Automating Network Management: A Deep Dive into Leading Network Automation Tools
Network automation is the technique of using software to automatically provision networks and manage security in order to continuously maximize network functioning and efficiency. Network virtualization is frequently used with network automation.
Today's IT departments strive for efficiency, flexibility, and consistency while deploying and overseeing both conventional and cloud-native apps. Modern network automation software can achieve these goals by automating networking processes including resource provisioning, network mapping, and network testing.
The most effective approach to map, set, provision, and administer a network is discovered using network automation software. Manual, command-line instructions for configuring each networking device are replaced by API-based automation. The APIs may be used directly or indirectly by means of a programming language, such as Python, Java, or Go. In order to ensure that a network can support a configuration request, a contemporary automation platform verifies network resources during provisioning. Scripts are only one part of network automation.
In this article, we will discuss the following topics related to Network Automation Tools:
- Why do you Need Network Automation Solutions?
- How to Select Network a Automation Solution?
- What are the Best Network Automation Tools?
- Ansible
- Anuta ATOM
- BMC Truesight Network Automation
- Chef
- Cisco Crosswork
- Cisco DNA Center
- ConnectWise Automate
- Gluware
- HPE Network Automation
- Infoblox Cloud Network Automation
- Itential Automation Platform
- Juniper Apstra
- Micro Focus Network Automation
- NetBox
- NetBrain Network Automation
- Netmiko
- Puppet
- SaltStack
- Terraform
Why Do You Need Network Automation Solutions?
The fact that many firms' enterprise networks are much more challenging to operate than ever is a significant barrier to efficiency. Due to scattered IT resources and spread workloads, the environment has extremely complicated setups and limited visibility. Even worse, a lot of the administrative tasks on these networks have historically been carried out manually through command-line entries. It has proven to be time-consuming, expensive, needlessly inflexible, and prone to mistakes.
Network outages are a major problem with workplace networking, but there are undoubtedly others. Complicated, challenging networks raise costs, limit corporate innovation, and make it more difficult to make crucial security changes. The hunt for more effective methods has been prompted by this collection of shortcomings.
The emergence of DevOps has shown us that application development and deployment can be managed in software and are highly automated, so it is reasonable to wonder why networking (and security) can't enjoy the same speed and efficiency. However, there is an opportunity for change in networking practices. Network virtualization and automation have made it possible to achieve the desired speed and smooth consistency.
Network automation offers a wide range of advantages. The case for capitalizing on it becomes obvious once we are aware of all the ways in which virtualizing and automating the network generate commercial value. Let's quickly go over the main advantages of network automation:
- Get rid of manual labor: By automating your network, you may create repeatable, predictable network modifications in place of human processes. Because you can concentrate on strategic opportunities that stimulate business growth, this increases IT productivity.
- Improve service delivery speed: Key data services can be delivered more quickly, network performance can be improved, and the rollout of new services and applications can be accelerated.
- Using templates, standardize processes: Use uniform templates to speed up network changes and increase efficiency across stakeholders.
- Change more quickly: Execute network changes more frequently than you did in the past because they require manual labor and a lot of resources.
- Create a solid network: Use an infrastructure-as-code strategy to manage your network's state and configuration, from the data center to the edge, much like programmers handle source code.
- Boost your network's visibility: Use comprehensive performance monitoring tools to identify network failures, increasing resource utilization, and performance problems.
- Assess and fix problems: Rather than relying on manual methods to fix problems, use network analytics to gain insight into performance, utilization, security, and resource allocation.
This is a sizable gift package for your IT environment. What's not to like if network automation offers the prospect of faster, more cost-effective service delivery while allowing IT teams to concentrate on strategy and innovation?
How to Select a Network Automation Solution?
Your company, like anything else in the networking world, makes a crucial decision when deciding on the best tool or product for its needs. You have the option of selecting a proprietary service from a reputable commercial provider or going the open-source route.
The same is true for platforms and tools for network automation. Large network suppliers frequently highlight their own automation products, such as Extreme Networks' Workflow Composer or Cisco's Crosswork Network Automation portfolio. A vendor-built solution can be the best fit if your network is a single-vendor service.
