Search icon CANCEL
Subscription
0
Cart icon
Your Cart (0 item)
Close icon
You have no products in your basket yet
Save more on your purchases! discount-offer-chevron-icon
Savings automatically calculated. No voucher code required.
Arrow left icon
Explore Products
Best Sellers
New Releases
Books
Videos
Audiobooks
Learning Hub
Newsletter Hub
Free Learning
Arrow right icon
timer SALE ENDS IN
0 Days
:
00 Hours
:
00 Minutes
:
00 Seconds
Mastering Python Networking
Mastering Python Networking

Mastering Python Networking: Utilize Python packages and frameworks for network automation, monitoring, cloud, and management , Fourth Edition

eBook
€26.98 €29.99
Paperback
€37.99
Subscription
Free Trial
Renews at €18.99p/m

What do you get with Print?

Product feature icon Instant access to your digital copy whilst your Print order is Shipped
Product feature icon Paperback book shipped to your preferred address
Product feature icon Redeem a companion digital copy on all Print orders
Product feature icon Access this title in our online reader with advanced features
Product feature icon DRM FREE - Read whenever, wherever and however you want
Product feature icon AI Assistant (beta) to help accelerate your learning
OR
Modal Close icon
Payment Processing...
tick Completed

Shipping Address

Billing Address

Shipping Methods
Table of content icon View table of contents Preview book icon Preview Book

Mastering Python Networking

Low-Level Network Device Interactions

In Chapter 1, Review of TCP/IP Protocol Suite and Python, we looked at the theories and specifications behind network communication protocols. We also took a quick tour of the Python language. In this chapter, we will start to dive deeper into the management of network devices using Python. In particular, we will examine the different ways in which we can use Python to programmatically communicate with legacy network routers and switches.

What do I mean by legacy network routers and switches? While it’s hard to imagine any networking device coming out today without an application programming interface (API) for programmatic communication, it is a known fact that many of the network devices deployed in previous years did not contain API interfaces. The intended method of management for those devices was through command-line interfaces (CLIs) using terminal programs, which were originally developed with a human engineer in mind. The management relied on the engineer’s interpretation of the data returned from the device for appropriate action. As one can imagine, as the number of network devices and the complexity of the network grew, it became increasingly difficult to manually manage them one by one.

Python has several great libraries and frameworks that can help with these tasks, such as Pexpect, Paramiko, Netmiko, NAPALM, and Nornir, amongst others. It is worth noting that there are several overlaps between these libraries in terms of code, dependencies, and the maintainers of the projects. For example, the Netmiko library was created by Kirk Byers in 2014 based on the Paramiko SSH library. Carl Montanari created the Scrapli library to take advantage of the latest Python 3 asyncio concurrency features. In recent years, Kirk, Carl, David Barroso from the NAPALM project, and others teamed up to create the awesome Nornir framework to provide a pure Python network automation framework.

For the most part, the libraries are flexible enough to be used together or separately. For example, Ansible (covered in Chapter 4, The Python Automation Framework – Ansible) uses both Paramiko and Ansible-NAPALM as the underlying libraries for its network modules.

With so many libraries in existence today, it’s not possible to cover all of them in a reasonable number of pages. In this chapter, we will cover Pexpect first, then move on with examples from Paramiko. Once we understand the basics and operations of Paramiko, it is easy to branch out to other libraries, such as Netmiko and NAPALM. In this chapter, we will take a look at the following topics:

  • The challenges of the CLI
  • Constructing a virtual lab
  • The Python Pexpect library
  • The Python Paramiko library
  • Examples from other libraries
  • The downsides of Pexpect and Paramiko

We have briefly discussed the shortfalls of managing network devices via the command-line interface. It has proven to be ineffective in network management with even moderate-sized networks. This chapter will introduce Python libraries that can work with that limitation. First, let us discuss some of the challenges with the CLI in more detail.

The challenges of the CLI

I started my IT career at an ISP help desk back in the early 2000s. I remember watching the network engineers typing in what seemed like cryptic commands into a text terminal. Like magic, the network devices would then bend to their will and behave in the way they intended. In time, I got to learn and embrace these magic commands that I could type into the terminal. As network engineers, these CLI-based commands are like secret codes we share with each other in this world we call network engineering. Manually typing in the command was just something we all had to do to get the job done, no harm, no foul.

