Add IP Infusion OcNOS device (containerlab/vrnetlab) by victorkhgith · Pull Request #3960 · ipspace/netlab

victorkhgith · 2026-10-22T15:32:34Z

This PR adds support for IP Infusion OcNOS as a device type (ocnos). OcNOS runs as a vrnetlab container (containerlab kind ipinfusion_ocnos), and netlab configures it with Netmiko (ipinfusion_ocnos driver). The ipinfusion.ocnos Ansible collection is available as an alternative configuration method.

What's included

Device settings (netsim/devices/ocnos.yml), support level minimal, Netmiko as the default configuration method
Device quirks (netsim/devices/ocnos.py): checks for the ipinfusion.ocnos Ansible collection when a node uses Ansible to deploy its configuration
Ansible configuration deployment and fetch task lists
Configuration templates: initial configuration, OSPFv2, OSPFv3 (including the reference bandwidth), IS-IS (wide metrics), BGP
tests/config/ocnos-netmiko.yml to check Netmiko error detection
Documentation: OcNOS caveats (including the image build steps), the containerlab image table, the supported platforms tables, and the Netmiko developer documentation

Test environment

OcNOS image OcNOS-SP-PLUS-x86-7.0.0-262-GA.qcow2 (free download after registration), built into vrnetlab/ipinfusion_ocnos:7.0.0-262 using the srl-labs vrnetlab fork
netlab dev (7cd5b14; the only later commit is Netmiko developer documentation #3961, documentation), containerlab 0.81.1, netmiko 4.8.0
FRR 10.7.1 probes, Ubuntu 22.04 on WSL2

Integration test results (Netmiko)

Tests	Passed	Passed with a warning
initial	4	0
ospf/ospfv2	4	3 (VRF part skipped)
ospf/ospfv3	5	2 (VRF part skipped)
isis	6	0
bgp	9	1 (IPv6 `bgp.originate` skipped)

The Ansible method (ansible-core 2.17.14, ipinfusion.ocnos 1.2.5) gave the same results, except that initial/01c-netmiko does not apply to it.

After the review fixes I re-ran the IS-IS tests (6 passed), and after rebasing on dev 2551c9a one test per area (initial 01-interfaces and 01c-netmiko, OSPFv2 03, OSPFv3 03, IS-IS 11, BGP 05 and 12): all passed.

netlab create rejected tests that need features this PR does not implement; those tests are not counted. I could not run initial/04-mtu (it needs an Arista cEOS probe); I checked MTU separately on a link between two OcNOS nodes (mtu 1400 is configured and active on the interface).

With tests/config/ocnos-netmiko.yml, netlab config invalid and netlab config commit (a change OcNOS rejects only at commit time) both fail the deployment.

pytest -k 'xform_ or error_cases' gives the same results with and without this PR. In my environment, the dev branch has 32 failures, none related to this PR.

OcNOS behavior handled by the templates

OSPFv2 areas are configured with network statements in the OSPF process (there is no interface-level OSPFv2 area command). OSPFv3 uses ipv6 router ospf area <area> tag <process> on the interfaces.
The loopback interface lo keeps 127.0.0.1/8 as its primary address, so the netlab loopback address is configured as a secondary address. Additional loopbacks are loopback<n>.
The management interface is in the management VRF, so the vrnetlab management subnet does not conflict with netlab loopback addresses.
IS-IS uses level-2-only, and wide metrics are set with isis wide-metric.
BGP sends standard and extended communities by default. The template turns off the types not listed in bgp.community.
A network prefix is advertised only when it is in the routing table, so bgp.originate prefixes get a discard static route.

Not implemented

VRFs, route import (redistribution), default route origination, BFD, graceful restart, unnumbered interfaces, VLANs, IPv6 bgp.originate, and LLA-only IPv6 interfaces.

Disclosure: I work at IP Infusion.

jbemmel · 2026-10-22T15:43:04Z

Hi Victor,

Thanks for your contribution!

Have you considered using Netmiko to configure OcNOS, instead of Ansible? See #3937 - the project is trying to move away from its Ansible dependency, and it would be very helpful if new devices would use the new leaner method (it's basically SCP followed by applying the config)

victorkhgith · 2026-10-22T16:03:11Z

@jbemmel, let me use Netmiko, thank you.

ipspace · 2026-10-22T16:45:48Z

@jbemmel, let me use Netmiko, thank you.

