SD-WAN and Traffic Shaping with Meraki

Understanding SD-WAN Interfaces

When diving into the SD-WAN setup, the first thing to understand is the interfaces you're working with:

• For most devices, you'll see multiple interfaces, typically named sd-wan and traffic JP.
• On smaller MX devices, like the 6 to 74, you might see only one LAN interface. In such cases, a specific setting needs attention:
• Navigate to the uplinks section.
• Use the option to convert port two into port one if required.

Setting the Bandwidth

Bandwidth specification is essential to ensure smooth network operations:

• The bandwidth can be defined for each interface; for instance, 100 meg for each.
• Cyberger is not a factor in this context.
• Within this section, one can specify uplink statistics and even add a secondary uplink for redundancy.

Load Balancing and Flow Preference

Load balancing is crucial for maximizing network efficiency and throughput. Here's how to manage it:

• Specify the primary uplink.
• Define flow preferences for internet transit. This can be viewed as a policy-based routing mechanism.
• As an example, you can set specific uplinks for various traffic sources and destinations.

Prioritizing Traffic: Voice, Video, and Music

Traffic prioritization ensures crucial data gets the bandwidth it needs:

• For instance, voice traffic might be routed over one MPLS WAN while video is sent via another.
• You can set rules such that voice, video conferences, and music use the best available link.

Performance Classes and Traffic Policies

Meraki provides flexibility in defining performance classes and policies:

• Performance classes define the expected quality for certain traffic types.
• For instance, you might set strict performance metrics for voice traffic but allow more leniency for general internet browsing.
• Custom expressions allow for even more granularity. For example:
• TCP traffic going to server 10.10.1.1 on port 443 can have its own dedicated policy.

Traffic Shaping and Bandwidth Limits

Traffic shaping is a way to manage bandwidth allocation actively:

• You can enable or disable default shaping rules.
• Specific limits can be set on certain types of traffic, like file sharing.
• Differentiated services code point (DSCP) markings can be left unchanged or be adjusted as needed.
• Detailed settings let you control uplink and download speeds for specific traffic types.

Closing Thoughts

Meraki's SD-WAN and traffic shaping tools are designed to be user-friendly and offer robust network management capabilities. Properly setting these options ensures a responsive and efficient network that meets the needs of various data types and applications. Future exploration might delve deeper into Meraki's firewall settings.