An organization's automation objectives can be met by using open-source automation and scripting tools. The open-source automation tools Ansible, Python, Salt, Yang, and OpenConfig are a few examples.
Off-the-shelf, vendor-specific automation platforms have an advantage over open-source alternatives in that they require less effort to integrate and offer network automation benefits. Numerous of these solutions include pre-built automation workflows. In order to assess which automated procedures might be advantageous in a given setting, the automation platform may read current setups.
While using proprietary tools, you can rely on vendor assistance for inquiries or issues about the product. So, when an organization switches from manual network configuration and deployment processes to semi- or completely automated processes, off-the-shelf network automation tools require less planning.
Vendor-created products, however, are expensive and often only practical when the majority of the underlying network is made up of hardware and software from the same vendor as the network automation tools.
Open-source automation technologies are a preferable option for people with limited resources or in networks with numerous vendors. The negative is that before your business can benefit from these solutions, additional planning and automated preparation are probably necessary. This is particularly valid if your network is huge, intricate, or both.
The good news is that vibrant internet communities can offer assistance with open source. As a result, if you run into trouble when using open-source software to automate operations, someone will probably be nearby who has either already resolved your particular problem or is prepared to assist you in resolving it.
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|
| Lower vendor costs | Higher overhead |
| Quicker updates and vulnerability fixes | Poor or lack of documentation |
| Flexibility through customization | More programming cost and complexity |
| Reduces vendor lock-in risks | Lack of support or roadmap |
Table 1. Pros & Cons of Open-source Network Automation Tools
What are the Best Network Automation Tools?
Choose an automation platform that best meets the needs, IT systems, and business processes of your organization. Next, make sure it offers the majority of the features necessary to meet your business needs. In addition to cost and necessary features, the list contains vendor support, scalability, and compatibility with your current solutions. So, let's begin with our list of top network automation solutions:
1. Ansible
Open source platform Ansible was initially created as a tool for automation on Linux-based systems. Red Hat purchased the system in 2015. Since then, Red Hat has increased Ansible's automation capabilities to include network device automation along with other enterprise IT infrastructure components. Specialized modules for the automation of numerous network vendors and devices are included in Ansible. These modules provide automated network operations such as configuration drift detection, testing/validation, and network device discovery and configuration.
Ansible performs well with automating hardened and proprietary systems, such as network appliances, because it has an agentless design. Hence, communications between the Ansible platform and any network hardware it automates take place over SSH or a public API.
Ansible provides hundreds of pre-built network modules that handle a lot of the labor-intensive aspects of developing automation procedures. Automation templates for numerous companies, including A10, Cisco, Dell, Extreme, Juniper, and Fortinet, are included as pre-built modules. If server, application, and development teams already utilize Ansible for Network Automation, that's a particularly excellent sign.
The premium version, known as Ansible Tower, offers a GUI-based console for deploying automation playbooks and for network administration, whereas the free, open-source version is script-based and uses the device CLI for automation workflow configuration.
Pros of Ansible are listed below:
- Adoption shouldn't be a problem If the enterprise's DevOps team is currently using Ansible.
- Most engineers and operators are already familiar with it.
- The architecture communicates to nodes using SSH or APIs and is agentless.
Cons of Ansible are given below:
- When deploying a workflow, Ansible, and Ansible Tower do not examine the state, status, or configuration of a node. This is known as being configuration-aware.
- They don't do the pre- and post-validation checks necessary to guarantee the efficient, legal execution of the automation task.
- In order to manually deploy the playbooks with the free Ansible version, users must log in to the control node's CLI, which necessitates scripting expertise.
2. Anuta ATOM
Anuta Networks is a leading provider of multi-vendor network automation solutions for web-scale branch, campus, data center, and service provider networks. Anuta ATOM, the company's cloud-ready platform for network orchestration and monitoring, offers stateful service provisioning, workflow management for stateless services, configuration compliance, and device life-cycle management.
Anuta ATOM is an open and extensible modular software platform, that provides closed-loop automation for the provisioning, management, monitoring, and assurance of networks and services. The functionality is available through a GUI and through the Representational State Transfer (REST) and RESTCONF APIs, enabling integration with operations support (OSS), business support (BSS), and ticketing systems. ATOM is containerized and can be deployed on-premises or in public, private, hybrid, or multi-cloud environments, including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform.
