Infrastructure as Code Automation for NDFC using Python, Ansible, VXLAN as Code, and NetDevOps!
The Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (NDFC) provides granular, scalable visibility for deep-dive troubleshooting, functionality, and maintenance operations that benefit data-center operation teams. Cisco NDFC's REST API enables integration with industry leading DevOps tool chains like Ansible for managing network configuration state using Infrastructure as Code (IaC) principles. In this session, participants will work in a DevOps-style development environment with their own NDFC Programmable Fabric. Participants will review and learn how to configure a fabric using NDFC's REST API. Using that knowledge, participants will learn how to build a reusable Python script to configure VXLAN EVPN fabric overlays. Participants will then shift to working with declarative data model and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) principles using the Cisco VXLAN as Code and NDFC Ansible Collections to build and deploy an entire VXLAN EVPN fabric. Finally, participants will commit the Ansible playbook code to GitLab and build a CI/CD pipeline to validate network changes after they are pushed to a production fabric. Participants will achieve all this by following a concise lab guide that contains reusable code along with important details and references.
