ansible network automation modules

Below, we name the play Gather ARP data, and the hosts are those listed in the IOS_switches group. Here we use CORE-ATL-0. Do Not Sell My Personal Info. Network pros can use it to perform basic network automation tasks, like collecting ARP table data. These names are simply text strings that will appear in the output. I am using the Ansible filter | to_nice_json to achieve this. We did a demonstration of this approach, live, using the BlueCat Address Manager REST API: Authentication is handled with a preliminary REST API call to get a valid token: Once we have a token, we can then pass it along to the BlueCat Address Manager APIs. Was I ever right! This accomplishes a lot of the heavy lifting of automation over CLI, especially compared to tools of the past or writing your own code to do this. You can set facts from other facts or data retrieved from devices. Now that you have these 11 Ansible modules, I hope that you have a sense of the type of network automation and orchestration available to you. These are categorized by network OS name, and you can click on a vendor OS directly, or use the Search function to narrow down the selections. Enterprises can actually profit from these resulting digital insights as well, either with operational excellence, commoditizing the data, or adjusting business flows. We can test this within the application and see how it would work. Ansible is one of the most popular open source network automation tools. Not good. See a deep dive demo at Networking Field Day 24. A good example of this, and the next step in the BlueCat Address Manager Network Facts playbook, is to take the registered variable and create a nice (pretty) JSON file from the data. Ivan Pepelnjak (CCIE#1354 Emeritus), Independent Network Architect at ipSpace.net, has been designing and implementing large-scale data communications networks as well as teaching and writing books about advanced internetworking technologies since 1990. Compare Paramiko, Netmiko and NAPALM network Agentless Ansible structure opens up configuration How do I get started with an Ansible playbook? After all, this is supposed to be automation, right? Task 2 simply prints the saved result, referencing the list of stdout_lines that is in the saved cli_result. So far, I have used this module to automate: Cisco has several APIs to get information returned in JSON format. Is there an easy way for myself, and my team, to get started with Ansible networking modules? A good example is a host variable with its management IP address and hostname. Instead, we can use the vars_prompt module to prompt for input from the user. For further reading, Ansibles guides on gather facts about remote hosts (Windows and Linux), collect facts from remote devices running Cisco IOS, get facts about NX-OS switches, collect facts from remote devices running Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA), Microsoft Azure, and Amazon Web Services;Ansibles collection of community content on VMware; and my blog post about infrastructure as code, are helpful. It controls Ansible's execution of the task to show the ARP table and display the output. Configuration templating is accomplished by combining Ansible with the Jinja2 templating language. John maintains his CCNA, 2x CCNP, 5x Cisco Specialist, and Microsoft Certified ITP: Enterprise Administrator while continuously developing his programming and automation skills. For example, you can get the networks from the BlueCat Address Manager REST API registered into a variable. Click on ios_facts-Read through the Parameter Descriptions to see what the module requires as inputs. You can even check against Ciscos PSIRT REST API for security vulnerabilities. In addition, while there is an Ansible config file, you typically dont need to modify it as a beginner. Product Security Incident Response Team (PSIRT). The example in this article will collect Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) table data so you can compare it with the scripts we used in our previous article, "Network automation with Python, Paramiko, Netmiko and NAPALM.". From core network services to multi-cloud management, BlueCat has everything to build the network you need. Under Hosts you can enter the hostname of a Cisco IOS device in your Ansible inventory. Using Automation Gateway with Ansibles Network Modules. Is there an easy way to explore Ansible Networking Modules? New features tame network complexity, reduce costs, improve security, and automate DDI tasks to drive rapid innovation. With IOS_switches.yml, we specify the Ansible module network_cli, set the OS to ios and specify the login credentials. The opinions expressed in individual articles, blog posts, videos or webinars are entirely the authors opinions. Some basic logic and valid output file type formatting (be careful with your markdown, as its very strict) result in two files: the CSV and the markdown. Under the category of ios, you will see a list of all the related ios networking modules, prefixed with ios_. 