The most important features of Anuta ATOM are as follows:
- Anuta ATOM's capabilities enable us to provide automation solutions for the entire network lifecycle, from planning and design to deployment, operation, and optimization.
- Network workflow automation: Low-code automation capabilities enable NetOps to automate, visualize, standardize, and document procedures.
- Service Orchestration: Multivendor, extensible, and YANG-driven orchestration for creating and maintaining service lifecycles.
- Configuration compliance: A customizable monitoring platform gives you insight into network intricacies and delivers actionable insights.
- Alerting and Closed-Loop Automation: allow you to baseline network behavior and perform remediation.
3. BMC Truesight Network Automation
The standalone, purpose-built TrueSight Automation for Networks technology from BMC generally approaches network automation from a security-focused perspective. The collection of technologies may be integrated into the wider BMC TrueSight AIOps platform, which offers server automation, network orchestration, and operations management capabilities.
Tools that automate network equipment vulnerabilities, compliance checks, configuration verifications, and other security-conscious provisioning processes are included in Automation for Networks. The solution integrates with third-party choices like Cisco, Entuity, and Ipswitch, as well as network discovery tools like the BMC Discovery package.
TrueSight supports a wide range of vendors in terms of network vendor compatibility, including Arista Networks, Check Point, Cisco, Dell, HPE, and Juniper. Moreover, it can integrate and automate operations in software-defined networks, such as Cisco Application Centric Infrastructure and VMware NSX.
4. Chef
Chef is a set of automation tools that are entirely free to use. However, the majority of businesses considering network automation should take into account the Chef Enterprise Automation Stack (EAS), which is offered commercially and includes many capabilities that modern IT departments require, including professional assistance.
The toolset aids administrators in streamlining and managing different server, application, and network settings, both locally and remotely. Considering how well-liked Chef has been among server and development teams, some IT departments may already be utilizing Chef EAS.
Chef demands that client software be installed directly on network devices, in contrast to the other items on this list. In order to automate numerous network configuration activities, such as changing router/switch ports, virtual LANs, and quality of service settings on a network, the client software collaborates with the Chef platform.
Chef supports fewer network vendors than some others due to the requirement of an installed agent, yet it is compatible with several of the largest network providers, such as Arista, Cisco, F5, and Juniper.
5. Cisco Crosswork
A comprehensive framework for performing sophisticated automation procedures is Cisco's Crossword Network Automation solution. The industry-leading portfolio of network and cloud management tools from Cisco includes this solution. They were increased after Cisco bought Sedona Systems in 2021. With the use of real-time data and insights into network issues provided by Crossword Network Automation, teams can automate the design and implementation of network modifications using data-driven insights.
Using an integrated collection of software tools, Cisco Crosswork Network Automation offers a full-featured automation feature set. The global leader in networking, Cisco, uses AI and ML technologies in their solutions to power intelligent, autonomous network management operations. Crosswork Network Automation is incredibly scalable for businesses with intricate network infrastructures. To lessen complexity and enhance the user experience, the solution enables SaaS and hybrid workflows in addition to operating across multi-vendor and multi-domain networks. This is why the service is ideal for helping communications firms, IT technology suppliers, and telecom enterprises.
6. Cisco DNA Center
A centralized administration platform for Cisco networks is called the Cisco DNA Center. It provides network automation features such as policy-based automation, network provisioning, and software-defined networking (SDN).
Features of Cisco DNA Center are listed below:
- Network Automation: By automating the configuration, provisioning, and management of network devices, Cisco DNA Center provides network automation. It lessens the need for manual labor, assures uniform configurations, and boosts operational effectiveness.
- Software-Defined Networking (SDN): The Cisco DNA Center's SDN features give the network centralized control and programmability. Through a single interface, administrators may set policies and put them into effect for the entire network.
- Network Provisioning: By automating the process of connecting new devices to the network, Cisco DNA Center makes network provisioning simpler. It offers templates and workflows to simplify the configuration of devices, speeding up deployment.
7. ConnectWise Automate
The agent-based infrastructure and network monitoring software ConnectWise Automate, formerly LabTech, does a decent job of supporting self-service and third-party integration.
