Network Programmability

Foundation
Introduction to Network Programmability

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+ Network
Programmability
Module Overview
overview
+ Network Automation
+ SDN
Network Programmability Overview

+ The ability to use software to configure & manage network infrastructure

+ Main drivers
+ Centralized Policy & Configuration
+ E.g. a Controller (SDN)
+ Consistency & Predictability
+ Removes the "human factor"
+ Optimization & Security
+ Application visibility
+ Threat detection/mitigation
+ Automation
Network Automation

+ Network Programmability allows for Automation

+ Performing a certain task without human intervention
+ Orchestration refers to automating/dealing with a lot of things at once
+ Automation tools commonly used today include Ansible & Puppet

+ Automation Benefits
+ Improved configuration/deployment times
+ Deterministic outcomes
+ Data collection - reporting & troubleshooting
+ Cost reduction
Software Defined Networking (SDN)

+ Originally defined as a separation of the Control & Data Planes

+ The Control Plane is pulled out from the network to a separate unit -
Controller
+ Single centralized software "interface" to the network
+ Simplifies programmability, integration & management
+ SDN implies programmability but is not the same thing

+ Controller Examples
+ Open DayLight
+ Cisco Application Policy Infrastructure Controller (APIC)
+ APIC-EM (APIC Enterprise Module)
SDN Architecture

+ SDN Architecture is logically represented using a three-layer model

+ Application
+ Control
+ "Ties" Application to Infrastructure (and vice versa) via special interfaces
+ Infrastructure

+ Controller Interfaces
+ Northbound (NBI)
+ Applications <-> Controller
+ Southbound (SBI)
+ Controller <-> Network
SDN Architecture

+ Controller Interfaces are typically implemented as APIs

+ Application Programming Interface (API) allows software (machine) to
communicate with other software (machine)

+ NBI Standards
+ Representational State Transfer (REST) API

+ SBI Standards
+ OpenFlow
+ NetConf
+ SNMP or CLI (Telnet, SSH)
Network Programmability
Foundation
Automation Tools

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+ Ansible overview
Module Overview
+ Ansible files
+ Puppet overview
Ansible Overview

+ Open-source* agentless automation software

+ The Ansible software is only needed on the Control Machine
+ Linux/Unix with Python 2 (2.7+) or 3 (3.5+) installed
+ Managed Nodes are accessed through SSH by default
+ All node SSH keys should be part of /etc/ssh/known_hosts
+ The key checking process can be disabled in ansible.cfg

+ Ansible Operations
+ Network devices are managed in the Local Mode
+ Python code gets executed locally on the Control unit
+ Resulting CLI commands are sent over SSH
Ansible Files

+ Ansible requires Inventory & Playbook files to start automation

+ Inventory File
+ Describes all Managed Nodes (INI or YAML format)
+ Location: /etc/ansible/hosts
+ Example
10.2.3.4

[routers]
r1.ine.com
r2.ine.com
Ansible Files

+ Playbook File
+ Defines automation instructions in YAML format
+ Hosts-to-Task mappings
+ Tasks define Modules to run and their parameters
+ Check out documentation at docs.ansible.com (Module Index)

+ Playbook Execution
+ ansible-playbook -i inventory_fname playbook_name.yml

+ Ad-hoc commands can be issued without a Playbook

+ Only useful for very small tasks
Playbook Example

---
- name: description
hosts: routers
connection: local

tasks:
- name: TASK1 - SHOW RUN
ios_command:
commands:
- show run
provider:
username: cisco
password: cisco
host: "{{ inventory_hostname }}"
Puppet Overview

+ Client-server automation software

+ The Puppet server (Master) must be a Linux station
+ Managed Nodes (Slaves) can be much more
+ Require a Puppet Agent
+ Authenticated using SSL certificates

+ Main Puppet Components

+ Resources & Manifests
+ Written in custom Ruby-based Domain Specific Language (DSL)
Puppet Overview

+ Resources
+ System components Puppet can manage
+ General Syntax
<type> { 'title':
attribute_n => value1,
}
+ Example
service { 'ssh':
ensure => running,
}

+ Manifests
+ Files (.pp) with Resources & other Puppet code
Network Programmability
Foundation
Version Control with Git

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+ Version Control & Git
Module Overview overview
+ Working with Git CLI
+ Git Branching
Version Control Overview