However, it was right around the year 2014 when we started to see the industry coming to a consensus about the clear need to move away from manual, human-driven CLIs toward an automatic, computer-centric automation API. Make no mistake, we still need to directly communicate with the device when making network designs, bringing up an initial proof of concept, and deploying the topology for the first time. However, once the network is deployed, the network management requirement is now to consistently make the same changes reliably across all network devices.

These changes need to be error-free, and the engineers need to repeat the steps without being distracted or feeling tired. This requirement sounds like an ideal job for computers and our favorite programming language, Python.

Of course, if the network devices can only be managed with the command line, the main challenge becomes how we can replicate the previous manual interactions between the router and the administrator automatically with a computer program. In the command line, the router will output a series of information and will expect the administrator to enter a series of manual commands based on the engineer’s interpretation of the output. For example, in a Cisco Internetwork Operating System (IOS) device, you have to type in enable to get into a privileged mode, and upon receiving the returned prompt with the # sign, you then type in configure terminal in order to go into the configuration mode. The same process can further be expanded into the interface configuration mode and routing protocol configuration mode. This is in sharp contrast to a computer-driven, programmatic mindset. When the computer wants to accomplish a single task, say, put an IP address on an interface, it wants to structurally give all the information to the router at once, and it would expect a single yes or no answer from the router to indicate the success or failure of the task.

The solution, as implemented by both Pexpect and Paramiko, is to treat the interactive process as a child process and watch over the interaction between the child process and the destination device. Based on the returned value, the parent process will decide the subsequent action, if any.

I am sure we are all anxious to get started on using the Python libraries, but first, we will need to construct our network lab in order to have a network to test our code against. We will begin by looking at different ways we can build our network labs.

Left arrow icon Right arrow icon
Download code icon Download Code

Key benefits

  • Leverage Python's powerful libraries and frameworks to build production-ready network automation solutions efficiently and effectively
  • Implement network security, monitoring, and management solutions using modern DevOps tools and cloud-native approaches
  • Utilize AsyncIO and cloud capabilities in Python 3 for AWS and Azure network solutions

Description

Networks in your infrastructure set the foundation for deploying, maintaining, and servicing applications. Python is the ideal language for network engineers to explore tools that were previously available to systems engineers and application developers. Mastering Python Networking, Fourth edition, guides you on a Python-driven journey from traditional network engineering to modern network development. This new edition incorporates the latest Python features and DevOps frameworks. In addition to new chapters on introducing Docker containers and Python 3 Async IO for network engineers, each chapter is updated with the latest libraries and working examples to ensure compatibility and clarity of the concepts. Starting with a basic overview of Python, the book teaches you how it can interact with both legacy and API-enabled network devices. You will learn to leverage high-level Python packages and frameworks to perform network automation tasks, monitoring, management, and enhanced network security, followed by AWS and Azure cloud networking. You will use Git for code management, GitLab for continuous integration, and Python-based testing tools to verify your network. By the end of this book, you'll be a confident network developer capable of automating modern infrastructure using Python, DevOps practices, and cloud technologies.

Who is this book for?

Mastering Python Networking, Fourth edition is for network engineers, developers, and SREs who want to learn Python for network automation, programmability, monitoring, cloud, and data analysis. Network engineers who want to transition from manual to automation-based networks using the latest DevOps tools will also get a lot of useful information from this book. Basic familiarity with Python programming and networking-related concepts such as Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) will be helpful in getting the most out of this book.

What you will learn

  • Use Python to interact with network devices
  • Explore Docker for efficient network application development and deployment
  • Extract network insights using Python and monitoring tools like NetFlow and SNMP
  • Analyze network data with ELK for real-time visualization
  • Build high-level API with Flask for in-house applications
  • Discover the new AsyncIO feature and its concepts in Python 3
  • Explore test-driven development concepts and use PyTest to drive code test coverage
  • Understand how to implement DevOps best practices with GitLab in networking
Estimated delivery fee Deliver to Estonia

Premium delivery 7 - 10 business days

€25.95
(Includes tracking information)

Product Details

Country selected
Publication date, Length, Edition, Language, ISBN-13
Publication date : Jan 20, 2023
Length: 594 pages
Edition : 4th
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781803234618
Languages :
Tools :

What do you get with Print?