An infrastructure management and network monitoring tool with a strong emphasis on network discovery and general IT management is ConnectWise Automate (previously LabTech). The software employs small, inexpensive agents to keep track of not just the machine running the agent but also other devices connected to the same subnet. Without slowing down your infrastructure, that tactic offers insights into hardware use and system performance.
The complete ConnectWise Automate solution installation involves three different steps. First up is the ConnectWise Automate server, which is housed on a Windows server running Oracle's MySQL database server and Internet Information Services (IIS). The ConnectWise Automate server serves as a hub for communication amongst its agents and hosts the data gathered from the many monitors you'll be deploying. As long as you match the requirements and there is no conflicting software running on the same server, the setup process is simple (the list is long, so check the documentation prior to installation).
Pros of ConnectWise Automate are listed below:
- Ability to manage system and vendor patch deployment and automate agent installation.
- Ability to provide users with self-service choices.
- Enables the integration of a variety of vendors' goods with ConnectWise Automate, enabling usage of their products without leaving the platform.
Cons of ConnectWise Automate are given below:
- Certain functionality needs plug-ins and URL adjustments.
- Installation specifications for on-site use.
8. Gluware
Model-Drive Intelligent Network Automation is offered by Gluware. To manage and orchestrate massive, multi-vendor, mission-critical networks, code-free and at scale, Gluware offers a potent layer of intelligence. With its unique Intent-Based Networking (IBN) technology, Gluware makes it easier to manage networks and reduce downtime while boosting security and agility. In contemporary networks, Gluware operates across vendors, technologies, and standards.
The central management console for Gluware Intelligent Network Automation applications is called Gluware Control. Routers, switches, firewalls, load-balancers, WAN optimizers, and wireless LAN controllers are just a few of the hardware and software products that can be conveniently managed with Gluware Control across a wide range of manufacturers and operating systems.
The installation, configuration, operations, maintenance, and management of your network at the feature level or comprehensive level can be made simpler with Gluware Control, a centralized platform.
9. HPE Network Automation
Network managers in information technology departments use the HP Network Management Center (NMC), a collection of integrated HP applications. Network administrators can view, categorize, and monitor the routers, switches, and other devices on their network thanks to the solutions. When network equipment malfunctions, it notifies IT employees, and it foresees when a network node or connection point can go down. Its goal was to increase operational effectiveness.
The HP Network Management Center brand is no longer used to package HP's network management solutions. HP now provides software for cloud administration, orchestration, and automation of the lifecycle of IT services. Prior to joining Micro Focus, Hewlett Packard Enterprise first acquired HP's software assets.
10. SolarWinds
A potent tool for controlling network configuration and compliance is SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager (NCM). It offers strong and secure monitoring for hybrid networks. By leveraging NCM automation tools to deploy standard settings, discover changes that aren't part of the process, audit configurations, and even remedy violations, the solution makes network compliance easier. The platform is made to manage rapid change across intricate, multi-vendor networks, cut down on time spent on tedious operations, and maintain high standards and service levels to prevent IT from breaking down.
In order to swiftly rectify a bad configuration or set up a new device, SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager (NCM) automates configuration backups. The program keeps track of configurations and notifies you if a device is not compliant. If a device is out of compliance, it swiftly patches vulnerabilities through the release of bulk configuration. Finally, through change delegation, monitoring, and alerting, it assists you in preventing illegal network changes.
Pros of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager (NCM) are given below:
- It can easily push any script into any newly added devices and saves a daily backup of all the configurations of the devices, saving time and effort.
- It enables us to keep a record of all configuration modifications made to any device and identifies the individuals responsible.
Cons of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager (NCM) are as follows:
- To do certain operations, the tool requires admin permissions, which could result in a breach if they are made public.
- It is a little expensive in contrast to other choices.
11. Itential Automation Platform
Itential is a platform for multi-domain network automation, with a main emphasis on cloud and SD-WAN. End-to-end network automation for operations, configuration, and service lifecycle management can be built, executed, and visualized by users with ease.