+ A process of tracking files & changes to those over time

+ Also known as Source/Revision Control
+ Advantages
+ Change tracking
+ Accountability
+ Simplified collaboration

+ Common Applications
+ Software development
+ Configuration management
+ Documentation maintenance
Git Overview

+ A popular Version Control System

+ Open-source & free for download
+ https://git-scm.com
+ Client-server Architecture
+ Easy installation
+ https://git-scm.com/book/en/v2/Getting-Started-Installing-Git
Working with Git CLI

+ Create a Git Repository

+ Go to the Git-designated folder and issue git init
+ The .git subdirectory is where all project files will be stored

+ Configure user information

+ Edit the .gitconfig file

+ Add files
+ Copy files to the Git folder
+ The tracking process starts after using git add
+ Confirm with git status
Working with Git CLI

+ Commit the change to create a 'snapshot'

+ git commit
+ Verify with git log

+ File modifications require a similar procedure

+ Once the files are modified, sync them via git add & commit with git commit
+ Using git status helps a lot
+ To check the differences between the versions of the same file, use git diff
+ Input varies from commit hashes to file names
+ git diff 0023cdd..fcd6199 filename
Git Branching

+ A process of making "copies" of the main Repository

+ Allows to work on the project without affecting the Repo (Master Branch)
+ New features
+ Testing
+ Collaboration

+ Git Branch is just a reference to an existing snapshot (commit)

+ Branch workspace is separated from the Master Branch
+ The branch changes can be added to the Repo (Merging) or deleted
Working with Git Branches

+ Create a new branch

+ git branch bname
+ To start using a branch, issue git checkout [bname | master]
+ Using git checkout -d automatically creates a branch and make it "active"

+ Merge two branches, if needed (optional)

+ Issue git merge bname from the "main" branch (e.g. Master)
+ Optionally delete the branch after merge
+ git branch -d bname
Network Programmability
Foundation
Distributed Git & GitHub

ine.com
Module Overview
+ Git & multiple systems
+ Using GitHub
Git & Multiple Systems

+ Git was designed to support distributed environments in two ways

+ Peer-to-peer
+ Centralized (Shared)
+ Private or Public

+ Supported Protocols
+ Native Git (TCP 9418)
+ git://fqdn/path_to_repo/repository
+ SSH
+ ssh://[user@]fqdn/path_to_repo/repository
+ HTTP[S]
+ http[s]://fqdn/path_to_repo/repository
Working with a Shared Repository

+ Create a Shared Repository

+ git init --bare rname

+ Download & initialize the repository locally

+ git clone rname_url local_directory
+ A "backlink" to the repository is created automatically

+ Synchronize files
+ Use git pull to download changes
+ Local changes can be uploaded via git push
Using GitHub

+ GitHub is a public Git-based Shared Repository service

+ Commonly used for open-source projects

+ Working with GitHub

+ Create an account on https://github.com
+ Download & sync with remote system
+ git clone https://github.com/user/name.git
+ Use regular Git syntax to manage the files & updates
+ git add, git commit, git pull, git push, etc.
Network Programmability
Foundation
Introduction to Python

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+ Python overview
Module Overview + Writing Python code
+ Running a Python file
+ Documentation
Python Overview

+ Open source interpreted programming language created in late 1980’s

+ Popular for many reasons
+ Easy to use & read
+ Portable
+ Extendable
+ Object-Oriented
+ Works in virtual environments
+ Single Python installation may not meet requirements of all applications
+ Virtual environments with self-contained directories resolve the conflict
+ E.g. "venv" or "virtualenv" packages

+ Generally deemed as a natural choice for Network Programmability

Python Overview

+ Version 3.x fixes problems found in version 2.x (EOL in 2020)

+ https://wiki.python.org/moin/Python2orPython3

+ The Python code (CPython) can be downloaded from www.python.org

+ Some OSes come with Python pre-installed
Writing Python Code

+ Python Shell (Interactive Interpreter)

+ Opened through the python command (or pythonx for version x)
+ Great for testing, but instructions are “lost” once executed

+ Python File
+ Regular text file with the ".py" extension
+ Code editor does matter
+ Source Code Editors help with syntax, formatting, highlighting, etc.
+ IDE (Integrated Development Environment)
+ Contains a Source Code Editor and much more
+ Default IDLE (Integrated Development and Learning Environment) may work
Running a Python File