Product feature icon Instant access to your digital copy whilst your Print order is Shipped
Product feature icon Paperback book shipped to your preferred address
Product feature icon Redeem a companion digital copy on all Print orders
Product feature icon Access this title in our online reader with advanced features
Product feature icon DRM FREE - Read whenever, wherever and however you want
Product feature icon AI Assistant (beta) to help accelerate your learning
OR
Modal Close icon
Payment Processing...
tick Completed

Shipping Address

Billing Address

Shipping Methods
Estimated delivery fee Deliver to Estonia

Premium delivery 7 - 10 business days

€25.95
(Includes tracking information)

Product Details

Publication date : Jan 20, 2023
Length: 594 pages
Edition : 4th
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781803234618
Languages :
Tools :

Packt Subscriptions

See our plans and pricing
Modal Close icon
€18.99 billed monthly
Feature tick icon Unlimited access to Packt's library of 7,000+ practical books and videos
Feature tick icon Constantly refreshed with 50+ new titles a month
Feature tick icon Exclusive Early access to books as they're written
Feature tick icon Solve problems while you work with advanced search and reference features
Feature tick icon Offline reading on the mobile app
Feature tick icon Simple pricing, no contract
€189.99 billed annually
Feature tick icon Unlimited access to Packt's library of 7,000+ practical books and videos
Feature tick icon Constantly refreshed with 50+ new titles a month
Feature tick icon Exclusive Early access to books as they're written
Feature tick icon Solve problems while you work with advanced search and reference features
Feature tick icon Offline reading on the mobile app
Feature tick icon Choose a DRM-free eBook or Video every month to keep
Feature tick icon PLUS own as many other DRM-free eBooks or Videos as you like for just €5 each
Feature tick icon Exclusive print discounts
€264.99 billed in 18 months
Feature tick icon Unlimited access to Packt's library of 7,000+ practical books and videos
Feature tick icon Constantly refreshed with 50+ new titles a month
Feature tick icon Exclusive Early access to books as they're written
Feature tick icon Solve problems while you work with advanced search and reference features
Feature tick icon Offline reading on the mobile app
Feature tick icon Choose a DRM-free eBook or Video every month to keep
Feature tick icon PLUS own as many other DRM-free eBooks or Videos as you like for just €5 each
Feature tick icon Exclusive print discounts

Frequently bought together


Stars icon
Total 113.97
50 Algorithms Every Programmer Should Know
€37.99
Python for Security and Networking
€37.99
Mastering Python Networking
€37.99
Total 113.97 Stars icon

Table of Contents

18 Chapters
Review of TCP/IP Protocol Suite and Python Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Low-Level Network Device Interactions Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
APIs and Intent-Driven Networking Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
The Python Automation Framework – Ansible Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Docker Containers for Network Engineers Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Network Security with Python Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Network Monitoring with Python – Part 1 Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Network Monitoring with Python – Part 2 Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Building Network Web Services with Python Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Introduction to Async IO Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
AWS Cloud Networking Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Azure Cloud Networking Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Network Data Analysis with Elastic Stack Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Working with Git Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Continuous Integration with GitLab Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Test-Driven Development for Networks Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Other Books You May Enjoy Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Index Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Customer reviews

Top Reviews
Rating distribution
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Half star icon 4.5
(88 Ratings)
5 star 71.6%
4 star 14.8%
3 star 9.1%
2 star 3.4%
1 star 1.1%
Filter icon Filter
Top Reviews

Filter reviews by




Diego Francisco May 15, 2020
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Udemy Verified review Udemy
Zoltan Darvai May 04, 2020
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Udemy Verified review Udemy
Sameer Kumar Mar 16, 2020
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Udemy Verified review Udemy
Ideguchi Yuta Feb 25, 2020
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Udemy Verified review Udemy
F T Feb 20, 2020
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Udemy Verified review Udemy
Get free access to Packt library with over 7500+ books and video courses for 7 days!
Start Free Trial

FAQs

What is the digital copy I get with my Print order? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

When you buy any Print edition of our Books, you can redeem (for free) the eBook edition of the Print Book you’ve purchased. This gives you instant access to your book when you make an order via PDF, EPUB or our online Reader experience.