The main advantage of Itential is that Itential is one of the few systems that offers closed-loop automation and is multi-domain and vendor-agnostic. Moreover, The low-code platform integrates with a number of ITSM and log management products to provide end-to-end orchestration.
However, Itential lacks configuration and state awareness. It lacks sophisticated application monitoring and traffic management capabilities, leaving little room for other teams to self-serve automation chores. There is no CMDB support included.
12. Juniper Apstra
People's ways of working, living, and playing have transformed in this era of extraordinary change. Wherever there is a digital transition happening, data center traffic has been growing quickly. You must be nimble in your ability to change in order to stay competitive in business. To do this, Juniper Apstra software improves your data center network operations by offering multivendor compatibility, simplicity, and reliability.
With closed-loop automation and assurance, Juniper Apstra is a software-only, multi-vendor, intent-based networking system that offers a whole fabric management solution.
In order to ensure compliance, Apstra translates corporate intent and technological goals into crucial policy and device-specific configuration, and it continuously self-validates and fixes problems. Apstra provides the "how" when you provide the "what" (network architecture, VLANs, required capacity, redundancy requirements, access rules, and more).
To connect and manage devices via agents deployed on or off of the devices, the Apstra software is installed as one or a collection of virtual machines (VMs).
With Apstra templates, you can design your rack types and fabric network. The template type and choices allow you to specify details like IPv4/IPv6 underlay, Ethernet VPN (EVPN)/IP fabric, collapsed/3-stage/5-stage form of fabric, and single/dual-homing of servers. After being finished, the fabric template can be instantiated into blueprints, each of which represents a real physical network. The blueprints are used to allocate the network resources and managed devices (the "build phase"). Apstra automatically creates the necessary settings for devices as the blueprint is created, acting as an abstraction layer between suppliers. To ensure that security policies are being applied as intended, Apstra offers continuous validation against intent and policy assurance and detects configuration drift in real-time. The incremental configuration is then sent to the Juniper, Cisco, Arista, or Dell-EMC devices after the user commits the modifications.
Apstra maintains the full network life cycle, offering you the capacity to effortlessly grow and scale your network as well as gather useful device information. Apstra balances your intentions with the network's real condition and gives you practical network insights so that your objectives are achieved.
Key Features of Juniper Apstra are listed below:
- Network design and operation based on intent
- Multivendor environments are supported
- Zero-touch deployment that is automated
- Ongoing verification
- Network lifecycle management
- Advanced telemetry using analytics based on intent and root-cause analysis
- Defining and enforcing security policies that are cohesive
- Each size of data center, especially edge data centers, should support modern network systems.
13. Micro Focus Network Automation
Several users praise Micro Focus Network Automation software for its holistic approach to compliance management over a big network, which is frequently used in government and service sector enterprises. The NA Premium edition and NA Ultimate edition, which is Premium plus additional network compliance features, are their two primary packages for enterprise-level automation. Several leading businesses select Micro Focus to fulfill their networking requirements because it provides powerful configuration and compliance solutions and top-notch support.
Features of Micro Focus Network Automation are listed below:
- Task automation for compliance and configuration
- Portal for Network Management Professionals
- Improvements to Mean Time to Repair (MTTR)
- Early security vulnerability identification
- Automated methods for change management
Pros of Micro Focus Network Automation is that Top-notch upgrades, upkeep, and support are available.
The cons of Micro Focus Network Automation is that the user interface is seen as archaic and challenging to use.
14. Appviewx
A network security management tool called AppViewX Automation+ assists companies with a variety of tasks, including troubleshooting application issues and monitoring network changes.
The platform can be used by IT departments to manage, automate, and coordinate network security and application delivery services. It provides an application's perspective on network security and application delivery architecture in multi-cloud scenarios. Application, network, and security engineers now initiate automation workflows on their own and ensure compliance while fostering true business agility.
With the help of the sophisticated automation and orchestration platform AppViewX, you can configure and oversee network components from Layer 4 to Layer 7 from beginning to end. Moreover, its ADC+ and Automation+ systems support a variety of suppliers to accommodate the shifting requirements of network operations.
Pros of AppViewX are listed below:
- It increases productivity by decreasing network downtime during certification upgrades and renewals.
- Applications and on-premises infrastructures are easily separable.