+ Your OS must known the right application to run the Python file
+ Select it explicitly
+ E.g. python test1.py or /usr/bin/python test1.py
+ Embed the application information into the beginning of the file
+ Known as "Shebang" or "Magic Line"
+ #!/usr/bin/python
+ #!/usr/bin/env python
+ Examine $PATH to find the python app
Python Documentation

+ Python Documentation can be found at https://docs.python.org

+ Tutorial
+ Library Reference
+ Global Module Index
+ General Index
+ Search
Network Programmability
Foundation
Basic Python Constructs

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+ Variables
+ Basic functions
Module Overview
+ Data Types
+ Comments
+ Indentation
Variables

+ User-defined containers for data values

+ Must start with a letter or the underscore character
+ Cannot be a Python-reserved word (e.g. print, loop)
+ Name should be human-readable & meaningful
+ E.g. "interface_speed" and not "axuqz2"
+ The '=' operator is used to assign variable a value
+ E.g. "interface_speed = 100000"

+ Variable is technically acting as a reference (pointer) to the memory

+ Check with id()
Data Types

+ Used to distinguish between the different types of values a Python

program may use
+ Common built-in Data Types
+ String (str)
+ Boolean (bool)
+ List (list)
+ Tuple (tuple)
+ Dictionary (dict)

+ Mutable Data Type can be modified in the original memory location

+ As opposed to Immutable Data Types
Basic Functions

+ Existing Python code meant for a purpose

+ fname(optional_arguments)

+ Common functions
+ print() - displays input/arguments (e.g. a variable, string) on the screen
+ Referring to the variable itself is another way of printing it
+ id() - returns the memory address of a variable
+ type() - tells the Data Type
+ dir() - shows valid object’s attributes (e.g. methods)
+ If no arguments are provided, displays all elements in the namespace
+ help() - explains the method’s syntax; also check https://docs.python.org
Indentation

+ Indentation (leading whitespaces) in Python is critical

+ Defines a code block
+ A group of statements to be treated as one statement
if counter > 0 and counter < 5:
print (counter, ‘ is greater than 0’)
counter += 1
print (‘Back to block 1’)
+ Makes the code easier to read
+ Not important within the lines (e.g. 'if a>0' is the same as 'if a >0')

+ Indentation type (tabs vs spaces) must be consistent

Comments

+ Including meaningful comments in the code is deemed as a best practice

+ A single line comment starts with a hash (#)
# This is a one line comment
+ Multiline comments technically don’t exist in Python
+ Using a triple single/double quote (''')/(""") makes a string that is ignored
- not recommended
'''
Multiline quasicomment1
Multiline quasicomment2
Multiline quasicomment3
'''
Network Programmability
Foundation
Data Types - Numbers

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+ Python Integers
Module Overview
+ Python Floats
+ Useful functions
Python Numbers

+ Integer
+ A whole number (positive or negative)
+ 1, 2, 5, 121, -17, etc.
+ Immutable, represented as int
+ Binary & Hex numbers are treated as Integers
+ To represent a binary/hex number precede it with '0b'/'0x'

+ Float
+ A fractional number written in decimal (.) notation (positive or negative )
+ 1.99, 24.5, -17.182, etc.
+ Immutable, represented as float
Mathematical Operations

+ Python supports regular mathematical operations through operators

+ Addition (+)
+ Subtraction (-)
+ Multiplication (*)
+ Division (/)
+ Exponentiation (**)
+ Modulus (%)
+ Yields the remainder from the division

+ Parenthesis can be used to change the default order of operations

+ E.g. -2**2 results in -4 vs (-2)**2 results in 4
Useful Functions

+ int()
+ Returns an integer representation of a string or number
+ The default number base 10 can be changed with a second argument
+ int (number/string, base)
+ E.g. int('1110', 2) or int ('af', 16)

+ bin()
+ Converts an integer to a binary string

+ hex()
+ Converts an integer to a hexadecimal string
Network Programmability
Foundation
Data Types - Boolean

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Module Overview
+ Python Booleans
Python Booleans

+ Boolean is a two-value subtype of Integer

+ True/False (case sensitive)

+ Booleans are often returned/used by certain functions or checks (e.g.

