Network Automation Consultant
All the posts below cover all my recent projects and findings on this exciting journey.
If you’re looking to implement this in a real-world environment, working with a network automation consultant can help you avoid common pitfalls and accelerate delivery.
Config management of network devices is one of the most popular first use cases and Python is the programming language that most people will use, whilst some progress to Golang. With the rapid growth of cloud networks, and virtual devices network management can no longer be performed with manual processes. Network Automation Tools are now standard practice in modern networks.
If you are a Network Engineer looking for some Network Automation Training I have my flagship course on Ansible and a course on Nornir and coming soon Git and Python. Learn how to automate network configurations with ease, configure network devices with Python making managing network devices a breeze.
With my Ansible course there is no prior Ansible knowledge required I start from the very beginning, you will get immediate access and within a few hours you will be performing simple network operations with Python and Ansible!
It’s time to step away from the command line and embrace automation within your network infrastructure.
Covering Ansible playbooks, Cisco configuration templates using Jinja2 and a bit of Git, Github & F5.
Learn the skills that you need to become a Network Automation Engineer
Use Ansible Playbooks for configuration management on your network devices. Manage Cisco IOS, Arista EOS, streamline network operations.
If you are looking for information on Automation Software, my latest post on Network Automation Tools will show you all the open source tools being used today. It is also very important to have knowledge in programming languages like Python & Golang. Or if you want to learn more why not attend a network automation conference?
Learn about the benefits with the articles below. You can automate networks in so many ways and with so many tools to choose from the biggest question is what network automation software to use?
I will also be covering topics like intent based networking, network agility, cloud networks, device discovery and business intent. The biggest takeaway from all of this is to reduce human error and improve network efficiency.
Ansible Hosts File
Ansible is a skill that a lot of people are looking to master. If you want to get started Ansible is a great place to start.
My posts will mainly deal with Ansible Cisco Configuration but also some posts on F5 – read more on Network Configuration Automation
We will also be covering various tools, example scripts and using Python to perform simple tasks.
There will be many examples of code and playbooks. Network Automation Engineers are no longer unicorns they are essential members of staff in in IT department.
Then once you have mastered the basics you can move onto network infrastructure configuration using automation. Learn how to use Ansible to run ad hoc commands and remotely automate configuration of your devices and automate complex operations with ease.
Learning network automation is a journey which you need to start today!
Custom fields in Nautobot unlock powerful customisation, allowing organisations to enrich their network data models without altering core functionality. By enabling users to define additional data …
What is Network Configuration Automation? Network Configuration Automation involves creating templates and scripts that define how a network device should be configured and then through the use of an …
Nautobot Docker Installing Nautobot 3.1 using Docker should be straightforward — but if you use the official nautobot-docker-compose repository, there are several non‑obvious …
Install Nautobot on Ubuntu Server This post will cover how to install Nautobot, installing and configuring the Nautobot application on an Ubuntu Server. You can install Nautobot onto a RHEL (Red Hat …
What is Nautobot? Nautobot is an open-source network automation and network source of truth platform designed to help network teams manage, model, and automate their infrastructure. At …
What is Nautocon? Nautocon is a Nautobot user group dedicated to Nautobot, an open-source Network Source of Truth and Automation Platform developed by Network to Code. Nautocon is a mini conference …
The Nautobot Data Model models your network using a few core objects, the most important ones are Sites, Locations, Devices, Device Types, Interfaces, IP Addresses and Prefixes. Each object represents …
What is Data Modeling? Data Modeling in network engineering is the structured representation of network infrastructure (devices, links, services) to enable automation, improve consistency, and act as …
In this post I am going to show you how to use NetBox as a Source of Truth for Network Automation. What Source of Truth means in network automation In network automation, a “Source of Truth” is the …
What Is Nautobot Device Onboarding? Nautobot Device Onboarding is a Nautobot app that automates the discovery and initial population of network devices into Nautobot, turning existing network …
Netbox Permissions By default any unauthenticated users on Netbox will not be able to view anything, you can control read and write permissions via users in Netbox. However there may be a situation …
The golden config app is a Nautobot app that provides a NetDevOps approach to golden configuration and configuration compliance. Nautobot Golden Config Tutorial For the full breakdown please refer to …
