How to create a network

To create a managed network, use the incus network command and its subcommands. Append --help to any command to see more information about its usage and available flags.

Network types

The following network types are available:

Network type	Documentation	Configuration options
bridge	Bridge network	Configuration options
ovn	OVN network	Configuration options
macvlan	Macvlan network	Configuration options
sriov	SR-IOV network	Configuration options
physical	Physical network	Configuration options

Create a network

Use the following command to create a network:

incus network create <name> --type=<network_type> [configuration_options...]

See Network types for a list of available network types and links to their configuration options.

If you do not specify a --type argument, the default type of bridge is used.

Create a network in a cluster

If you are running an Incus cluster and want to create a network, you must create the network for each cluster member separately. The reason for this is that the network configuration, for example, the name of the parent network interface, might be different between cluster members.

Therefore, you must first create a pending network on each member with the --target=<cluster_member> flag and the appropriate configuration for the member. Make sure to use the same network name for all members. Then create the network without specifying the --target flag to actually set it up.

For example, the following series of commands sets up a physical network with the name UPLINK on three cluster members:

user@host:~$ incus network create UPLINK --type=physical parent=br0 --target=vm01

Network UPLINK pending on member vm01

user@host:~$ incus network create UPLINK --type=physical parent=br0 --target=vm02

Network UPLINK pending on member vm02

user@host:~$ incus network create UPLINK --type=physical parent=br0 --target=vm03

Network UPLINK pending on member vm03

user@host:~$ incus network create UPLINK --type=physical

Network UPLINK created

Also see How to configure networks for a cluster.

Attach a network to an instance

After creating a managed network, you can attach it to an instance as a NIC device.

To do so, use the following command:

incus network attach <network_name> <instance_name> [<device_name>] [<interface_name>]

The device name and the interface name are optional, but we recommend specifying at least the device name. If not specified, Incus uses the network name as the device name, which might be confusing and cause problems. For example, Incus images perform IP auto-configuration on the eth0 interface, which does not work if the interface is called differently.

For example, to attach the network my-network to the instance my-instance as eth0 device, enter the following command:

incus network attach my-network my-instance eth0

Attach the network as a device

The incus network attach command is a shortcut for adding a NIC device to an instance. Alternatively, you can add a NIC device based on the network configuration in the usual way:

incus config device add <instance_name> <device_name> nic network=<network_name>

When using this way, you can add further configuration to the command to override the default settings for the network if needed. See NIC device for all available device options.