Comparisons)
+ Pseudo-code: If (x==y) do z

+ Boolean Operations
+ and
+ or
+ not
Network Programmability
Foundation
Data Types - String

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Module Overview + Python Strings
+ Useful methods
Python Strings

+ Represent textual data (a sequence of characters)

+ Defined within single (') or double ("") quotes
+ E.g. interface = 'Gig0/1' or interface = "Gig0/1"
+ Triple quotes (''' or """) allow to write strings that span multiple lines
+ Quotation within the text itself can be maintained with backslash (\)
+ Also works for special code sequences, such as tab (\t) or new line (\n)
+ Data can be converted to String using the str() function
Python Strings

+ String Operations
+ Arithmetic Operators
+ Concatenation (+)
+ Multiplication (*)
+ Indexing
+ Use string[x] to retrieve character positioned at x
+ Slicing
+ Use string[x:y] to retrieve characters from x to y-1
Useful Methods

+ upper() & lower()

+ Useful for string comparison

+ strip()
+ Removes leading and trailing whitespaces (default)
+ A custom set of characters to be removed can be defined

+ find(string, substr)
+ Returns the lowest index in the string where substr is found
Useful Methods

+ split('sep')
+ Returns a List of the words in the string delimited by sep

+ splitlines()
+ Returns a List of the lines in the string, breaking at line boundaries

+ format()
+ Takes a string to format and an arbitrary set of "replacement fields" ({ })
+ Documentation
+ https://docs.python.org/3/library/string.html#string-formatting
+ https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-3101/
Network Programmability
Foundation
Data Types - List & Tuple

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+ Python List & Tuple
Module Overview
overview
+ Useful methods
Python Lists

+ An ordered sequence of objects (elements) of any type

+ List elements are enclosed by brackets ([ ]) and separated with commas
+ E.g. duplex=['half', 'full', 'auto'] or mix=['str', 4]
+ The len() function returns the total number of list objects/elements

+ Accessing List Elements

+ Indexing
+ Use list[x] to get object positioned at x
+ Slicing
+ Use list[a:b:c] to get a slice of list from a to b-1 with step c
+ At least argument is needed, e.g. list[2:]
Python Tuples

+ Similar to List, but immutable

+ Ensures data integrity
+ Tuple elements are enclosed by parenthesis '( )' and separated with commas
+ E.g. fixed_BW = (1000, 10000, 100000)

+ Tuple Elements can be accessed using Indexing & Slicing, like with Lists
Useful List Methods

+ append(object)
+ Adds object to the end of the list

+ insert(index, object)
+ Inserts object to the list at position index

+ pop(index)
+ Removes object positioned at index from the list and returns it

+ sort()
+ Reorders list elements (from "lower" to "higher")
Useful List & Tuple Methods

+ index(object)
+ Returns the index of object

+ count(object)
+ Returns the number of object occurrences in the list or tuple
Network Programmability
Foundation
Data Types - Dictionary

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Module Overview + Dictionary overview
+ Useful methods
Python Dictionaries

+ A unordered collection of key-value pairs, known as Items

+ Dictionary items (key: value) are enclosed by curly brackets ({ }) and
separated with commas
+ E.g. device1={'hostname': 'R1', 'os': 12.1}
+ Values can be of any type, but Keys must be "hashable"
+ Any immutable data type will work, such as String, Integer or Tuple
+ The dict() function is an alternative way of creating Dictionaries

+ Accessing the Dictionary

+ To access value mapped to key key from dictionary dict use dict[key]
+ Since Dictionary is mutable, values can be modified
Useful Methods

+ get()
+ Same as dict[key], but does not raise an error if key does not exists

+ keys(), values(), item()

+ Returns a List of keys/values/items of the dictionary

+ pop(key)
+ Removes the item indexed with key and returns its value

+ update(dict2)
+ Adds the content of dict2 to the dictionary
Network Programmability
Foundation
Conditionals

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Module Overview + Conditional statements
+ Supported operators
Conditional Statements

+ Special structures used to control the program's flow

+ The if statement tests a condition using Boolean logic
+ True (or anything else than numerical 0)
+ False (o numerical 0)
+ The statement(s) after if is/are only executed if the test result equals True
+ If the result is False, the statement(s) is/are ignored

+ Syntax
if condition:
statement
+ Important: a colon ':' follows condition & indentation precedes statement(s)
Conditional Statements