11 "Protocol Address Age (min) Hardware Addr Type Interface". Configuration modules go a step further and enter the configuration terminal level (conf t) on the platform and issue configuration commands. Ansible can run with a simple configuration, but that path leads to a jumble of different constructs. It is easily available, easy to learn and powerful. These variables are prefixed with ansible_net_ and would be available within a playbook. Debug allows you to interact with your terminal during playbook execution and is extremely handy for troubleshooting or development. The first mistake engineers tend to makeoften to expedite development or out of pure ignoranceis to hard-code their credentials into their group_vars or directly in their playbook. My top Ansible module is the URI module. In this example, I use the searchByObjectType API: You can also learn how to use Ansible and Postman or Gateway to get network information from BlueCat Address Manager. It was close. For further reading, Ansibles guide to execute shell commands on targets is helpful. In that row, enter default, which tells the module to send us all of the default information about the device. Here is a simple example using the ios_command module where I want to register the response into a variable. Ive used the template module in both directionsboth for template data I want to send to a device, such as a configuration, as well as for template data Ive received from a device (typically the JSON). It is in INI format, which uses name = value syntax. But choosing a platform doesn't need to be confusing. The device test_sw is a member of the groups IOS_switches and access. Conference rooms need to evolve as employees demand the same rich virtual meeting experience they have on desktop. You can dynamically build the configurations of many devices and store them on a disk for later loading. The inventory file name is identified and retries are disabled, as shown below. Network pros need network automation skills in NAPALM and Ansible because the two modules together can enhance multivendor environments and streamline network management tasks. In the gather_subset section, click on the + sign to add a row. For an easy way to get started with automation, use the above example to run several useful show commands across your network and store the output in files. Search for ios and click the ios category to see a list of modules available. For further reading, Ansibles guides on templating (Jinja2) and template a file out to a target host, as well as my blog post about moving to Jinja2 for automated documentation, are helpful. Anything with a RESTful API can be automated! Playbooks are great prebuilt tasks, but an ad hoc mode is also available to run the same command across many devices. Ansible runs on a control node and communicates with a network device's CLI via the SSH protocol or the network device APIs, if available. There are many real-world examples available on GitHub and other places, my blog included. Sign-up now. Find him on Twitter @john_capobianco or LinkedIn /john-capobianco-644a1515. As you can see, the template uses the Ansible loop iteration and generates either a .csv or .md file depending on the value. ansible wolters automating For further reading, Ansibles guide on print statements during execution is helpful. I like to use this ability to automate the Git actions at the end of a playbook. Namely, where is the rest of the data from all the other loops? If you read the documentation for this module, it may seem like copying a source file to a local or remote destination is all this module can do. Fortunately, there is a way that allows you to securely hard code your credential strings inside what is known as an Ansible vault. This has several advantages, including not hard-coding your credentials. Itential creates a default decoration for Ansible modules, so that they can be directly executed in the application, or even through an API. As you can see, by leveraging your library of existing Ansible assets with Itentials Automation Gateway, networking teams gain a powerful way to quickly learn about Ansible network modules, test them, and publish them without the need for building existing playbooks. Also, I believe that digital information is the new oil and worth a lot. The ios_command module is used to execute the command show arp. Is there an easy way to test and run them without writing an entire playbook? repository use mirror create server So, how did it make it so high up on this list? This offers numerous advantages, including: Note: Its easy to try the latest Ansible automation platform for free. Regardless of the connection typebe it SSH, HTTPS, or WinRMthe playbook needs to authenticate with a set of credentials. The recommended secure configuration uses either Ansible vaults or SSH keys, so the credentials are not kept in a plain-text file. The BlueCat Ansible module includes a series of standalone playbooks. Learn how the Java-based Log4j2 logging vulnerability works, how severe it is, its potential effects on BlueCat products, and what has been done to fix it. How to plan a hybrid conference room setup, Zoom, RingCentral, BlueJeans improve virtual whiteboards, How mobile firewalls protect against unique threat vectors, How to perform a full remote wipe on an Android device, How to perform a full remote wipe on an iPhone, The implications of blockchain in the chip shortage, Quantum computing market sees new partnerships, progress, Microsoft partner ecosystem revved up, riled by 2022 event, Recruiters look for range of qualities in MSP job candidates, Microsoft industry clouds hover over partner event. 12 "Internet 192.168.1.108 - bcc4.933e.49c0 ARPA Vlan1". BlueCat has implemented a collection of RESTful get_ modules that achieve the same goals. Try network automation with Ansible on some simple read-only tasks, and you'll soon be hooked. First, click on the 3 horizontal lines in the upper left corner and select API Documentation-2.0, Scroll down the new window until you see the section labelled Modules, Edit Module Parameters and input a JSON module that has the required hostname and default argument, as defined by the previous decoration, Specify the module name to execute, as it appears in the list: ios_facts, Click the Execute button and scroll down to look at the output, which can now be used via an API call through Automation Gateway. Itential Adds Automated Configuration for Multi-Cloud Networks, The Real Year of 5G: What it Means For Cloud Technology, US-Based Software and Network Automation Vendor Itential Appoints new Director for APAC Region. 