Nautobot jobs are an efficient way to run your Python based network automation scripts / API calls within a controlled environment, enabling you to provide access to the entire team. Nautobot jobs …
In this post I will detail the steps on how to delete Netbox. My use case is for lab use and it’s not typically something you would want to do with your production Netbox! 1. Navigate to your …
In this post I will cover the process to upgrade a Netbox installation running in Docker. I will be upgrading from version 3.7.4 to version 4.3.4 When upgrading Netbox, as the software is based on …
Netbox MCP Server is a read only MCP Server for Netbox that allows you to interact with your data in Netbox via LLMs https://github.com/netboxlabs/netbox-mcp-server
Ansible Roles Examples Ansible Roles vs Playbooks What are Ansible Roles? Ansible roles and playbooks are both essential components of Ansible’s configuration management system, but they serve …
Juniper Virtual Switch setup using vJunos In this post I am going to spin up a Juniper Virtual Switch in Containerlab using the vJunos Switch image which is available to download for free from: …
Over the next few days I am going to answer every one of these questions, if you have an Ansible question or want one answered below drop it in the comments – Thanks! Ansible Basics Playbooks …
Which language is best for network automation is one of the most common questions I get asked. Python is the best language for network automation because of its simplicity, extensive libraries, …
Jinja2 Templating Tutorial for Beginners Jinja2 Template Example Jinja2 Template Example Python Python Jinja2 Template from File Jinja2 Templates for Cisco
UV the ultimate Python Package Manager What is UV? UV is a Python package manager and installer written in Rust, it has been designed to be faster and more efficient than pip and other package …
Pynetbox is a Python library that serves as an API client for NetBox, an open-source IP address management (IPAM) and data centre infrastructure management (DCIM) tool. This library allows …
Infrahub is a new source of truth from Opsmill, that allows you to create your own Schema. This means you are in control of the data model, which gives network engineers unlimited options for how …
Once you have installed NetBox – you can check my post here – How to Install Netbox you are faced with an empty NetBox and you want to start adding devices but there is a bit of a …
The NetBox API is powered by the Django REST Framework and provides an easy way to access NetBox to read, create, modify or delete an object programmatically. NetBox API documentation The NetBox API …
Netbox Custom Scripts are just Python scripts that you can run inside of Netbox to perform tasks like creating a new site. They allow you do access the Netbox data model directly but the code is …
What is the Cisco YANG Suite? Cisco YANG Suite is used to construct and test YANG based APIs over NETCONF, RESTCONF, gRPC and gNMI on Cisco IOS XE, IOS XR, and NX-OS platforms. Cisco’s YANG …
Network Automation Resources Learning Network Automation Network Automation Tools Network Automation Platform
Containerlab is a brilliant way to bring up network testing labs, and Juniper have released free vJunos images that you can use. In this post I am going to download the vJunos image and load it into …
Infrahub Schema Tutorial In the world of Network Automation, Infrahub is leading the way with a new source of truth. Infrahub Schema allows you taking all the best bits of source of truths that have …
Install Netbox Docker Netbox Install, installing Netbox is a very quick and easy process and you should be up and running in under 10 minutes! Whilst there are many ways to install Netbox for this …
Introduction to Infrahub About 7 years ago Damien Garros started to think about how to solve some of the fundamental challenges organisations had with developing and maintaining infrastructure …
NetBox is an infrastructure resource modeling (IRM) application designed to empower network automation. NetBox is the leading solution for modeling and documenting modern networks. Netbox is a …
Why Managing Python Dependencies is Crucial for Your Projects Top Dependency Management Tools for Managing Python Dependencies Why UV is the only tool I will use from now on! How to manage Python …
Ansible AWX API Examples for Network Engineers What is an API request? An API request is how one program or system (in this case, Ansible AWX) communicates with another program or system …
Introduction to Network Automation with Ansible Why Use Ansible for Network Automation? For network engineers looking to start with automation, Ansible provides a low barrier to entry while offering …
Nautobot vs Netbox NetBox and Nautobot are leading open-source Network Sources of Truth (NSoT). While NetBox excels as a robust, documentation-focused tool for IPAM and DCIM, Nautobot, which is a fork …
Nornir vs Ansible The main difference between Nornir and Ansible is that Nornir is a pure Python framework where everything you do is written in Python whilst Ansible which is also a Python based …
What are Ansible Templates? Ansible templates are a powerful feature that allow you to dynamically generate configuration files or other text-based content on remote systems using templates, …
Network Observability is the ability to gain insights into the internal workings of a network by analyzing its external outputs. Network observability is the ability to answer any question about …
