Automatically discover and onboard your network into Nautobot
Device Discovery enables network teams to identify, access, and automatically onboard selected infrastructure devices into Nautobot. By automating the process of connecting to devices, identifying platform details, and populating structured data, teams can quickly build the reliable Network Source of Truth needed for scalable network automation and NetDevOps workflows.
Modern network automation depends on having accurate, structured data about your infrastructure. But for most teams, building that data set is the hardest part.
Networks often grow organically over time. Devices are added manually, documentation becomes outdated, and inventory lives across spreadsheets, scripts, and tribal knowledge. Before teams can even think about automation, they face a fundamental challenge:
They don’t fully know what’s in their network.
Traditional approaches fall short:
Without a reliable inventory, automation efforts stall. Configuration compliance, drift detection, and intended state workflows all depend on accurate device data, and most teams simply don’t have it.
Bottom line:
You can’t automate what you can’t reliably identify and model.
With Device Discovery in place, teams move from incomplete visibility to a continuously improving, automation-ready inventory.
Instead of guessing what exists in the network, teams operate from a structured, centralized system of record.
Operational improvements include:
Benefits:
Device Discovery provides a structured, repeatable way to sweep networks, identify, and onboard network devices directly into Nautobot, turning unknown infrastructure into actionable data.
Device Discovery uses job-based workflows to systematically connect to target devices or IP ranges. These jobs attempt access using defined credentials and gather key device information such as:
This removes the need for manual interrogation or brittle, ad hoc scripts
Discovery workflows support multiple credential sets, allowing teams to:
This ensures discovery can scale across diverse networks without requiring perfect upfront knowledge.
Once access is established, Device Discovery identifies the device platform and normalizes that data into Nautobot’s data model. This enables:
Discovered devices are not just identified, they are onboarded into Nautobot as structured objects. This includes:
This transforms discovery from a one-time activity into a foundational step for building and maintaining a Network Source of Truth.
Because Device Discovery feeds directly into Nautobot, the data becomes immediately usable for:
Discovery is not isolated, it is part of a larger automation lifecycle.
Stop guessing what’s in your network.
Start building an accurate, automation-ready source of truth.
Device Discovery can connect to network devices that support remote access protocols and return identifiable platform and system information.
No. You can define multiple credential sets that discovery jobs will attempt, improving success across diverse environments.
No. Discovery is focused on identifying and collecting information, not making configuration changes.
Discovered devices are onboarded directly into Nautobot as structured objects, including platform and identifying metadata.
Device Discovery is designed as the automation-centric replacement for traditional tools. It provides superior value by integrating directly with Nautobot, your Network Source of Truth.
By creating and maintaining a structured, accurate device inventory, Device Discovery enables downstream workflows such as configuration generation, drift detection, validation, and continuous compliance checks.
Yes. Discovery jobs can be scoped to specific targets, allowing controlled and incremental onboarding.
The system logs discovery attempts and results, allowing teams to review failures and refine credentials or targeting.
Yes. The job-based architecture and credential handling are designed to scale across large, complex networks.
Share details about yourself & someone from our team will reach out to you ASAP!