What is the delivery time and cost of print book? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Shipping Details

USA:

'

Economy: Delivery to most addresses in the US within 10-15 business days

Premium: Trackable Delivery to most addresses in the US within 3-8 business days

UK:

Economy: Delivery to most addresses in the U.K. within 7-9 business days.
Shipments are not trackable

Premium: Trackable delivery to most addresses in the U.K. within 3-4 business days!
Add one extra business day for deliveries to Northern Ireland and Scottish Highlands and islands

EU:

Premium: Trackable delivery to most EU destinations within 4-9 business days.

Australia:

Economy: Can deliver to P. O. Boxes and private residences.
Trackable service with delivery to addresses in Australia only.
Delivery time ranges from 7-9 business days for VIC and 8-10 business days for Interstate metro
Delivery time is up to 15 business days for remote areas of WA, NT & QLD.

Premium: Delivery to addresses in Australia only
Trackable delivery to most P. O. Boxes and private residences in Australia within 4-5 days based on the distance to a destination following dispatch.

India:

Premium: Delivery to most Indian addresses within 5-6 business days

Rest of the World:

Premium: Countries in the American continent: Trackable delivery to most countries within 4-7 business days

Asia:

Premium: Delivery to most Asian addresses within 5-9 business days

Disclaimer:
All orders received before 5 PM U.K time would start printing from the next business day. So the estimated delivery times start from the next day as well. Orders received after 5 PM U.K time (in our internal systems) on a business day or anytime on the weekend will begin printing the second to next business day. For example, an order placed at 11 AM today will begin printing tomorrow, whereas an order placed at 9 PM tonight will begin printing the day after tomorrow.


Unfortunately, due to several restrictions, we are unable to ship to the following countries:

  1. Afghanistan
  2. American Samoa
  3. Belarus
  4. Brunei Darussalam
  5. Central African Republic
  6. The Democratic Republic of Congo
  7. Eritrea
  8. Guinea-bissau
  9. Iran
  10. Lebanon
  11. Libiya Arab Jamahriya
  12. Somalia
  13. Sudan
  14. Russian Federation
  15. Syrian Arab Republic
  16. Ukraine
  17. Venezuela
What is custom duty/charge? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Customs duty are charges levied on goods when they cross international borders. It is a tax that is imposed on imported goods. These duties are charged by special authorities and bodies created by local governments and are meant to protect local industries, economies, and businesses.

Do I have to pay customs charges for the print book order? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

The orders shipped to the countries that are listed under EU27 will not bear custom charges. They are paid by Packt as part of the order.

List of EU27 countries: www.gov.uk/eu-eea:

A custom duty or localized taxes may be applicable on the shipment and would be charged by the recipient country outside of the EU27 which should be paid by the customer and these duties are not included in the shipping charges been charged on the order.

How do I know my custom duty charges? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

The amount of duty payable varies greatly depending on the imported goods, the country of origin and several other factors like the total invoice amount or dimensions like weight, and other such criteria applicable in your country.

For example:

  • If you live in Mexico, and the declared value of your ordered items is over $ 50, for you to receive a package, you will have to pay additional import tax of 19% which will be $ 9.50 to the courier service.
  • Whereas if you live in Turkey, and the declared value of your ordered items is over € 22, for you to receive a package, you will have to pay additional import tax of 18% which will be € 3.96 to the courier service.
How can I cancel my order? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Cancellation Policy for Published Printed Books:

You can cancel any order within 1 hour of placing the order. Simply contact customercare@packt.com with your order details or payment transaction id. If your order has already started the shipment process, we will do our best to stop it. However, if it is already on the way to you then when you receive it, you can contact us at customercare@packt.com using the returns and refund process.

