gcloud compute networks create

NAME

gcloud compute networks create - create a Compute Engine network

SYNOPSIS

gcloud compute networks create NAME [--bgp-routing-mode=MODE; default="regional"] [--description=DESCRIPTION] [--[no-]enable-ula-internal-ipv6] [--internal-ipv6-range=INTERNAL_IPV6_RANGE] [--mtu=MTU] [--network-firewall-policy-enforcement-order=NETWORK_FIREWALL_POLICY_ENFORCEMENT_ORDER] [--network-profile=NETWORK_PROFILE] [--range=RANGE] [--resource-manager-tags=[KEY=VALUE,…]] [--subnet-mode=MODE] [--bgp-best-path-selection-mode=BGP_BEST_PATH_SELECTION_MODE --[no-]bgp-bps-always-compare-med --bgp-bps-inter-region-cost=BGP_BPS_INTER_REGION_COST] [GCLOUD_WIDE_FLAG …]

DESCRIPTION

gcloud compute networks create is used to create virtual networks. A network performs the same function that a router does in a home network: it describes the network range and gateway IP address, handles communication between instances, and serves as a gateway between instances and callers outside the network.

EXAMPLES

To create a regional auto subnet mode network with the name 'network-name', run:

gcloud compute networks create network-name

To create a global custom subnet mode network with the name 'network-name', run:

gcloud compute networks create network-name --bgp-routing-mode=global --subnet-mode=custom

POSITIONAL ARGUMENTS

NAME: Name of the network to create.

FLAGS

--bgp-routing-mode=MODE; default="regional"

The BGP routing mode for this network. If not specified, defaults to regional. MODE must be one of:

global: Cloud Routers in this network advertise subnetworks from all regions to their BGP peers, and program instances in all regions with the router's best learned BGP routes.
regional: Cloud Routers in this network advertise subnetworks from their local region only to their BGP peers, and program instances in their local region only with the router's best learned BGP routes.

--description=DESCRIPTION

An optional, textual description for the network.

--[no-]enable-ula-internal-ipv6

Enable/disable ULA internal IPv6 on this network. Enabling this feature will assign a /48 from google defined ULA prefix fd20::/20. Use --enable-ula-internal-ipv6 to enable and --no-enable-ula-internal-ipv6 to disable.

--internal-ipv6-range=INTERNAL_IPV6_RANGE

When enabling ULA internal IPv6, caller can optionally specify the /48 range they want from the google defined ULA prefix fd20::/20. ULA_IPV6_RANGE must be a valid /48 ULA IPv6 address and within the fd20::/20. Operation will fail if the speficied /48 is already in used by another resource. If the field is not speficied, then a /48 range will be randomly allocated from fd20::/20 and returned via this field.

--mtu=MTU

Maximum transmission unit (MTU) is the size of the largest IP packet that can be transmitted on this network. Default value is 1460 bytes. The minimum value is 1300 bytes and the maximum value is 8896 bytes. The MTU advertised via DHCP to all instances attached to this network.

--network-firewall-policy-enforcement-order=NETWORK_FIREWALL_POLICY_ENFORCEMENT_ORDER

The Network Firewall Policy enforcement order of this network. If not specified, defaults to AFTER_CLASSIC_FIREWALL. NETWORK_FIREWALL_POLICY_ENFORCEMENT_ORDER must be one of:

AFTER_CLASSIC_FIREWALL: Network Firewall Policy is enforced after classic firewall.
BEFORE_CLASSIC_FIREWALL: Network Firewall Policy is enforced before classic firewall.

--network-profile=NETWORK_PROFILE

The network profile to apply to this network.

--range=RANGE

Specifies the IPv4 address range of legacy mode networks. The range must be specified in CIDR format: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classless_Inter-Domain_Routing

This flag only works if mode is legacy.

Using legacy networks is **DEPRECATED**, given that many newer Google Cloud Platform features are not supported on legacy networks. Please be advised that legacy networks may not be supported in the future.

--resource-manager-tags=[KEY=VALUE,…]

A comma-separated list of Resource Manager tags to apply to the network.

--subnet-mode=MODE

The subnet mode of the network. If not specified, defaults to AUTO. MODE must be one of:

auto: Subnets are created automatically. This is the recommended selection.
custom: Create subnets manually.
legacy: [Deprecated] Create an old style network that has a range and cannot have subnets. This is not recommended for new networks.

BGP Best Path Selection flags

--bgp-best-path-selection-mode=BGP_BEST_PATH_SELECTION_MODE

The BGP best path selection algorithm to be employed. BGP_BEST_PATH_SELECTION_MODE must be one of:

LEGACY: Dynamic routes are ranked based on the multiple exit-discriminator (MED) BGP attribute. When global routing is enabled, the MED of the routes received from other regions is the original MED plus the region-to-region cost.
STANDARD: Dynamic routes are ranked based on AS Path, Origin, Neighbor ASN and MED BGP attributes. When global routing is enabled, region-to-region cost is used as a tiebreaker. This mode offers customizations to fine-tune BGP best path routing with additional flags like --bgp-bps-always-compare-med and --bgp-bps-inter-region-cost

--[no-]bgp-bps-always-compare-med

Enables/disables the comparison of MED across routes with different Neighbor ASNs. This value can only be set if the --bgp-best-path-selection-mode is STANDARD. Use --bgp-bps-always-compare-med to enable and --no-bgp-bps-always-compare-med to disable.

--bgp-bps-inter-region-cost=BGP_BPS_INTER_REGION_COST

Defines the preferred approach for handling inter-region cost in the selection process. This value can only be set if the --bgp-best-path-selection-mode is STANDARD. BGP_BPS_INTER_REGION_COST must be one of:

ADD_COST_TO_MED: Adds inter-region cost to the MED before comparing the MED value. When multiple routes have the same value after the Add-cost-to-med comparison, the route selection continues and prefers the route with lowest cost.
DEFAULT: MED is compared as originally received from peers. When multiple routes have the same MED, cost is evaluated as the next step.

GCLOUD WIDE FLAGS

These flags are available to all commands: --access-token-file, --account, --billing-project, --configuration, --flags-file, --flatten, --format, --help, --impersonate-service-account, --log-http, --project, --quiet, --trace-token, --user-output-enabled, --verbosity.

Run $ gcloud help for details.

NOTES

These variants are also available:

gcloud alpha compute networks create

gcloud beta compute networks create

gcloud preview compute networks create

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Last updated 2026-05-27 UTC.