Cloud Architects and Network Engineers
Designing a high-availability NAT gateway architecture for a corporate VPC
Use cases
About
The Internal TCP UDP next hops mind map is a technical architecture guide for IT professionals managing Google Cloud Platform (GCP) networking. This 48-node Internal TCP UDP next hops template provides a structured breakdown of how to configure internal TCP/UDP load balancing as a next hop for custom static routes. It covers critical networking concepts such as 'Client IP session affinity', 'Destination range' constraints, and the integration of 'Virtual Private Cloud (VPC)' networks. By using this Internal TCP UDP next hops cheat sheet, network engineers can visualize the requirements for scaling services behind an internal load balancing IP address, ensuring that traffic is efficiently routed through virtual network address translation (NAT) appliances or third-party firewalls in a 'bump-in-the-wire' fashion.
Terms and ConditionsWhen to use this template
Security Operations (SecOps) Teams
Configuring custom static routes to inspect outbound traffic through a cluster of firewall VMs
Site Reliability Engineers (SRE)
Documenting regional load balancing specifications for internal service scaling
How to use this template
Step 1
Import the .xmind file
Open the .xmind file in Xmind desktop or web app to view the full 48-node technical hierarchy.
Step 2
Map your VPC structure
Replace the generic 'VPC network' and 'Destination range' nodes with your specific IP CIDR blocks and network names.
Step 3
Export for documentation
Use the Export feature to save the diagram as a PDF or PNG for inclusion in your cloud architecture design documents.
Frequently asked questions
It is primarily used to load balance traffic across multiple VM instances acting as virtual appliances, such as NAT gateways or firewalls. This setup allows for high availability and horizontal scaling of network security or routing functions within a VPC.
In this context, 'Client IP session affinity' uses a two-tuple hash of the source and destination IP addresses. However, because the destination IP varies when used as a next hop, packets from the same client may not always hit the same backend VM.
No. According to the 'Overview' specifications, traffic sent to Google APIs and services should be routed through a next-hop default internet gateway rather than a next-hop internal load balancer, even when using Private Google Access.
The VM instances in each VPC network must be located in the same region as their associated internal TCP/UDP load balancer to utilize the custom static route effectively.
Got an inspiring template?
Share your mind map templates with creators around the world and start earning from your work.
Free template