List of the Top 4 Container Networking Software for OpenStack in 2025

Calico is a flexible open-source platform that focuses on networking and securing containers, virtual machines, and workloads running on native hosts. It seamlessly integrates with numerous platforms, including Kubernetes, OpenShift, Mirantis Kubernetes Engine (MKE), OpenStack, and even bare metal setups. Users have the option to utilize either Calico's eBPF data plane for cutting-edge performance or the traditional networking pipeline of Linux, allowing for outstanding scalability tailored specifically for cloud-native applications. Both developers and cluster administrators enjoy a cohesive experience and a reliable set of features, regardless of whether they are working in public clouds, on-premises, on a single machine, or across large multi-node clusters. Furthermore, Calico provides various data plane configurations, featuring a pure Linux eBPF data plane, a standard Linux networking data plane, and a Windows HNS data plane. This versatility ensures that it meets the preferences and requirements of users, whether they favor the modern advancements of eBPF or the tried-and-true networking concepts familiar to experienced system administrators. Ultimately, this remarkable flexibility positions Calico as an attractive option for organizations in search of resilient networking solutions that can adapt to their evolving needs. By catering to a wide range of environments and use cases, Calico stands out as a comprehensive choice for enhancing connectivity and security across diverse workloads.

Open vSwitch is a versatile, multilayer virtual switch licensed under the open-source Apache 2.0, designed to enable extensive network automation through various programming extensions while supporting conventional management interfaces and protocols like NetFlow, sFlow, IPFIX, RSPAN, CLI, LACP, and 802.1ag. It is also engineered to be distributed across multiple physical servers, similar to VMware's vNetwork distributed vSwitch and Cisco's Nexus 1000V. Its implementation spans a wide range of products and is found in many large-scale production environments, some of which are notably massive. Each stable release of Open vSwitch goes through thorough testing, including a comprehensive regression suite that features hundreds of system-level tests and thousands of unit tests to ensure reliability. In addition to OVS, the Open vSwitch community is dedicated to the development of the OVN project, which augments OVS by offering native support for virtual networking abstractions such as virtual L2 and L3 overlays, along with security groups. This ongoing dedication to enhancement guarantees that Open vSwitch continues to provide a powerful and adaptable solution for network virtualization across various scenarios, ensuring its relevance in the ever-evolving landscape of network technologies.

Tackle the difficulties posed by intricate tools and overwhelming workloads by adopting an all-in-one networking and security solution. Streamlining your toolset allows for a significant reduction in time wasted on disruptive context shifts, effectively alleviating the fatigue often associated with constant toggling between applications. TF stands out for its exceptional plugin integration, frequently surpassing the basic functionalities found in many other SDN plugins to deliver advanced features. It promotes smooth network interactions, ensuring that your infrastructure operates as a cohesive unit by adhering to well-established open protocol standards in both the control and data planes. The open-source framework of TF encourages ongoing innovation from a diverse group of contributors, providing the versatility to customize outcomes according to your unique requirements or to work alongside reliable vendors. Additionally, it offers the ability to implement namespace isolation and micro-segmentation tailored to individual microservices, enabling the creation of specific security policies and configurations for different tenants. This level of customization and flexibility not only enhances network security but also streamlines operational processes, making TF an indispensable asset for organizations aiming to improve their overall efficiency and security posture. As the landscape of networking and security evolves, leveraging such a comprehensive solution becomes increasingly essential for staying competitive.

Flannel acts as a dedicated virtual networking layer specifically designed for containerized applications. When working within the OpenShift Container Platform, it can serve as an alternative networking solution to the conventional software-defined networking (SDN) components. This method proves especially beneficial for OpenShift deployments in cloud settings that also utilize SDN technologies, such as OpenStack, by eliminating the need for redundant packet encapsulation between the two systems. Each flanneld agent is responsible for sending information to a centralized etcd store, which allows other agents on different hosts to efficiently route packets to various containers within the flannel network. Furthermore, the accompanying diagram illustrates the architecture and data flow that facilitate communication among containers operating over a flannel network. This configuration not only boosts overall network performance but also streamlines the management of containers in intricate environments, ultimately leading to better resource utilization and operational efficiency.