[feature request] make it possible to specify a command to set to device to the parameter of napalm.loadconfig action directly

[userlocalhost]

Background/Problem

We can set some configurations to an appliance by the napalm.loadconfig action.
But, this requires the filepath in which some configurations are written.

It's hard to make a simple Rule (without WorkFlow) to set some configuration to an appliance using this action, because we have to make a configuration file before running napalm.loadconfig.

Proposal

If we could specify a command to the parameter directly, I thought this will be more useful.

Thank you.

[Mierdin]

@userlocalhost Have you looked at the napalm.cli action? This allows you to run one-off commands on a device.

[manji-0]

@Mierdin

This allows you to run one-off commands on a device.

I tried. but napalm.cli can't set one-off configuration line.

$ st2 run napalm.cli hostname='172.16.0.101' commands='set interfaces lo0 disable'
..
id: 5a0aa97fbda1906b9535ed51
status: succeeded
parameters: 
  commands:
  - set interfaces lo0 disable
  hostname: 172.16.0.101
result: 
  exit_code: 0
  result:
    raw:
      set interfaces lo0 disable: 'invalid command: set interfaces lo0 disable: RpcError(severity: error, bad_element: interfaces, message: syntax error, expecting <command>)'
    raw_array:
      set interfaces lo0 disable:
      - 'invalid command: set interfaces lo0 disable: RpcError(severity: error, bad_element: interfaces, message: syntax error, expecting <command>)'
  stderr: ''
  stdout: ''

and can't enter configure mode. (timeout)

$ st2 run napalm.cli hostname='172.16.0.101' commands='configure','set interfaces lo0 disable','commit and-quit'
............................................................
id: 5a0aaac6bda1906b9535ed54
status: succeeded
parameters: 
  commands:
  - configure
  - set interfaces lo0 disable
  - commit and-quit
  hostname: 172.16.0.101
result: 
  exit_code: 0
  result:
    raw:
      commit and-quit: 'invalid command: commit and-quit: RpcError(severity: error, bad_element: commit, message: syntax error, expecting <command> or </command>)'
      configure: 'invalid command: configure: RpcTimeoutError(host: 172.16.0.101, cmd: command, timeout: 60)'
      set interfaces lo0 disable: 'invalid command: set interfaces lo0 disable: RpcTimeoutError(host: 172.16.0.101, cmd: command, timeout: 60)'
    raw_array:
      commit and-quit:
      - 'invalid command: commit and-quit: RpcError(severity: error, bad_element: commit, message: syntax error, expecting <command> or </command>)'
      configure:
      - 'invalid command: configure: RpcTimeoutError(host: 172.16.0.101, cmd: command, timeout: 60)'
      set interfaces lo0 disable:
      - 'invalid command: set interfaces lo0 disable: RpcTimeoutError(host: 172.16.0.101, cmd: command, timeout: 60)'
  stderr: ''
  stdout: ''

I think, napalm.cli can't handle sequential commands.

[manji-0]

p.s. I tried it on vagrant.

model: FIREFLY-PERIMETER
os_version: 12.1X47-D15.4

vagrant@st2:~$ st2 run napalm.get_facts hostname='172.16.0.101'
id: 5a0aadecbda1906b9535ed57
status: succeeded
parameters: 
  hostname: 172.16.0.101
result: 
  exit_code: 0
  result:
    raw:
      fqdn: r1
      hostname: r1
      interface_list:
      - ge-0/0/0
      - gr-0/0/0
      - ip-0/0/0
      - lsq-0/0/0
      - lt-0/0/0
      - mt-0/0/0
      - sp-0/0/0
      - ge-0/0/1
      - ge-0/0/2
      - ge-0/0/3
      - .local.
      - dsc
      - gre
      - ipip
      - irb
      - lo0
      - lsi
      - mtun
      - pimd
      - pime
      - pp0
      - ppd0
      - ppe0
      - st0
      - tap
      - vlan
      model: FIREFLY-PERIMETER
      os_version: 12.1X47-D15.4
      serial_number: 6dae7671ee8f
      uptime: 55394
      vendor: Juniper

[shusugmt]

@Mierdin That's not possible in case of junos. It doesn't accept configure command via napalm.cli

According to Napalm doc here, we can pass config in text directly to load_replace|marge_candidate via config parameter. And it also clearly states:

If you send both a filename and a string containing the configuration, the file takes precedence.

which makes sense and is quite acceptable.

So here's suggested workaround:

• add config_text parameter to loadconfig action
• edit https://github.com/StackStorm-Exchange/stackstorm-napalm/blob/master/actions/loadconfig.py

replace

device.load_replace_candidate(filename=config_file) 

in line 23 with

device.load_replace_candidate(filename=config_file, config=config_text) 

and load_merge_candidate accordingly.

[userlocalhost]

@shusugmt
Thank you very much for your advice to correct!

[Mierdin]

@userlocalhost @shusugmt Thanks to both of you for the work on this. Sorry for the delay in review over the holiday weekend here in the US

In short, if there's a shortcoming in napalm.cli for junos, that's not acceptable, and should be fixed. However, since NAPALM already supports the config_text option, we can move forward with what's been proposed in #38, since it merely exposes this option.

However, I would like to keep this issue open until the napalm.cli option is fixed. I don't want to have to point people to different actions to upload raw text to a device based on what vendor made it.