Automated Validation for Network Changes and Automation Workflows
Operational Compliance validates network changes on-demand with confidence and precision. By capturing and comparing device state before and after changes, teams gain immediate data-driven visibility into what changed, why it changed, and whether it introduced risk. Built on Nautobot’s automation framework, it enables engineers to define validation rules, execute checks at scale, and maintain a historical record of compliance outcomes for full operational traceability.
Modern network operations rely heavily on automation, but validation often remains manual, inconsistent, or incomplete. Teams push changes with limited visibility into their real impact, relying on spot checks or assumptions instead of evidence.
This creates several challenges:
Even with configuration management tools, most solutions focus on generating or pushing configs, not verifying that the network is actually operating as expected.
Bottom line:
Without automated validation, you are simply automating risk. Operational Compliance is the solution that converts speed into confidence.
Operational Compliance embeds validation directly into your network automation lifecycle. It enables teams to define what “correct” looks like, collect device state, and compare results across time to detect drift or unintended changes.
At the core of the app are validation rules that describe what should be true about your network:
These rules allow teams to validate anything from interface state and routing neighbors to OS versions and performance metrics.
The app executes commands against devices using the Nautobot Nornir integration and collects operational data in a consistent format.
This ensures comparisons are meaningful and focused on what actually matters.
The core workflow is simple but powerful:
Differences are surfaced with precision, showing exactly what changed and where.
Validation rules can be grouped into logical workflows:
These groups can be executed as Nautobot Jobs, scheduled, or triggered as part of automation pipelines.
This aligns validation with modern infrastructure-as-code practices.
With Operational Compliance in place, network teams lower operational risk and move from reactive troubleshooting to proactive validation.
Stop Guessing. Start Building Confidence.
Bring validation into every network change and eliminate uncertainty in your operations.
The app supports both structured data (via NAPALM getters) and unstructured CLI output parsed with TextFSM, TTP, or JSON, enabling validation across a wide range of network states.
It uses a comparison engine (jdiff) to evaluate differences between datasets using rule types such as exact match, tolerance thresholds, and parameter matching.
Yes. Validation workflows are executed using Nautobot Jobs, which can be scheduled or triggered as part of automation pipelines.
Yes. The app leverages Nautobot’s device inventory, platform models, APIs, and Jobs framework for seamless integration.
Yes. Validation rules and command parsers can be stored and managed in Git repositories, enabling version control and collaboration.
Typical use cases include validating critical network protocols (BGP, OSPF), verifying interface state, ensuring configuration persistence during upgrades, and establishing continuous compliance monitoring after automation workflows.
No. It complements them by validating operational state, ensuring that intended configurations result in the expected real-world behavior.
The app is an extension of the Nautobot platform and requires the Nautobot Nornir plugin to connect to devices and collect operational data.
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