Nautobot Operator

NautobotOP ( short for Nautobot Operator ) is a Kubernetes operator that synchronizes network device type, manufacturers and other configurations from Kubernetes ConfigMaps to Nautobot instances.

What It Does

The Nautobot operator automates the management of device types in Nautobot by:

• Watching Kubernetes ConfigMaps containing device type definitions
• Syncing device types, manufacturers, and templates to Nautobot via API
• Detecting changes and performing incremental updates
• Providing status reporting and reconciliation tracking

flowchart n1["configMap"] n3["configMap"] n6["Nautobot Operator"] n7["Nautobot API"] n6 --> n7 n1 --> n6 n3 --> n6

Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Kubernetes v1.11.3+
• Access to a Nautobot instance

Installation

Option 1: Using Helm (Recommended)

# Install the operator
helm install nautobotop oci://ghcr.io/rackerlabs/charts/nautobotop:0.0.1 -n nautobotop --create-namespace

Basic Configuration

1. Create Nautobot credentials secret:

apiVersion: v1
kind: Secret
metadata:
  name: nautobot-credentials
  namespace: nautobotop
type: Opaque
stringData:
  username: admin
  token: your-nautobot-api-token

1. Create device type ConfigMap:

apiVersion: v1
kind: ConfigMap
metadata:
  name: device-types
  namespace: nautobotop
data:
  server.yaml: |
    manufacturer: Dell
    part_number: R740
    model: PowerEdge R740
    u_height: 2
    is_full_depth: true
    comments: "Dell 2U rack server"
    console-ports:
      - name: Console
        type: rj-45
    power-ports:
      - name: PSU1
        type: iec-60320-c14
        maximum_draw: 750
        allocated_draw: 600
    interfaces:
      - name: eth0
        type: 1000base-t
        mgmt_only: false
      - name: mgmt
        type: 1000base-t
        mgmt_only: true

1. Create Nautobot resource:

apiVersion: sync.rax.io/v1alpha1
kind: Nautobot
metadata:
  name: nautobot-sync
spec:
  syncIntervalSeconds: 86400  # 24 hours
  requeueAfter: 600          # 10 minutes

  nautobotSecretRef: # Ref where nautobot secret
    name: nautobot-credentials
    namespace: nautobotop
    usernameKey: username
    tokenKey: token

  nautobotServiceRef: # Ref where nautobot service name
    name: nautobot
    namespace: nautobot # Make sure this points namespace where actual instance of nautobotot is

  deviceTypeRef: # Data for device types
    - name: servers
      configMapSelector:
        name: device-types
        namespace: nautobotop
        key: server.yaml

Configuration Reference

Nautobot Custom Resource

Field	Type	Default	Description
syncIntervalSeconds	int	172800 (48h)	Minimum time between syncs
requeueAfter	int	600 (10m)	Time between reconciliation attempts
nautobotSecretRef	SecretKeySelector	-	Reference to Nautobot credentials
nautobotServiceRef	ServiceSelector	-	Reference to Nautobot service
deviceTypeRef	[]ConfigMapRef	-	Array of ConfigMap references

Device Type Format

Device types are defined in YAML format within ConfigMaps:

manufacturer: "Manufacturer Name"
part_number: "Model-123"
model: "Device Model"
u_height: 2
is_full_depth: true
comments: "Optional description"

console-ports:
  - name: "Console"
    type: "rj-45"

power-ports:
  - name: "PSU1"
    type: "iec-60320-c14"
    maximum_draw: 500
    allocated_draw: 400

interfaces:
  - name: "eth0"
    type: "1000base-t"
    mgmt_only: false

module-bays:
  - name: "Slot 1"
    position: "1"
    label: "Module Bay 1"

How It Works

1. Change Detection: Uses SHA-256 hashing to detect ConfigMap changes
2. Sync Logic:
3. Syncs immediately when data changes
4. Syncs periodically based on syncIntervalSeconds
5. Skips sync if no changes and interval not elapsed
6. Nautobot Operations:
7. Creates/updates manufacturers
8. Creates/updates device types
9. Syncs console ports, power ports, interfaces, module bays
10. Removes obsolete items not in desired state.

Understack Integration

Component Configuration

The nautobotop component is defined in the UnderStack repository at apps/global/nautobotop.yaml.

Key integration points:

• Component Definition: apps/global/nautobotop.yaml - Defines how the operator is deployed via ArgoCD
• AppProject Configuration: apps/appsets/project-understack.yaml - Manages RBAC and deployment permissions for the component

Deployment Customization

UnderStack allows environment-specific customization through:

• Helm Values Override: Create $DEPLOY_NAME/helm-configs/nautobotop.yaml in deployment repository
• Manifest Overlays: Add Kustomize overlays in $DEPLOY_NAME/manifests/nautobotop/
• Component Control: Disable or modify sources in your $DEPLOY_NAME/apps.yaml

Local Development

Running Locally

1. Configure kubectl context:

kubectl config current-context
kubectl config use-context <your-target-cluster>

1. Run the operator:

cd cmd/
go run main.go

Debugging

Use your preferred IDE for debugging:

• VS Code: Set breakpoints and use the Go debugger extension
• GoLand: Configure run/debug configurations for the main.go file
• Command line: Use dlv (Delve) for debugging from terminal