ipSpace.net Virtual Networking Labs Tool¶
The ipSpace.net virtual networking labs tool will help you be more proficient once you decide to drop GUI-based virtual networking labs and build your labs using CLI and infrastructure-as-code principles.
netlab will help you:
Describe high-level lab topology in YAML format without worrying about the specific implementation details
Use the same lab topology with multiple virtualization providers (Virtualbox, KVM/libvirt, Docker containers)
Create Vagrant configuration files and Ansible inventory from the lab topology
Based on your lab topology the netlab create command will:
Create an IPv4 and IPv6 addressing plan for your lab
Prepare all the necessary configuration files to start the lab
Once the lab is started you can use the netlab initial command to:
Deploy initial configurations (interfaces, IP addresses, usernames…) to your lab devices
Configure OSPF, IS-IS, BGP and SR-MPLS in your lab.
To make your life even easier, use netlab up command to create configuration files, start the lab, and deploy device configurations.
When the lab is fully configured you could:
Use the netlab connect command to connect to network devices via SSH or docker exec
Use netlab config command to deploy custom configuration snippets
Before shutting down your lab with netlab down, you might want to run the netlab collect command to save the configuration changes you made.
Getting Started¶
Explore the supported platforms to figure out whether you could build your desired lab with netlab
Read the installation guide
Choose the virtualization method you’d like to use to build your lab
Follow the instructions in the installation guide to build your lab environment