Network Automation Conferences 2026 Top of the list for 2026 is Autocon5 – this time it’s going to be in Munich, run by the Network Automation Forum it’s going to be bigger than …
10 Common Network Automation Use Cases One of the biggest challenges with network automation is where to start, here are my top 10 network automation use cases to get you started, these will all fit …
EVE-NG Network Automation Lab In this post I will show you how to build an EVE-NG network automation lab in Google Cloud Platform. For this demo I will be using Cisco images but the process is the …
Installing and Configuring a NetBox Plugin Extending the Navigation Menu Working with the NetBox REST API
Ansible AWX What is AWX? Ansible AWX is the open-source version of Ansible Tower, which is now Ansible Automation Controller which is part of the Ansible Automation Platform. AWX Ansible Both AWX and …
Ansible Variable Precedence Order Ansible variable precedence, sometimes also referred to as variable priority or hierarchy, determines which value will be assigned to a variable when that variable is …
What is Ansible Lightspeed? all you need to know to get started Announced by Red Hat in May 2023 Ansible Lightspeed is a generative AI service designed by and for Ansible automators, operators, and …
What is the Ansible template module and how it can help network engineers in configuration management? The Ansible template module is a powerful tool in the Ansible configuration management system …
How to install Ansible on Ubuntu 22.04 To install Ansible on Ubuntu is very simple, you just need to add the Ansible PPA (Personal Package Archive) then update your system and then install Ansible. If …
Getting started with Ansible Introduction to Ansible Just getting started with Ansible? If you are just getting started with Ansible this post is for you, I will take you from have zero knowledge of …
Ansible Dynamic Script Example Ansible Dynamic Inventory using Python
Introduction to Ansible Playbooks An Ansible playbook can include one or more “Plays” which map a group of hosts to a set of tasks. Each play specifies the hosts that it applies to, and a …
20 Ansible Interview Questions With Ansible becoming a must have skill for anyone in IT now I thought I would put together this short list of Ansible Interview Questions which should help you answer …
Introduction to Batfish What is Batfish? Batfish is an open source network analysis tool. It takes configuration files (snapshots) from network devices and then creates a vendor agnostic data model …
What do network engineers do? Network engineers design and implement network configurations, install network hardware, troubleshoot performance issues, carry out network monitoring and configure …
Golang Tutorial for Beginners Go (also called Golang) is a programming language developed by Google in 2009. It is a statically-typed language with syntax similar to C, but with the added benefits of …
If you have installed Ansible and are using ZSH and when you run ansible –version you get command not found Ansible – this was my fix When you install ZSH some path variables are changed …
SSL, or Secure Sockets Layer, is the gold standard technology for keeping your internet connection safe and secure. It helps in safeguarding data that is sent between systems and prevents those that …
What are host_vars and group_vars in Ansible? Variables or VARS are used to input data or a variable into a place in a playbook instead of manually entering the value in multiple places. The main …
Uner the hash tag #anyonecancode Cisco have made available to anyone who registers for an account access to a free Python course. This is being run from the Cisco Network Academy. This was launched …
Python Network Automation Course for Beginners Master Python for Network AutomationLearn how to automate network tasks with Python, Netmiko, Nornir, REST APIs, and pyATS. Designed for network …
Ansible Tutorial for Beginners What is Ansible? Ansible is an open source tool tool that helps you automate IT tasks, it was purchased by Red Hat in October 2015 and is used for automation of Linux …
What is Hashicorp Vault? Hashicorp Vault Installation Install Vault Ubuntu Deploy HCP Vault PKI Secrets Engine
Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform vs Ansible Tower The main difference between Ansible Tower and Ansible Automation Platform is that Ansible Tower is an older version of the software which has now …
What is Ansible Automation Platform? Ansible Tower has been the GUI front end version of Ansible for many years and if you wanted to provide logging, security and much more when operating Ansible, …
Gluware review Gluware is a network automation platform that takes the headaches out of automating and orchestrating your critical network infrastructure. Gluware provides a code free option to …
Palo Alto Ansible Playbook Example If you are looking for a Palo Alto Ansible Playbook you are in the right place!In this post I am going to take you through all the steps you need to start getting …
This page is purely for my own benefit detailing small fixes to issues I encounter in my daily work. I hope if you are here and discover a fix that it helps you. VMware Workstation does not support …
Cisco Python Certification If you are looking for a Python Network Automation Certification, you will not find one, which is probably why you have ended up here! The network automation market has …
Ansible Videos for Network Engineers All the videos below are aimed at network engineers who want to use Ansible for Network Automation, however if you are looking for some basic Ansible Training a …
