Configured from console by console

Switch#configure terminal
Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z.

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The command “switchport access vlan <vlan_number>” creates an access port between host and
switch which can communicate only within LAN (local area network).

8) To verify the VLAN connections, open the command prompt of PC0 and ping <ip> of PC1
and PC2.
- If the vlan (VLAN100) is successfully created then you will get a reply from PC1
otherwise no packet will be received. Similarly, verify VLAN200.
- If the vlan (VLAN100) is successfully created then you will not get a reply from PC2
as it is a part of another logical broadcast domain or vlan i.e. VLAN200. Similarly,
verify VLAN200.

Fig 28. Ping from PC0 of VLAN100

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 Fig 29. Ping from PC3 of VLAN200

After understanding the concept of VLAN creation and configuration on a single switch, we will
now create a trunk to access VLANs from different switches.

VLAN Trunking using Cisco Packet Tracer

Trunking as explained above in the ESXi activities extends communication between different
switches running with VLANs. For enabling trunking we will be using the “trunk mode” command
on the switch port.

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Scenario 2: Create two vlans on two switches where both the switches will be divided into
VLAN100 and VLAN200 port groups i.e.

- Switch 1 : VLAN100 with one access port (PC4) and VLAN200 with one access port (PC5).
- Switch 2 : VLAN100 with one access port (PC6) and VLAN200 with one access port (PC7).

Fig 30. VLAN Trunking

Steps for creating VLAN Trunking:

1) Add four PC’s from end devices and assign them IP addresses.
2) For editing ip configurations of these added PC’s, click on PC icon → Desktop → IP
Configurations.

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 Fig 31. PC4 Desktop tab.

Fig 32. IP Configuration of PC

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 9) Connect PC4 and PC6 to the same LAN i.e. VLAN100 with IP addresses in the range of
192.168.100.x where x can be any number from 1 - 254.

Gateway: 192.168.100.1

PC4: 192.168.100.10

PC6: 192.168.100.20

10) Leave the DNS configurations as it is and repeat the above step for other PC’s.
11) Now, configure the IP address of PC5 and PC7 with gateway address 192.168.200.1

Where PC5 - 192.168.200.10

PC7 - 192.168.200.20

12) Add two switches from network devices and connect PC’s with copper straight wire.

First Switch - Connect PC4 and PC6

Second Switch - Connect PC5 and PC7

While connecting PC’s with switch, you will be asked to choose the interface type such as
Fast Ethernet or GigaEthernet.

We will be using fast ethernet connection where

PC4 - fa0/1 of first Switch

PC5 - fa0/1 of second switch

PC6 - fa0/2 of first Switch

PC7 - fa0/2, of second switch

13) Now, add a crossover wire between both the switches for communication with the fa0/3
interface.

Note: Crossover wire is used to connect devices of similar types.

14) To configure both the switches, click on switch and go to CLI.

Switch>en
Switch#confi
Configuring from terminal, memory, or network [terminal]?
Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z.

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Switch(config)#vlan 100
Switch(config-vlan)#name VLAN100
Switch(config-vlan)#exit
Switch(config)#vlan 200
Switch(config-vlan)#name VLAN200
Switch(config-vlan)#exit
Switch(config)#interface fa0/1
Switch(config-if)#switchport access vlan 100
Switch(config-if)#exit
Switch(config)#interface fa0/2
Switch(config-if)#switchport access vlan 200
Switch(config-if)#exit
Switch(config)#exit
Switch#
%SYS-5-CONFIG_I: Configured from console by console

Switch#show vlan

VLAN Name Status Ports

---- -------------------------------- --------- -------------------------------
1 default active Fa0/4, Fa0/5, Fa0/6, Fa0/7
Fa0/8, Fa0/9, Fa0/10, Fa0/11
Fa0/12, Fa0/13, Fa0/14, Fa0/15
Fa0/16, Fa0/17, Fa0/18, Fa0/19
Fa0/20, Fa0/21, Fa0/22, Fa0/23
Fa0/24, Gig0/1, Gig0/2
100 VLAN100 active Fa0/1 // VLAN100 is attached to interface fao/1
200 VLAN200 active Fa0/2 // VLAN200 is attached to interface fao/2
1002 fddi-default active
1003 token-ring-default active
1004 fddinet-default active
1005 trnet-default active

VLAN Type SAID MTU Parent RingNo BridgeNo Stp BrdgMode Trans1 Trans2
---- ----- ---------- ----- ------ ------ -------- ---- -------- ------ ------
1 enet 100001 1500 - - - - - 0 0
100 enet 100100 1500 - - - - - 0 0
200 enet 100200 1500 - - - - - 0 0
1002 fddi 101002 1500 - - - - - 0 0
1003 tr 101003 1500 - - - - - 0 0
1004 fdnet 101004 1500 - - - ieee - 0 0
1005 trnet 101005 1500 - - - ibm - 0 0

VLAN Type SAID MTU Parent RingNo BridgeNo Stp BrdgMode Trans1 Trans2
---- ----- ---------- ----- ------ ------ -------- ---- -------- ------ ------

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Remote SPAN VLANs
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Primary Secondary Type Ports

------- --------- ----------------- ------------------------------------------
Switch#
Switch#confi
Configuring from terminal, memory, or network [terminal]?
Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z.
Switch(config)#
Switch(config)#interface fa0/3 //Configuring interface fa0/3 of first switch
Switch(config-if)#switchport mode trunk //Creating trunk port at fa0/3 interface
Switch(config-if)#exit
Switch(config)#
Switch(config)#exit
Switch#
%SYS-5-CONFIG_I: Configured from console by console

Switch#show interface fa0/3 switchport //checking the configured trunk port

Name: Fa0/3
Switchport: Enabled
Administrative Mode: trunk
Operational Mode: trunk
Administrative Trunking Encapsulation: dot1q
Operational Trunking Encapsulation: dot1q
Negotiation of Trunking: On
Access Mode VLAN: 1 (default)
Trunking Native Mode VLAN: 1 (default)
Voice VLAN: none
Administrative private-vlan host-association: none
Administrative private-vlan mapping: none
Administrative private-vlan trunk native VLAN: none
Administrative private-vlan trunk encapsulation: dot1q
Administrative private-vlan trunk normal VLANs: none
Administrative private-vlan trunk private VLANs: none
Operational private-vlan: none
Trunking VLANs Enabled: All
Pruning VLANs Enabled: 2-1001
Capture Mode Disabled
Capture VLANs Allowed: ALL
Protected: false
Unknown unicast blocked: disabled
Unknown multicast blocked: disabled
Appliance trust: none

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15) Similarly, configure the second switch and verify the connections by pinging <ip> of PC7
from PC5
- If you get a reply from PC7 connected to the same vlan of second switch then the
trunking is successfully created.
- If you are unable to ping PC4 connected to the same switch but is on a different
vlan then the trunking is successfully created. Similarly, verify the other
connections.

Fig 33. Pinging PC7 and PC4 from PC5

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 Fig 34. Pinging PC5 and PC6 from PC7

In this way, VLAN trunking can be implemented using the cisco packet tracer.

The objective of this worksheet is to illustrate how virtual local area networks can be created on
virtual machines as well as how we can use a network simulator to simulate the network
scenarios.

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