+ Alternative conditions may be specified to "extend" the if statement

+ The elif clause is evaluated only if the preceding if/elif expression is False
+ The else clause is evaluated only if all preceding expressions are False

if condition:
statement(s)
elif altcondition1:
statement(s)
elif altcondition2:
statement(s)
…
else:
statement(s)
Conditional Statements

+ The elif/else clauses must be always properly aligned to the if statement

+ Conditionals can be nested in one another
+ Indentation!
Supported Operators

+ The if/elif conditions are often built using multiple elements tied together
with Operators
+ Comparison
+ Equal (==), not equal (!=)
+ Less than (<), greater than (>)
+ Less than or equal (<=), greater than or equal (>=)
+ Boolean
+ and, or, not
+ Membership
+ in, not in
Example
Network Programmability
Foundation
Loops

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+ Loops overview
+ The while loop
Module Overview
+ The for loop
+ Controlling the
Iterations
Loops Overview

+ Python loops provide a way to implement Iteration

+ Repetitive execution of the same block of code

+ Loop Types
+ while
+ for
The while Loop

+ Syntax
while condition:
statement(s)

+ Executed until the condition turns to False

+ Good for an indefinite type of Iteration
+ Unknown number of "cycles"
The for Loop

+ Syntax
for variable(s) in iterable:
statement(s)

+ Iterable is an object that can be used in iteration

+ A sequence/collection of elements, e.g. List, Tuple, String or File
+ The iter() function tells if an object is iterable or not

+ Executed from the beginning to the end of the iterable object

+ Represents a definite type of Iteration
+ The number of cycles is finite and determined by the object
Controlling the Iterations

+ Loops can be controlled with two special instructions

+ break
+ Immediately terminates the loop
+ Program proceeds to the first after-loop statement
+ continue
+ Immediately resumes the loop
+ New iteration
Network Programmability
Foundation
Functions

ine.com
+ Functions overview
+ Parameters &
Module Overview
Arguments
+ Function output
+ The pass statement
Functions Overview

+ Frequently used code written for a specific purpose

+ Built-in functions include print(), dir(), int(), etc.

+ Basic Syntax
def fname():
'''docstring''' # Optional
code

+ For a function to work, it must be invoked

fname()
Parameters & Arguments

+ Function input (parameters) is optional, but commonly used

+ Parameters can be of any Data Type and number
+ It is even possible to initialize a parameter with a default value
+ To denote an unknown number of parameters, precede one with *
+ Makes the param iterable
+ All formal arguments must be provided during the invocation

+ Full Syntax
def fname(p_1, p_n='default', *params):
'''docstring''' # Optional
code # Code can refer to the parameters
Function Output

+ Functions do something but don't return any data by default

+ Use return to change this behavior
+ Example
def givenumber():
print('This function does something here')
return 2
x = givenumber()
print(x)
The pass Statement

+ Python syntax does not allow to define empty blocks of code

+ Conditionals, loops, functions, etc.
+ Use pass as a placeholder for future code
Network Programmability
Foundation
File Access

ine.com
+ Accessing a File
Module Overview
+ File Operations
+ Closing a File
Accessing a File

+ Before a file can be read or modified, it must be opened

+ open ('filepath', 'mode') # returns a File Object
+ filepath refers to the file path & its name
+ mode determines the level of access to the file
+ r (read-only, default)
+ w (writing, overwrites the file)
+ a (writing, appending to the end of the file)
+ t (open in text/string format, default)
+ b (open in binary/bytes format)
+ + (used with r/w/a for reading & writing)
+ r+ writes to the beginning of the file
+ w+ writes to the beginning of the file & creates a file if it does not exist
+ a+ writes to the end of the file & creates a file if it does not exist
File Operations

+ All file operations are relative to the current stream position ('pointer')
+ tell() returns the current position within the file
+ seek(offset, whence) allows to change the current position
+ whence means relative to the start (0), current position (1) or end (2)

+ Reading
+ Since file object is iterable, the for loop can read it
for line in fileobj:
print (line, end = ' ')
+ File Reading Methods
+ read(), readline(), readlines()
File Operations

+ Writing & Appending

+ File Writing Methods
+ write(string)
+ writelines(sequence)
+ sequence must be iterable (typically a List)

+ For the written data to be read, it may need to be sent to the OS

+ Close the file or use flush()
Closing a File

+ Closing a file flushes the buffer & prevents resource leaks

+ close()

+ Consider with() instead of open()

+ Automatically closes the file
+ Allows for exception handling
+ Syntax
with open ('filepath', 'mode') as fileobject
# code for fileobject
Network Programmability
Foundation
Classes

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Module Overview + Classes Overview
+ Attribute Types
Classes Overview

+ Classes allow for Object Oriented Programming (OOP)

+ Programming technique attempting to model the real world
+ Things, processes, interactions, etc.