What is Netmiko in Python used for? Netmiko is a multi-vendor Python library written by Kirk Byers. It is based on Paramiko and used to simplify SSH connections to network devices. It is multi-vendor …
Terraform Tutorial for Beginners Terraform is an open-source infrastructure as code software tool created by Hashicorp. Used to define and provision infrastructure using a declaritive configuration …
Install Ansible AWX on Ubuntu 20.04 using Kubernetes AWX is the upstream open source version of Ansible Tower, you can install it for free and use it for free forever. To install on Kubernetes I will …
Terraform Associate Study Guide This post will detail my journey to passing the Terraform Associate Certification exam. There is not currently an official course, but there are plenty of courses …
What are the differences between Terraform and Ansible? Terraform is an open-source tool developed by HashiCorp that allows users to manage cloud services through a language named HashiCorp …
Should Network Engineers Learn Python? A question I get asked all the time is “Should network engineers learn Python?” The short answer is yes, but as with all things IT it depends! Here …
pyATS Genie What is pyATS framework? pyATS meaning pyATS was (and still is) an in-house Cisco Python testing framework that was developed for internal Cisco engineering use and has now been made open …
Anyone looking to learn Python Network Automation will usually turn to YouTube first. So I have put together this list of my top resources on YouTube to learn Python to perform network automation …
Python Network Automation In this Python tutorial I will cover in detail some useful Python scripts network engineers can start using today. Looking for some more in depth training check out my Python …
What is a Python Virtual Environment? Basically a Python virtual environment is a folder with a few scripts in it that allows you to create an isolated environment to work on your project allowing you …
Have you got 100’s or 1000’s of Cisco switches or routers to perform a software upgrade on? Looking for a simple way to upgrade Cisco IOS remotely? Or perform the task without manually …
I reached out to leaders in the field of network automation and asked them one simple question. “What did you wish you knew before starting to learn network automation?” and or “Give …
Ansible Network Automation Course, Master Ansible and make Automating Networks a breeze! Master Ansible and become a Network Automation Ninja with my Ansible Network Automation Course You can learn …
Ansible Vault Tutorial for beginners If you have been using Ansible for a while you will have wondered if there is a way to encrypt your sensitive data or password information? There is it’s …
Network Automation Basics At a basic level, network automation is tools and processes that will transition the manual configuration of network devices to software applications and processes that can …
Nornir Python Automation Framework What is Nornir? Nornir is a Python based automation framework, it uses an inventory of hosts on your network and then executes tasks against those devices, Nornir is …
Ansible or Python? In the world of networking right now there are many discussions about which network automation tools are the best. But one of the most asked questions is Ansible or Python? The main …
The networking industry is telling us all that we need to learn Python, we need to do network programming, we need to learn network automation, the CLI is dead! But for most of us nothing has changed …
What is Network Automation? Network Automation is the process of making configuration changes to your network devices using software tools and code rather than manually configuring each device one by …
One of the main features of using Ansible for Network Automation is the use of roles, and there are many advantages of using Ansible roles which I will describe below. When you start to build up a …
Cisco Network Services Orchestrator (NSO) is an orchestration platform for hybrid networks. It decouples network services from specific components, while automatically configuring the …
Ansible Inventory File What is an Ansible Inventory? The Ansible Inventory File defines all the hosts and groups of hosts that you want to automate with Ansible. Also called the Ansible Hosts File it …
NetYCE NetYCE is a network orchestration framework specifically developed for network engineers to build their own network automation solutions in no time without coding. The framework is an ideal …
What does a Network Automation Engineer do? As a Network Automation Engineer you will be expected to use devops methodologies and manage your network using software and not just …
The best way to learn Python for beginners If you are searching for the best way to learn Python coding on the internet you will be overwhelmed with the amount of information. On Udemy alone there are …
If you just just like watching a video the whole process is shown in the video below. How to Install Ansible Tower on Ubuntu 16.04 Video If you want the detailed steps in written format – keep …
Network Automation Tools List – Best Network Automation Software The world of network engineering is changing at a rapid pace and Network Automation Tools are now becoming essential to the …
What is Ansible Software used for and what does it do? Ansible is an open source automation platform which was purchased by Red Hat in October 2015. It is used heavily by the server admin community …