CentOS 7.x creating bridge using network manager

<yambe:breadcrumb>CentOS 7.x network management</yambe:breadcrumb>

CentOS 7.x creating bridge using network manager

1. Use the notification area. Click on Wired -> Wired Settings.
2. Use the '+' sign in the dialog box to add bridge. Do not add any slaves to it. You can use name br0 and leave most settings to default. If static IP is required then configure appropriate Manual IP in "IPv4 Settings" tab.
3. Use "ifconfig" to check that physical interface (enp0s25, etc.) has no IP address associated but it is up. Verify br0 has IP as desired.
4. Use command "brctl addif br0 <interface-name>" to add physical interface to bridge. This step is required everytime while switching to bridged network.
5. Wait 30 seconds for bridge to start forwarding on new interface.
6. Check appropriate network connectivity.

For laptops which may not always want wired bridge and may sometimes use wireless, this approach seems better than configuring bridge through configuration files in '/etc/sysconfig/network-scripts'. For servers static configuration might be preferred.