netsim-tools are bringing infrastructure-as-code concepts to networking labs. You'll describe your high-level network topology and routing design in a YAML file, and the tools in this repository will

• Create Vagrantfile configuration file for virtualbox or libvirt environment
• Create containerlab configuration file
• Create Ansible inventory and configuration file
• Create IPv4 and IPv6 addressing plan and OSPF, EIGRP, IS-IS, and BGP routing design
• Configure IPv4, IPv6, LLDP, BFD, OSPF, EIGRP, IS-IS, BGP, or SR-MPLS on your lab devices.

Instead of wasting time creating lab topology in a GUI and configuring boring details, you'll start with a lab preconfigured according to your specifications.

Interested? Read the documentation and installation guidelines.

Release 1.1 includes major code- and internal data structure changes and might not be rock solid (please open an issue if you encounter unexpected behavior). There are no changes in topology file format, but you'll have to fix most custom device configuration templates (see breaking changes).

The latest stable release is release_1.0.6.

The last release containing the old (obsolete) CLI commands is release_0.9.3.

More details in release notes.

netlab up : Uses netlab create to create configuration files, starts the virtual lab, and uses netlab initial and netlab config to deploy device configurations. More details

netlab down : Destroys the virtual lab. More details

netlab create : Creates a full-blown network topology, Vagrantfile and Ansible inventory from a simple list of nodes and links. More details

netlab initial : Using topology data generated by netlab create and default device configuration templates configures common device parameters, protocols that should have been enabled (LLDP, OSPF, IS-IS, BGP, SR-MPLS), enables interfaces, and configures IP addresses on interfaces. More details

netlab config : Applies any Jinja2 configuration templates to network devices.

netlab collect : Using Ansible fact gathering or other device-specific Ansible modules, collects device configurations and saves them in specified directory (default: config).

netlab connect : Use SSH or docker exec to connect to a lab device using device names, management network IP addresses (ansible_host), SSH port, and username/passwords from Ansible inventory. Ideal when you use centralized Vagrant environments and want to connect to the devices while being in playbook development directory.