+ A Class is just a template for something you want to model

+ Objects ("Instances") are individual representations/entities of a Class
+ Class definition is made of Attributes & Methods
class cname:
'''docstring''' # optional class documentation
attr_n = value
def method_n():
method_code
Attribute Types

+ Attributes can belong to the Class or Object

+ Class Attributes
+ Specific to all objects/instances ('global')
class cname:
attr_n = value
+ Instance
+ Specific to the object ('local')
+ Defined via __init__() function run automatically as the object is created
class cname:
def __init__(self, atr_1, atr_n) # self refers to the object itself
self.atr_1 = atr_1
self.atr_n = atr_n
Sample Code

class c1:
classatr1 = 'Same for all objects'
def __init__(self, objattr1):
self.objattr1 = objattr1
self.objattr2 = 'object-specific2 default'

obj1 = c1('object-specific1')
Network Programmability
Foundation
Modules & Packages

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+ Modules & Packages
Module Overview Overview
+ Installing & Accessing
Modules & Packages
Modules Overview

+ A Module refers to an existing .py file

+ Useful code (functions, variables, classes, etc.) one may want to use in his/her
program without duplicating it
+ Not meant to be executed

+ Python comes with a collection of modules ("Standard Library")

+ Examples
+ re (regular expressions)
+ sys (system parameters)
+ os (OS access, file operations)
+ json (JSON data formatting)
Packages Overview

+ A Package refers to a collection of modules

+ Used to organize modules of one type at one place
+ Sometimes referred to as a Library
+ This term can also refer to more than Package
Modules & Packages - Installation

+ Python distribution may already include the entire Standard Library

+ Depends on the OS
+ Additional (or not included) packages must be installed

+ Python Package Index (PyPI)

+ Open source repository of Python software
+ https://pypi.org
+ Projects/packages can be easily installed using the pip tool
+ Basic syntax: pip install requests
+ https://packaging.python.org/tutorials/installing-packages/
Modules & Packages - Access

+ In order to use a Module/Package, it must be first loaded via import

+ import mod_name [as alias]
+ The module code can be accessed after a dot
+ mod_name.item or alias.item
+ from mod_name import item
+ Using from mod_name import * is not recommended
+ The dotted notation is not needed, refer to item directly
+ Loading Packages is similar
+ import package[.subpackage]
+ import package[.subpackage].mod_name
+ from package[.subpackage].mod_name import item
Network Programmability
Foundation
Introduction to APIs

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+ API overview
Module Overview
+ REST API
+ NETCONF
API Overview

+ Application Programming Interface (API) is a "language" two systems

must understand to communicate
+ Using APIs eliminates the need to parse raw data
+ Standard CLIs were built for humans, not machines and/or software
+ Time-consuming data extraction

+ Common Network APIs

+ REST (RESTful)
+ NETCONF
REST API

+ An API based on Representational State Transfer (REST) Architecture

+ Systems conforming to the REST Architecture are said to be RESTful
+ Client-server
+ Stateless
+ Uniform Interface
+ Uniquely identified Resources & clear data format

+ RESTful clients & servers typically communicate over HTTP

+ Resources are decoupled from their representation
+ JSON or XML
+ RESTCONF is an example of a REST API available on IOS-XE
HTTP Requests & Responses

+ Request Methods
+ GET (retrieve a resource)
+ POST (create a resource)
+ PUT (update/replace a resource)
+ PATCH (modify a resource - partial update)
+ DELETE (delete a resource)

+ Response Codes
+ Success - 2xx
+ Error - 4xx (client), 5xx (server)
NETCONF (Network Configuration Protocol)

+ Network management protocol defined in RFC 6241

+ Operates on structured data to install, manipulate & delete configurations

+ NETCONF Layers
+ Transport
+ SSHv2 (TLS & SOAP are supported, but not common)
+ Messages
+ Provides Remote Procedure Call (RPC) -based communication
+ Operations
+ Content
+ XML-formatted data
NETCONF Messages