- With its assistance, you can control several applications at once.
The cons of AppViewX is that better UX and user manuals are required.
15. NetBrain Network Automation
A discovery engine at the heart of the product line from NetBrain creates a "digital image" of the live network. This is based on the network data it gathers from third-party solutions via API, CLI output, and device configurations. In contrast to conventional static network diagrams, it makes it possible to create real-time, dynamic maps that make all information about a network's architecture, operation, and traffic flows easily available.
The advantages of NetBrain are listed below:
- NetBrain enables multi-vendor and heterogeneous network architectures.
- It offers administrators a visual programming interface through which they can specify workflows for runbook automation, enabling quick problem-solving and correction.
The disadvantages of NetBrain are that NetBrain's orchestration skills aren't very advanced, and it is largely used for network topology mapping, monitoring, and NCCM software. Moreover, it doesn't do anything to secure the network.
16. Netmiko
Based on the Paramiko SSH library, Netmiko is an open-source Python library that is totally free to use. It is a module that makes use of Paramiko while enhancing its library by adding assistance for many other networking vendors and platforms, including Arista EOS, Cisco ASA, HP Comware 7, Juniper Junos, Linux, and more.
This utility makes connecting and managing network devices over SSH easier by automating and simplifying the logging process on a network device.
Benefits of Netmiko are as follows:
- To connect to network devices, Netmiko makes an SSH connection.
- This program runs "display" commands and returns the outcomes.
- It carries out commands for configuration.
- This automation tool works with many different platforms and providers.
- It is a small SHH-based tool.
- The best tool for users searching for a CLI automation tool with a large supported vendor library
17. Puppet
Another prominent infrastructure automation tool in the server and app development industries is Puppet. Puppet Enterprise might be useful for network administrators wishing to combine technologies because other IT departments within the firm may already be utilizing it. To get some basic network automation functions out of the platform, one or more networking modules must be installed.
Puppet is open source; however, the majority of businesses probably choose to use the more expensive Puppet Enterprise. In order to get the additional network automation features, the enterprise version is required. Furthermore, the network automation modules are entirely agentless, in contrast to Puppet, which relies heavily on agents.
Support for the Nexus hardware, Cisco Internetwork Operating System, and IOS XE is currently provided by network automation modules. Additional modules are available for Lenovo switches, F5 Local Traffic Manager load balancers, and Palo Alto PAN-OS firewalls. This list may be a low-cost choice for businesses who have already invested in Puppet Enterprise and run a network that is primarily made up of their network equipment, despite the fact that it isn't as comprehensive as some of the others.
18. SaltStack
Another open-source automation technology, Saltstack, has been mostly utilized for server automation.
The master/minions topology is how Salt operates. Minions serve as clients, and the master serves as the controller. With regards to deploying an agent, Salt encounters the same difficulties that Puppet and Chef do. The salt-minion is installed on more recent systems that run the operating system in a container, such as NX-OS or IOS-XR, as one possible solution to this problem.
A feature of Salt called proxy minions allows it to control network devices that are unable to execute the conventional Salt-Minion. If your network device isn't standard, you might need to create your own interface because Proxy Minions aren't built-in features.
Moreover, Salt serves as the automation foundation in a project called napalm-salt that uses Nampalm to communicate with network devices.
It makes sense to utilize the same platform to manage your network for businesses that currently use Saltstack to manage their server infrastructure.
19. Terraform
Configuration management is automated via Terraform, an IT automation program. It is one of the most well-liked IT automation solutions because it is not only simple to use but also because it can assist in provisioning infrastructure across various cloud platforms. It enables command-line interface control of numerous cloud services with the open-source IaC (CLI).
It includes built-in support for the declarative HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL), which offers a language for controlling data centers.
The benefits and features of Terraform are as follows:
- Terraform works with Linux, Windows, Mac OS X, FreeBSD, Solaris, and OpenBSD as a cross-platform solution.
- To offer succinct resource descriptions utilizing expressions, arguments, and blocks, Terraform includes the HCL language.
- It can be used during lifecycle procedures to create new resources or manage ones that already exist.
- It eliminates human error and automates the provisioning of resources.
- It utilizes a consistent procedure to manage a variety of services and public clouds.