1350 Spring Street NW Suite 200 Atlanta GA 30309 USA, Itential named a Cool Vendor in Network Automation. Its operation is controlled by easy-to-read configuration files and by command-line arguments. After running this command, you will be prompted for a secret. For further reading, the Ansible guides on copy files to remote locations and playbook filters are helpful. I wish you the best of success with your journey into infrastructure as code. The BlueCat Ansible module extends Ansible to allow for command and configuration within the BlueCat platform. ansible playbook To proceed with these recommended modules, you will need to have Ansible installed using their pip package manager. For our example, we will use the following directory and file structure: The ansible.cfg file contains Ansible's configuration. Yes, using the same template! If you click on any of these modules, you will notice that any required inputs have been pre-defined, so that they can be executed directly from the Automation Gateway instead of the command line. 2022 BlueCat Networks All rights reserved. Another reason Ansible has become widely used in network automation is that it doesnt require users to be programmers in order to start using existing Playbooks or building them from scratch. For example, get_configurations.yml returns an Address Manager entity for each configuration in Address Manager. Their complete installs package can be found in their helpful Installing Ansible guide. Most networking-focused Ansible examples or blog posts focus on basic proof-of-concept examples. I also hope you find these Ansible modules useful, and that if you find more good stuff, that you share it with the rest of our networking community in Network VIP on Slack. Why do seven in 10 enterprises struggle to realize the full value of the cloud? A playbook can contain multiple plays, and each play can contain multiple tasks. When a device is lost or no longer needed for work purposes, a remote wipe can keep corporate data secure. It is ideal for collecting and reporting information about the current network state. Unlike traditional infrastructure management, it relies on a computer programming approach instead of a command-line or graphical user interface. The power of network automation with Ansible isn't running a simple command like show arp on one device, as we've done above. Our example script uses the cli_command module to issue CLI commands to our test device, a Cisco 3560CX switch. Default values are frequently the best choice, so this file may not be needed. And it allows you to plug in variable-data to plug dynamic data into your files. ansible Uber engineer Ryan Patterson shares how data drives network automation projects, which must also be scalable, save costs, and meet user needs. ansible The ability to gather facts and informationyou may be wondering how this seemingly simple capability is higher on the list than configuration modules. For further reading, Ansibles guide on interacts with webservices, RedHats article on using Ansible to interact with web endpoints, are helpful. On the left side, click on Ansible and youll see several categories, select Modules. Existing partners please register all account opportunities with Itential, Learn more about how Itential & IP Fabric provide integrated network automation & assurance. Copyright 2000 - 2022, TechTarget This is a vital A remote wipe is a vital security tool as mobile devices become more common in the workplace. The ability to program infrastructure using a REST API allows for the maturity of the software development lifecycle. Itential is redefining network automation at scale. The directive register is used to save the output of ios_command into an Ansible variable named cli_result. The sh_arp.yml file -- in YAML format -- is known as an Ansible playbook. In the output, youll notice that multiple variables are set with the facts of the device. Using these simple Ansible modules, fully automated, fully scaled, real-time, network-state documentation can be stored in a real enterprise-grade source of truth. Cisco has devoted ios_facts, nxos_facts, and even asa_facts modules. Windows and Linux platforms use the setup module while VMware has a variety of _info modules (guest_info, host_info, etc.). For further reading, Ansibles interactive prompts guide is helpful. You can make sure device configurations are properly loaded and are consistent across many devices, with consistent quality of service or MPLS route target definitions. Variables that exist in the host files will supersede the same group variables, enabling users to override variables for specific devices. Almost every IT platform available now has either Ansible or vendor-provided command and configuration modules to programmatically alter configurations. But they all achieve the same end: Collecting stateful facts and information and returning the data as structured JSON. MPLS infrastructure and services solution, Building Network Automation Solutions online course, Building IP fabric Junos configurations with Ansible/Jinja2, Creating Ansible playbook from the ground up, Use Ansible to change the source of truth, Add a dhcp helper address where helpers exist, More Ansible- and network automation related blog posts, Sample playbooks using Ansible networking modules, Create your own Ansible/Jinja2 filter plugins, Building Docker network automation container.

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