Implementing VPC Peering for Enhanced Connectivity Across Regions in AWS

Module 5: VPC Peering Assignment

Problem Statement: Working for an organization, you are required to provide them a safe and secure environment for the deployment of their resources. They might require different types of connectivity. Implement the following to fulfill the requirements of the company.

Tasks To Be Performed:

1. Create 2 VPCs in the North Virginia region named MYVPC1 and MYVPC2
2. Create one VPC in the Oregon region named VPCOregon1
3. Create a peering connection between MYVPC1 and MYVPC2
4. Create a peering connection between MYVPC2 and VPCOregon1

Step 1: Create the VPCs §

1. I’ll log in to the AWS Management Console:

• I’ll open my web browser.
• I’ll navigate to the AWS Management Console and sign in.

2. Next, I’ll navigate to the VPC Dashboard:

• In the AWS Services search bar, I’ll type “VPC” and select the “VPC” service.

3. I’ll then create MYVPC1 in North Virginia:

• I’ll make sure my region is set to North Virginia (us-east-1).
• On the VPC Dashboard, I’ll click on “Your VPCs”.
• I’ll click “Create VPC”.
• I’ll name it MYVPC1 and set the CIDR block as 10.0.1.0/24.
• I’ll click “Create”.

4. Now, I’ll create MYVPC2 in North Virginia:

• I’ll follow the same process, naming it MYVPC2 with the CIDR block 10.0.2.0/24.

5. I’ll switch to the Oregon region to create VPCOregon1:

• I’ll change my region to Oregon (us-west-2) at the top right corner of the AWS console.
• Again, I’ll follow the VPC creation process, naming it VPCOregon1 with the CIDR block 10.0.3.0/24.

Step 2: Set up VPC Peering Connections §

1. I’ll set up peering between MYVPC1 and MYVPC2:

• I’ll make sure my region is still set to North Virginia (us-east-1).
• On the VPC Dashboard, I’ll go to “Peering connections”.
• I’ll click ” Create peering connection”.
• I’ll name the connection Peering-MYVPC1-MYVPC2.
• For “Requester VPC”, I’ll choose MYVPC1.
• For “Accepter VPC”, I’ll choose MYVPC2.
  
• I’ll click “Create peering connection”.
• After creating, I’ll select the new peering connection, click “Actions”, and choose “Accept Request”.

2. Next, I’ll set up peering between MYVPC2 and VPCOregon1:

• Staying in North Virginia (us-east-1), I’ll go to “Peering Connections”.
• I’ll click “Create Peering Connection”.
• I’ll name it Peering-MYVPC2-VPCOregon1.
• For “Requester VPC”, I’ll choose MYVPC2.
• I’ll change the region for “Accepter” to Oregon (us-west-2) and select VPCOregon1.
• I’ll click ” Create peering connection”.
• Now, I’ll switch my region to Oregon (us-west-2), find my peering connection, click “Actions”, and choose “Accept Request”.
  
  

Step 3: Update Route Tables §

To ensure the VPCs can communicate, I’ll update their route tables:

1. In the VPC Dashboard, I’ll go to “Route tables”.
2. I’ll select the route table associated with each VPC.
3. Under the “Routes” tab, I’ll click “Edit routes”.
4. I’ll add new routes:

• For MYVPC1, I’ll point to MYVPC2’s CIDR block using the peering connection.
  • In the “Destination” field, I’ll enter the CIDR block of MYVPC2 10.0.2.0/24.
  • In the “Target” dropdown, I’ll select “Peering Connection” and then select the peering connection between MYVPC1 and MYVPC2 from the list.
    
• For MYVPC2, I’ll point to both MYVPC1 and VPCOregon1’s CIDR blocks using their respective peering connections. MYVPC1:
  • For “Destination”, I’ll enter the CIDR block of MYVPC1 (10.0.1.0/24).
  • In “Target”, I’ll select “Peering Connection” and choose the peering connection
    VPCOregon1:
  • For “Destination”, I’ll enter the CIDR block of VPCOregon1 (10.0.3.0/24).
  • In “Target”, I’ll select “Peering Connection” and choose the peering connection between MYVPC2 and VPCOregon1.
    
• For VPCOregon1, I’ll point to MYVPC2’s CIDR block using the peering connection.
  • For “Destination”, I’ll enter the CIDR block of MYVPC2 10.0.2.0/24.
  • In “Target”, I’ll select “Peering Connection” and then choose the peering connection between MYVPC2 and VPCOregon1 from the list.
    

5. I’ll save these routes.

Once I’ve completed these steps, the VPCs should be interconnected as intended.

Connectivity Test Report

Insta1 (10.0.1.153) in MYVPC1

Success

[ec2-user@ip-10-0-1-153 ~]$ ping 10.0.2.37
PING 10.0.2.37 (10.0.2.37) 56(84) bytes of data.
64 bytes from 10.0.2.37: icmp_seq=1 ttl=127 time=4.62 ms
...

Failure

[ec2-user@ip-10-0-1-153 ~]$ ping 10.0.3.59
Not working

Insta2 (10.0.2.37) in MyVPC2

Success

[ec2-user@ip-10-0-2-37 ~]$ ping 10.0.1.153
PING 10.0.1.153 (10.0.1.153) 56(84) bytes of data.
64 bytes from 10.0.1.153: icmp_seq=1 ttl=127 time=1.14 ms
...

Success

[ec2-user@ip-10-0-2-37 ~]$ ping 10.0.3.59
PING 10.0.3.59 (10.0.3.59) 56(84) bytes of data.
64 bytes from 10.0.3.59: icmp_seq=1 ttl=127 time=66.5 ms
...

Insta3 (10.0.3.59) in VPCOregon

Failure

[ec2-user@ip-10-0-3-59 ~]$ ping 10.0.1.153
PING 10.0.1.153 (10.0.1.153) 56(84) bytes of data.

Success

[ec2-user@ip-10-0-3-59 ~]$ ping 10.0.2.37
PING 10.0.2.37 (10.0.2.37) 56(84) bytes of data.
64 bytes from 10.0.2.37: icmp_seq=1 ttl=127 time=65.4 ms
...

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Summary

Given AWS’s VPC peering model, the inability of insta1 in MYVPC1 to ping insta3 in VPCOregon1 was expected. Transitive peering isn’t supported by AWS. Even though there’s a peering connection between MYVPC1 and MYVPC2, and another one between MYVPC2 and VPCOregon1, it doesn’t automatically facilitate traffic flow from MYVPC1 directly to VPCOregon1 via MYVPC2.

For direct communication between insta1 and insta3, a peering connection between MYVPC1 and VPCOregon1 is required. This understanding is based on the inherent characteristics of AWS VPC peering. Adjustments to the route tables would follow suit once a direct peering connection is in place.