+ RPC Request <rpc>

<rpc message-id="id_x">
<!-- Remaining XML-formatted request code -->
</rpc>

+ RPC Response <rpc-reply>

+ Request & Response message-id must match
+ The content is sent within the <data> </data> tags
<rpc-reply message-id="id_x">
<data>
<!-- XML-formatted content -->
</data>
</rpc-reply>
NETCONF Operations

+ Determine the action performed on a remote system

<rpc message-id="id_x">
<operation>
<!-- XML-formatted request -->
<operation>
</rpc>

+ Common Operations
+ <get>
+ Retrieves running configuration or its part
+ <edit-config>
+ Makes a config change
+ <close-session>
+ Graceful session termination
Network Programmability
Foundation
Data Formats - XML

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+ Data Formats
Module Overview
+ XML overview
+ XML syntax
Data Formats

+ Define syntax for storing & exchanging data

+ Required to "agree" on the meaning of the sent/received data
+ Important Formats
+ JSON
+ XML
+ YAML
XML Overview

+ eXtensible Markup Language was designed to store & transport data

+ Human & machine -readable
+ Open standard documented at https://www.w3.org/XML/

+ XML files are made of Tags & Elements

+ Tag determines the beginning & end of data
+ Start tag name is enclosed in <>, e.g. <name>
+ XML's extensibility allows to define arbitrary tags
+ Tag ends in </>, e.g. </name>
+ Element refers to tags & data
+ E.g. <name>some data</name> or <name /> (empty element)
+ Tag/element indentation is ignored
Basic Syntax

+ XML file can optionally start with a Declaration

+ Prepares an XML processor to parse the document
+ If used, must appear in the first line of the document
+ Example: <?xml version = "1.0" encoding = "UTF-8"?>

+ The main document's element is known as Root

+ There can be only one Root element
+ Other elements can be nested within the Root & themselves
<device>
<vendor>Cisco</vendor>
<model>2911</model>
</device>
Attributes & Comments

+ XML elements can be associated with one or more Attribute(s)

+ Attributes use the name="value" format & follow the start tag
<device code="IOS XR 7.0.1">
+ Another way of presenting data
+ Good for identifying elements, e.g. <device id="1">

+ Adding comments
+ XML comments start with "<!--" ad end with "-->"
<!-- this is a comment -->
Namespaces

+ XML uses namespaces to prevent naming conflicts

+ Defined as an attribute in the xmlns:[prefix]="uri" format
+ In the start tag of conflicting elements
<prefix1:device xmlns:prefix1="uri1"> … </prefix1:device>
<prefix2:device xmlns:prefix2="uri2"> … </prefix2:device>
+ Inside the start of Root element
<root xmlns:prefix1="uri1" xmlns:prefix2="uri2">
+ Prefix & URI are arbitrary
+ URI typically points to the namespace documentation
Namespaces

+ Prefixes require child elements to be prefixed to belong to the namespace

<a:device xmlns:a="http://www.example.com/namespace-a">
<a:platform>2911</a:platform>
</a:device>

+ Default Namespace simplifies things

<device xmlns="http://www.example.com/namespace-a">
<platform>2911</platform>
</device>

+ More on XML
+ https://www.w3schools.com/xml/default.asp
Network Programmability
Foundation
Data Formats - YAML

ine.com
Module Overview + YAML overview
+ YAML conventions
YAML Overview

+ YAML Ain't Markup Language

+ Well-suited for configuration files (.yaml or .yml extension)
+ Human-readable, but more complex to generate & parse
+ Comments
+ Documentation
+ https://yaml.org/
+ Look for current version, e.g. YAML 1.2
+ Terminology
+ Mappings -> Dictionaries
+ Sequences -> Lists
+ Scalars -> Strings, Numbers
YAML Conventions

+ YAML document starts with three hyphens (---)

+ Comments start with a hash and can be placed in a separate line or after data
+ Indentation controls the interpretation of the data (e.g. nesting)

+ Lists
+ List members are denoted by a single hyphen
+ Inline format: comma-separated members within square brackets
+ Mixing different data types is allowed

--- ---
# comment - R1 # comment
- R1 - 2120
- ASA1 - ['R2', 'R3', 'ASA1']
YAML Conventions

+ Dictionaries
+ Values follow keys with a colon (no hyphen)
+ Inline format: comma-separated key:value pairs enclosed in curly braces
+ Multi data type support

--- ---
router: r1 # inline format
frwl: {router:r1, frwl:['ASA1', 'ASA2'], 3:cisco}
- ASA1
- ASA2
3: cisco
YAML Conventions

+ Blocks
+ Multi-line code can be written as literal '|' or folded '>' blocks
+ Literal block preserves new lines, folded block replaces them with spaces
example: |
This is a multi-line string
that spans across 2 lines.