Please understand that Packt Publishing cannot provide refunds or cancel any order except for the cases described in our Return Policy (i.e. Packt Publishing agrees to replace your printed book because it arrives damaged or material defect in book), Packt Publishing will not accept returns.

What is your returns and refunds policy? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Return Policy:

We want you to be happy with your purchase from Packtpub.com. We will not hassle you with returning print books to us. If the print book you receive from us is incorrect, damaged, doesn't work or is unacceptably late, please contact Customer Relations Team on customercare@packt.com with the order number and issue details as explained below:

  1. If you ordered (eBook, Video or Print Book) incorrectly or accidentally, please contact Customer Relations Team on customercare@packt.com within one hour of placing the order and we will replace/refund you the item cost.
  2. Sadly, if your eBook or Video file is faulty or a fault occurs during the eBook or Video being made available to you, i.e. during download then you should contact Customer Relations Team within 14 days of purchase on customercare@packt.com who will be able to resolve this issue for you.
  3. You will have a choice of replacement or refund of the problem items.(damaged, defective or incorrect)
  4. Once Customer Care Team confirms that you will be refunded, you should receive the refund within 10 to 12 working days.
  5. If you are only requesting a refund of one book from a multiple order, then we will refund you the appropriate single item.
  6. Where the items were shipped under a free shipping offer, there will be no shipping costs to refund.

On the off chance your printed book arrives damaged, with book material defect, contact our Customer Relation Team on customercare@packt.com within 14 days of receipt of the book with appropriate evidence of damage and we will work with you to secure a replacement copy, if necessary. Please note that each printed book you order from us is individually made by Packt's professional book-printing partner which is on a print-on-demand basis.

What tax is charged? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Currently, no tax is charged on the purchase of any print book (subject to change based on the laws and regulations). A localized VAT fee is charged only to our European and UK customers on eBooks, Video and subscriptions that they buy. GST is charged to Indian customers for eBooks and video purchases.

What payment methods can I use? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

You can pay with the following card types:

  1. Visa Debit
  2. Visa Credit
  3. MasterCard
  4. PayPal
What is the delivery time and cost of print books? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Shipping Details

USA:

'

Economy: Delivery to most addresses in the US within 10-15 business days

Premium: Trackable Delivery to most addresses in the US within 3-8 business days

UK:

Economy: Delivery to most addresses in the U.K. within 7-9 business days.
Shipments are not trackable

Premium: Trackable delivery to most addresses in the U.K. within 3-4 business days!
Add one extra business day for deliveries to Northern Ireland and Scottish Highlands and islands

EU:

Premium: Trackable delivery to most EU destinations within 4-9 business days.

Australia:

Economy: Can deliver to P. O. Boxes and private residences.
Trackable service with delivery to addresses in Australia only.
Delivery time ranges from 7-9 business days for VIC and 8-10 business days for Interstate metro
Delivery time is up to 15 business days for remote areas of WA, NT & QLD.

Premium: Delivery to addresses in Australia only
Trackable delivery to most P. O. Boxes and private residences in Australia within 4-5 days based on the distance to a destination following dispatch.

India:

Premium: Delivery to most Indian addresses within 5-6 business days

Rest of the World:

Premium: Countries in the American continent: Trackable delivery to most countries within 4-7 business days

Asia:

Premium: Delivery to most Asian addresses within 5-9 business days

Disclaimer:
All orders received before 5 PM U.K time would start printing from the next business day. So the estimated delivery times start from the next day as well. Orders received after 5 PM U.K time (in our internal systems) on a business day or anytime on the weekend will begin printing the second to next business day. For example, an order placed at 11 AM today will begin printing tomorrow, whereas an order placed at 9 PM tonight will begin printing the day after tomorrow.


Unfortunately, due to several restrictions, we are unable to ship to the following countries:

  1. Afghanistan
  2. American Samoa
  3. Belarus
  4. Brunei Darussalam
  5. Central African Republic
  6. The Democratic Republic of Congo
  7. Eritrea
  8. Guinea-bissau
  9. Iran
  10. Lebanon
  11. Libiya Arab Jamahriya
  12. Somalia
  13. Sudan
  14. Russian Federation
  15. Syrian Arab Republic
  16. Ukraine
  17. Venezuela