OcNOS support in Netmiko seems pretty thin (there's just the SSH/Telnet driver), so I'm not sure whether the approach we're currently using to configure devices with Netmiko would work.

Anyhow, I'd love to reduce the Ansible usage, so if you can't get OcNOS to work with Netmiko, please let me know, and we'll figure something out.

Also, I (finally) added Netmiko developer documentation in #3961 so you won't have to reverse-engineer what device features have to be set.

victorkhgith · 2026-10-23T04:38:17Z

Thanks @ipspace and @jbemmel. Netmiko works with OcNOS, so I switched the default to it.

The OcNOS driver is thin, but it has a commit() that raises an error when OcNOS rejects a commit, and netlab already calls it after each configuration snippet. error_regexp is ^%(?! Warning).* because OcNOS prints a harmless % Warning when a command runs from a parent configuration mode.

The initial, OSPFv2, OSPFv3, IS-IS and BGP integration tests give the same results as with Ansible, initial/01c-netmiko now runs and passes, and tests/config/ocnos-netmiko.yml checks that an invalid command and a rejected commit both fail. I also added OcNOS to the new Netmiko developer documentation (thanks for writing it, it made this much easier). The Ansible task lists are still there as an alternative. Details are in the updated description.

Copilot

🟡 Changes recommended

The OSPFv3 template silently ignores the accepted reference-bandwidth setting, potentially producing unintended routing costs.

1 open issue

Apply reference bandwidth to OSPFv3 on OcNOS · New

What changed in this PR

Adds minimal IP Infusion OcNOS support to netlab through containerlab/vrnetlab, with Netmiko as the default configuration method and Ansible as an alternative.

Changes:

Defines the OcNOS device, container image, capabilities, and deployment methods.
Adds initial, OSPFv2/v3, IS-IS, and BGP configuration templates.
Documents platform support and image setup, and adds a manual Netmiko error-detection test topology.

File	Description
`tests/config/ocnos-netmiko.yml`	Exercises command and commit error detection.
`netsim/devices/ocnos.yml`	Defines device capabilities and containerlab settings.
`netsim/ansible/templates/ospf/ocnos.j2`	Configures OSPFv2 and OSPFv3.
`netsim/ansible/templates/isis/ocnos.j2`	Configures IS-IS processes and interfaces.
`netsim/ansible/templates/initial/ocnos.j2`	Configures hostname, interfaces, and addressing.
`netsim/ansible/templates/bgp/ocnos.macro.j2`	Defines BGP neighbor configuration macros.
`netsim/ansible/templates/bgp/ocnos.j2`	Configures BGP sessions and prefix advertisements.
`netsim/ansible/tasks/fetch-config/ocnos.yml`	Retrieves running configuration through Ansible.
`netsim/ansible/tasks/deploy-config/ocnos.yml`	Deploys and saves configuration through Ansible.
`docs/platforms.md`	Lists OcNOS support and capabilities.
`docs/labs/clab.md`	Adds the OcNOS container image.
`docs/dev/config/netmiko.md`	Documents the driver and error-detection settings.
`docs/caveats.md`	Documents image preparation and platform behavior.

_{Review effort: Balanced}

ipspace

Great job. Just a few minor details to fix (or not, your call) and then I'll merge it

ipspace · 2026-10-23T14:06:06Z

+  level: minimal
+group_vars:
+  netlab_device_type: ocnos
+  ansible_network_os: ipinfusion.ocnos.ocnos


You might want to add a device quirk that checks whether the Ansible collection is installed. See check_config_sw in srlinux.py in the same directory for details.

Is 'ansible_network_os' still needed/used at all? Would be great if we can make this an Ansibleless device

Configuration fetching and reloading, plus someone might decide to force Ansible-based configuration. As Victor has already implemented/tested the Ansible task lists, it makes no sense not to enable them.

Added check_config_sw in netsim/devices/ocnos.py. It asks for ipinfusion.ocnos only when the node uses Ansible to deploy the configuration, so the default Netmiko setup works without the collection. I checked all three cases: Netmiko without the collection, Ansible without it (netlab stops with the install hint), and Ansible with it.

ipspace · 2026-10-23T14:08:25Z

+#}
+{% set lvl = { 'level-1': 'level-1', 'level-2': 'level-2-only', 'level-1-2': 'level-1-2' } %}
+{% set mt_lvl = { 'level-1': 'level-1', 'level-2': 'level-2', 'level-1-2': 'level-1-2' } %}
+{% set wide = isis.wide_metrics|default(True) %}


wide_metrics is not a valid isis attribute, and (according to documentation ;) netlab IS-IS module supports only wide metrics anyway.

