Book Image

Mastering Python Networking

Book Image

Mastering Python Networking

Overview of this book

This book begins with a review of the TCP/ IP protocol suite and a refresher of the core elements of the Python language. Next, you will start using Python and supported libraries to automate network tasks from the current major network vendors. We will look at automating traditional network devices based on the command-line interface, as well as newer devices with API support, with hands-on labs. We will then learn the concepts and practical use cases of the Ansible framework in order to achieve your network goals. We will then move on to using Python for DevOps, starting with using open source tools to test, secure, and analyze your network. Then, we will focus on network monitoring and visualization. We will learn how to retrieve network information using a polling mechanism, ?ow-based monitoring, and visualizing the data programmatically. Next, we will learn how to use the Python framework to build your own customized network web services. In the last module, you will use Python for SDN, where you will use a Python-based controller with OpenFlow in a hands-on lab to learn its concepts and applications. We will compare and contrast OpenFlow, OpenStack, OpenDaylight, and NFV. Finally, you will use everything you’ve learned in the book to construct a migration plan to go from a legacy to a scalable SDN-based network.
Table of Contents (22 chapters)
Title
Humble Bundle
Credits
Foreword
About the Author
About the Reviewer
www.PacktPub.com
Customer Feedback
Preface
12
OpenStack, OpenDaylight, and NFV

Graphviz


Graphviz is an open source graph visualization software. Imagine you have to describe your network topology to a colleague without the benefit of a picture. You might say, "Our network consists of three layers: core, distribution, and access. The core layer comprises two routers for redundancy, and both the routers are fully meshed toward the four distribution routers; they are also fully meshed toward the access routers. The internal routing protocol is OSPF, and externally, we use BGP for our provider." While this description lacks some details, it is probably enough for your colleague to paint a pretty good high-level picture of your network.

Graphviz works similarly to the process of describing the graph in text term, then asking the Graphviz program to construct the graph for us. Here, the graph is described in a text format called DOT (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DOT_(graph_description_language)) and Graphviz renders the graph based on the description. Of course, because...