Hi,
I’m running Ubuntu 24.04 on a BPI-R4, using Netplan with systemd-networkd.
The installed kernel is:
Linux bpi-router 6.11.0-bpi-r4+ #6 SMP Mon Nov 17 20:42:54 CET 2025 aarch64
I would like to configure an active-backup bond using these interfaces:
eth2 — primary SFP+ interface, using mtk_soc_eth lan1 — backup DSA port lan2 — backup DSA port
Several VLAN interfaces would be created on top of the bond. The goal is to keep one stable set of VLAN gateway addresses and routes while automatically switching the physical LAN connection if the active switch or link fails.
However, the installed kernel does not include bonding support:
# CONFIG_BONDING is not set
modinfo: ERROR: Module bonding not found
Is active-backup bonding expected to work with this combination of eth2 and the MT7988 DSA user ports?
If it is supported, would enabling CONFIG_BONDING=y or CONFIG_BONDING=m be sufficient, or would additional kernel patches or configuration be required?
Was bonding omitted from the BPI-R4 defconfig simply because it is not commonly needed, or is there a known compatibility issue with this hardware?