2.Configuring the management interface

--> F5 BIG IP System contains two different types of network interfaces:---

 i) TMM Switch Interfaces

ii) Management Interface

--> Management Interface is used for administration of F5 Load Balancer.

--> TMM Switch interface is used for both administration and application traffic of F5 Load Balancer.

--> The management interface on F5 Load balancer is used to perform management related functions.

--> The management interface is not used in load balancing the traffic.

--> The management interface should be connected to the trusted network in the company network.

--> F5 recommends configuring private IP address on management interface of F5 BIG IP System.

--> By default, F5 BIG-IP comes with 192.168.1.245/24 IP address on the management interface.

The management interface IP address can be set or modified using any of these methods:

1.The LCD panel on the appliance
2.The CONFIG cooamnd in the CLI
3.tmsh(traffic management shell)
4.The Web GUI,but only if an address is already configured

1.The LCD panel on the appliance:--

--> This method works only with physical appliances such as BIG IP and VIPRION.

--> This method does not work, if the F5 Load Balancer is installed in Virtual Machine using VMWARE or Hyper-V.

--> Access the system menu by using the Red button, then change the IP Address and subnet mask and click on commit to save changes.

2) Using Serial Console:--

--> Requires Console cable to connect the management PC to F5 BIG IP System.

--> No need to configure any IP Address on management PC.

--> Use the terminal emulation program such as putty, super putty to access the console.

--> use the following command to change the Management IP Address on F5 BIG IP System,

tmsh

create /sys management-ip < address/netmask>  --> To change the IP Address

create /sys management-route default gateway <gateway ip address>  --> To change the default Gateway

save /sys config partitions all  --> To save the configuration

3) Using Management Interface

--> Requires RJ-45 cable need to be connected from Management PC to the management interface of F5 BIG IP System.

--> Management PC initially should be in the same network of F5 BIG IP System ( 192.168.1.0/24).

--> We can access the F5 BIG IP System by using web or CLI Interface.

--> If you are using the web interface to access the F5 BIG IP System then use the following credentials:

Username : admin

Password : admin

--> If you are using the command line interface to access the F5 BIG IP System then use the following credentials:

Username : root

Password : default

--> Access the default IP Address using SSH from Management PC and execute the following commands,

config# config

Management IP Address: 192.168.1.100

Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0

default route: 192.168.1.1

--> Then click on yes < Accept Settings >.

--> If you are using the web interface to configure the management IP address of F5 Load Balancer then follow below steps,

i) Access the F5 Configuration utility.

ii) Navigate to System > Platform.

iii) In Management Port settings, change the IP address, network mask, and management route.

iv) Click on Update.

Note: You will lose your connection to F5 BIG IP system if you change the management IP address via the management interface of F5 BIG IP System.