Removed. The template now always uses wide metrics.

ipspace · 2026-10-23T14:08:51Z

@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
+{#
+  OcNOS uses "level-2-only" where netlab uses "level-2", and "isis metric" takes narrow


That's perfectly OK. Configuration keywords are device-specific in many cases.

ipspace · 2026-10-23T14:09:30Z

+ isis circuit-type {{ lvl[l.isis.type]|default(l.isis.type) }}
+{%   endif %}
+{%   if l.isis.metric is defined %}
+ isis {{ 'wide-metric' if wide else 'metric' }} {{ l.isis.metric }}


No need to deal with both (unless you want to have extra flexibility)

Same change. It now uses only isis wide-metric.

jbemmel · 2026-10-23T15:49:50Z

I'm assuming this PR would replace #3679 ? @roc-ops any input/suggestions?

ipspace · 2026-10-23T16:23:46Z

I'm assuming this PR would replace #3679 ? @roc-ops any input/suggestions?

I would start with this one (it's much smaller), and then ask one of our AI friends to port all the remaining stuff from #3679 into a new PR.

Device settings, config deployment/fetch task lists, initial, OSPFv2/OSPFv3, IS-IS and BGP templates, and documentation (caveats, image table, platform tables).

Netmiko ipinfusion_ocnos driver (netlab calls commit() after each snippet), error_regexp skips OcNOS '% Warning' lines, tests/config/ocnos-netmiko.yml for error detection, OcNOS added to the Netmiko developer documentation. The Ansible task lists remain as an alternative method.

OcNOS OSPFv3 accepts the same auto-cost reference-bandwidth command as OSPFv2. Checked on two OcNOS nodes: with a 1 Gbps link and reference bandwidth 40000, OSPFv2 and OSPFv3 both compute cost 40.

check_config_sw requires the ipinfusion.ocnos collection only when the node uses Ansible to deploy the configuration (Netmiko, the default, does not need it). The IS-IS template always uses wide metrics (netlab IS-IS supports only wide metrics).

victorkhgith · 2026-10-24T01:07:42Z

Thanks for the review! The fixes are pushed. After the IS-IS change I re-ran the IS-IS tests (all pass), plus a few tests on the updated dev branch.

Thanks @roc-ops for #3679, it covers a lot more ground. I'd be happy to help port the remaining features in a follow-up PR once this one is merged, if that works for you.

ipspace

Thanks a million for the fixes. Great job, and welcome to the contributors club ;)

ipspace · 2026-10-24T05:33:43Z

+    pass
+
+  def check_config_sw(self, node: Box, topology: Box) -> None:
+    if devices.get_node_group_var(node,'netlab_config_mode',topology.defaults) == 'netmiko':


Beautiful. We have to backport this to other devices (if relevant)

victorkhgith force-pushed the ocnos-device branch from 2f38e37 to 0a9ce81 Compare October 23, 2026 04:37

ipspace requested a balanced review from Copilot October 23, 2026 13:28

Copilot started reviewing on behalf of ipspace October 23, 2026 13:28

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Copilot AI reviewed Oct 23, 2026

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Comment thread netsim/ansible/templates/ospf/ocnos.j2

ipspace requested changes Oct 23, 2026

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victorkhgith added 4 commits October 24, 2026 07:40

Add IP Infusion OcNOS device (containerlab/vrnetlab)

d3ad003

Device settings, config deployment/fetch task lists, initial, OSPFv2/OSPFv3, IS-IS and BGP templates, and documentation (caveats, image table, platform tables).

OcNOS: apply OSPF reference bandwidth to OSPFv3

2c65048

OcNOS OSPFv3 accepts the same auto-cost reference-bandwidth command as OSPFv2. Checked on two OcNOS nodes: with a 1 Gbps link and reference bandwidth 40000, OSPFv2 and OSPFv3 both compute cost 40.

victorkhgith force-pushed the ocnos-device branch from 0a9ce81 to 3700cd5 Compare October 24, 2026 01:07

ipspace approved these changes Oct 24, 2026

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ipspace merged commit 18189f3 into ipspace:dev Oct 24, 2026
5 checks passed

		@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
		{#
		OcNOS uses "level-2-only" where netlab uses "level-2", and "isis metric" takes narrow

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