Configuring a virtual machine

A method comprising:

• configuring, by a node of a computer system, one or more MAC addresses, wherein each of the one or more MAC addresses is encoded, by the node, with a respective IP address for assignment to a virtual machine;
• configuring a first virtual machine on the node, wherein configuring the first virtual machine includes passing an encoded first MAC address to the first virtual machine, wherein the first virtual machine is configured to decode a first IP address from the encoded first MAC address;
• and
• assigning the first IP address to the virtual machine.

A node in a computer system, the node comprising:

• one or more processors;
• and
• one or more non-transitory computer readable media storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, program the one or more processors to perform operations including:
• configuring, by the one or more processors, one or more MAC addresses, wherein each of the one or more MAC addresses is encoded, by the one or more processors, with a respective IP address for assignment to a virtual machine;
• configuring, by the one or more processors, a first virtual machine on the node, wherein configuring the first virtual machine includes passing an encoded first MAC address to the first virtual machine, wherein the first virtual machine is configured to decode a first IP address from the encoded first MAC address;
• and
• assigning the first IP address to the first virtual machine.

A computer system comprising:

• a plurality of nodes able to communicate with each other, wherein executable instructions program a first node of the plurality of nodes to perform operations comprising:
• configuring, by the first node, one or more MAC addresses, wherein each of the one or more MAC addresses is encoded, by the first node, with a respective IP address for assignment to a virtual machine;
• configuring a first virtual machine on the first node, wherein configuring the first virtual machine includes passing an encoded first MAC address to the first virtual machine, wherein the first virtual machine is configured to decode a first IP address from the encoded first MAC address;
• and
• assigning the first IP address to the first virtual machine.