[SANOG] Re: [Infrastructures] using IA methodologies to build network element configuration

[Brent Chapman]

At 10:26 AM +0530 4/3/05, Suresh Ramasubramanian wrote:
>Brent Chapman wrote:
>>I've been toying with the idea of creating a system (database, 
>>language, etc.) for describing networks in enough detail that you 
>>could build various tools on top of the system to produce 
>>configurations for particular devices.  So, for instance, you would 
>>describe your network
>
>Alexei Roudnev has a rather interesting web based tool called CCR 
>(Cisco Configuration Repository) that does this for cisco kit.
>
>http://snmpstat.sourceforge.net/CCR-config.htm
>
>Would be reasonably easy to extend it to store network data and 
>build, push out configurations for other routers

Maybe I'm missing something, but that tool doesn't seem to have 
anything to do with generating config files; it doesn't seem to keep 
any description of the network beyond a list of routers and 
associated access credentials (logins and passwords).  It seems to me 
to be a tool for managing hand-created config files, either by 
downloading them from the routers, or by uploading them to the 
routers; it doesn't seem to have anything to do with generating the 
config files, though.

That's useful, but it's not what I'm talking about.  I want something 
that will generate the config files, starting from a common 
vendor-independent description of the network.  Once the config files 
are generated, tools like CCR-Config are useful for getting the 
config files actually uploaded to the routers, but they aren't much 
help in getting the config files generated in the first place.


-Brent
-- 
Brent Chapman <brent@greatcircle.com> -- Great Circle Associates, Inc.
Specializing in network infrastructure for Silicon Valley since 1989
For info about us and our services, please see http://www.greatcircle.com/
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