+ Strings
+ Quotes denote a string & "cancel" meaning of special characters
platform: "2120"
cancel: "this:that"
Network Programmability
Foundation
Data Formats - JSON

ine.com
Module Overview + JSON overview
+ JSON syntax
JSON Overview

+ JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) is an open-standard data format

+ Human & machine -readable
+ Uses two main structures
+ Objects (an unordered collection of name/value pairs, aka Dictionary)
+ Names/keys must be Strings & values can be Strings, Numbers, Objects,
Lists, Boolean or Null
+ Lists
+ List elements can be of the same type as Object names
+ String values must be double-quoted
JSON Syntax

+ Dictionary (Object)
+ Curly braces enclose name:key comma-separated pairs
{"R1":"2911", "R2":"2951", "count"=2}

+ List
+ Square brackets hold comma-separated elements
["R1", "R2", "R3"]

+ Multi-line notation is common

{
"R1":"2911",
"R2":"2951"
}
JSON Syntax

+ Dictionary & List

+ Data types can be nested & combined
{
"device1": ["IOS", "2911"],
"other_devices": [
{
"platform":"2911",
"code":"IOS"
},
{
"platform":"2951",
"code":"IOS"
}
]
}
Using JSON in Python

import json

with open("file.json") as f:
data = f.read()

jsonDict = json.loads(data)
for k, v in jsonDict.items():
print( "The key {} uses a {} value.".format(str(k), str(type(v))) )
Network Programmability
Foundation
API Toolset

ine.com
Module Overview + Documentation
+ Tools & Libraries
API Documentation

+ Critical for understanding the syntax of API calls & responses

+ ASA REST API

+ Requires an installed & working REST API plugin
+ rest-api image, rest-api agent
+ https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/security/asa/api/qsg-asa-api.html
+ API documentation can be found at https://ASA_IP/doc
REST API Tools

+ Client URL (cURL)

+ CLI-based tool for working with URLs
+ HTTP, FTP, SFTP, TFTP & more
+ Often used to simulate HTTP client requests
+ E.g. curl -u user:pw -k https://asav_IP/api/interfaces/physical

+ Postman
+ GUI-based HTTP frontend
+ Available as a native application or Chrome's extension (deprecated)
+ https://www.getpostman.com/downloads
Python Libraries

+ Python Libraries for Network Programmers

+ Requests
+ "Industry-standard" recommended for HTTP interactions
+ REST API
+ ncclient
+ NETCONF client for Python
+ Netmiko
+ Paramiko-based SSH library for CLI-based interactions
+ Non-programmable API, but still useful (e.g. unsupported features)

+ Make sure to install missing libraries before trying to use them

Network Programmability
Foundation
Python Automation with REST API

ine.com
+ Python Requests
Module Overview
Library
+ Example
Python Requests Library

+ Simplifies generation of REST API calls

+ Install with PIP (pip install requests)
+ Make it accessible via import requests
+ Adding JSON module (import json) is needed to encode & decode JSON
objects (string <-> dictionary)
+ Documented at https://2.python-requests.org/en/master/
Python Requests Library

+ General Syntax
+ requests.method(params)
+ Returns the Response object that may be acted upon
+ E.g. response = requests.get('https://ASA_IP')

+ Useful Parameters
+ Authentication
+ Basic HTTP, OAuth, None, Custom
+ Importing the HTTPBasicAuth function is optional
+ Headers may be added to specify the formatting
+ headers = { 'Accept': 'application/json', 'Content-Type':
'application/json' }
Python Requests Library

+ Response Attributes
+ status_code
+ text

+ JSON Methods
+ dumps()
+ Dictionary -> String
+ loads()
+ String -> Dictionary
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