Allow Address Pairs — Reference
List view columns
The Allow Address Pairs screen (navigation: VPC → Network → Allow Address Pairs) displays a table with the following columns:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Instance | Name of the Instance that owns the NIC to which the address pair is assigned. Click the name to view Instance details. |
| Network interface card | The specific NIC on the Instance to which the rule applies. An Instance can have multiple NICs, and each NIC can have multiple separate Allow Address Pair records. |
| IP or CIDR address | A single IP address (e.g., 10.0.1.100) or CIDR network range (e.g., 10.0.1.0/24) that the NIC is permitted to use as a source or destination address. |
| MAC address | The MAC address permitted alongside the IP/CIDR. If this field is empty, the system accepts any MAC address when communicating over the declared IP/CIDR. |
Fields when creating a record
Click the "Create allow address pair" button to open the form. Form fields:
| Field | Required | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Instance | Yes | The Instance in the General VPC to which the address pair will be added. | web-server-01 |
| Network interface card | Yes | The NIC belonging to the selected Instance that will receive the rule. | nic-primary |
| IP or CIDR address | Yes | An additional single IP address or CIDR range for the NIC. Standard IPv4 format. | 10.0.1.100 or 192.168.10.0/24 |
| MAC address | No | An accompanying MAC address for more precise access control. Leave blank if MAC binding is not required. | fa:16:3e:ab:cd:ef |
Format rules
- IP address: Valid IPv4, e.g.,
10.0.0.1. IPv6 is not supported by this feature. - CIDR: Standard CIDR notation, e.g.,
10.0.1.0/24. Valid prefix length ranges from/8to/32. - MAC address: Format
xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx(lowercase or uppercase accepted), e.g.,fa:16:3e:00:11:22.
Typical use cases
| Use case | Description | Suggested configuration |
|---|---|---|
| Virtual IP (VIP) | A shared IP address for a service that can be transferred to a standby Instance when the primary Instance fails. Software such as Keepalived manages the switchover automatically. | Add the VIP (e.g., 10.0.1.200) to the NIC of both the primary Instance and the standby Instance. Leave MAC address blank. |
| High Availability (HA) cluster | An active-standby setup where two Instances share a floating IP. When the active node goes down, the standby takes over the IP. | Add the floating IP to the NIC of both nodes. Combine with a Security Group rule that permits VRRP/HSRP traffic between the two nodes. |
| Router VM / Firewall VM | An Instance acting as a routing device or firewall that needs to forward packets from multiple subnets through its NIC. | Add a record with a broad CIDR (e.g., 0.0.0.0/0 or the subnet range to be routed). Ensure IP Forwarding is enabled in the Instance OS. |
| Manual Load Balancer | An Instance performing its own load balancing — accepting requests on a VIP and distributing them to backends. | Add the service VIP to the NIC of the load balancer Instance. |
| Zero-downtime service migration | Transferring a service IP from an old Instance to a new one during an upgrade. | Add the service IP to the NIC of the new Instance, then remove it from the old Instance once validation is complete. |
Limits and constraints
| Condition | Value / Notes |
|---|---|
| Supported VPC type | General VPC only |
| Maximum records per NIC | Refer to your account quota (contact support if an increase is needed) |
| Supported IP version | IPv4 |
| Editing after creation | Not supported — the record must be deleted and recreated |