Chapter 2. Network Automation
In this chapter, we’re focused on providing a baseline of high-level network automation concepts so that you are better equipped to get the most out of each chapter going forward. To accomplish this, the following topics are included in this chapter:
- Why network automation?
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Examines various reasons to adopt automation and increase the efficiencies of network operations while proving there is much more to automation than delivering configurations faster to network devices.
- Types of network automation
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Explores various types of automation, from traditional configuration management to automating network diagnostics and troubleshooting, proving once again that there is more to automation than decreasing the time it takes to make a change.
- Evolving the management plane from SNMP to device APIs
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Briefly introduces a few API types found on network devices of the past and present.
- Network automation in the SDN era
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Provides a short synopsis of why network automation tooling is still valuable when SDN solutions, specifically referring to controller-based architectures, are deployed.
Note
This chapter is not meant to provide deep technical content but rather an introduction to the concepts of network automation. This chapter simply lays the foundation and provides context for the chapters that follow.
Why Network Automation?
Network automation, like most types of automation, is considered a means of doing things faster. While accomplishing tasks more ...
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