Lesson 1SNMP deep dive: versions v1/v2c/v3, MIBs, OIDs, walk/get/bulk, traps and informsTake a deep dive into SNMP for monitoring and limited control. Compare SNMP versions, understand MIBs and OIDs, use walk, get, and bulk operations, and configure traps and informs securely for reliable network oversight in Zambia.
SNMP v1, v2c, and v3 security differencesMIB structure, OID naming, and browsingUsing get, get-next, walk, and bulkgetConfiguring traps and informs on devicesScaling SNMP polling and rate controlLesson 2Infrastructure automation tools: Ansible networking modules, module vs. connection plugins, idempotence and playbook patternsUnderstand how infrastructure automation tools manage network devices. You will use Ansible networking modules and connection plugins, apply idempotent patterns, and structure playbooks for safe, scalable configuration changes in Zambian networks.
Network inventory and host variable designNetwork-specific connection plugins overviewIdempotent configuration patterns in playbooksValidating changes with check and diff modesError handling and rollback strategiesLesson 3Choosing protocols for mixed-vendor environments: trade-offs (read-only vs config), security, performance, vendor supportLearn how to choose management protocols in mixed-vendor networks. Compare read-only and configuration workflows, security models, performance impact, and vendor support to design robust, maintainable automation strategies for Zambian setups.
Read-only vs configuration change workflowsSecurity models and credential handlingLatency, throughput, and scaling considerationsVendor feature coverage and roadmap riskOperational standardization across vendorsLesson 4SSH fundamentals for network devices: key-based auth, session management, command execution, terminal settingsReview SSH fundamentals as used by network devices. Learn key-based authentication, session lifecycle, command execution models, terminal settings, and security hardening practices for automated access in Zambian infrastructures.
Key generation, storage, and rotationSSH ciphers, MACs, and protocol versionsInteractive shells vs exec channelsTerminal length, paging, and promptsJump hosts, bastions, and proxy commandsLesson 5REST APIs on network gear: common vendor endpoints, authentication (token, basic, OAuth), JSON/XML payloadsLearn how REST APIs are exposed on network devices. You will examine common endpoints, authentication schemes, JSON or XML payload formats, versioning, and patterns for safe, idempotent configuration changes in local networks.
Resource modeling for interfaces and VLANsToken, basic, and OAuth authenticationJSON request and response payload designError handling and HTTP status mappingAPI versioning and backward compatibilityLesson 6gNMI and streaming telemetry: subscription models, protobuf/JSON encodings, push vs pollDive into gNMI and streaming telemetry for modern observability. Learn subscription models, protobuf and JSON encodings, push versus poll trade-offs, and how to integrate telemetry streams into monitoring pipelines for Zambian enterprises.
gNMI service model and RPC operationsOn-change, sample, and once subscriptionsProtobuf message schemas and toolingJSON encoding and translation to metricsScaling collectors and buffering strategiesLesson 7Network automation libraries: Netmiko, Paramiko, Napalm, PyATS/Genie — capabilities, drivers, limitationsExplore Python network automation libraries and their trade-offs. Compare Netmiko, Paramiko, Napalm, and PyATS or Genie in terms of capabilities, drivers, abstractions, testing support, and operational limitations in Zambian contexts.
Paramiko SSH primitives and channelsNetmiko device drivers and send_commandNapalm getters and configuration mergePyATS and Genie parsing and testingLibrary selection and interoperabilityLesson 8Debugging and testing connections: connectivity checks, timeouts, retries, logging best practicesExplore practical techniques for validating and troubleshooting network connections. You will design connectivity checks, tune timeouts and retries, structure logs, and build repeatable test flows for automated and manual operations in Zambia.
Designing health and connectivity checksTimeout tuning and retry backoff strategiesStructured logging and correlation IDsCapturing and analyzing protocol tracesBuilding repeatable connection test playbooksLesson 9NETCONF and YANG: RPC model, capabilities, data modeling with YANG, XML/JSON encodingsStudy NETCONF and YANG as core standards for network programmability. You will learn the RPC model, capability negotiation, YANG data modeling, and XML or JSON encodings used for configuration and state management in local systems.
NETCONF sessions, locks, and RPC workflowCapability discovery and server feature setsYANG modules, trees, and data typesXML and JSON encodings for YANG dataModel-driven configuration workflowsLesson 10Vendor-specific programmatic interfaces: Cisco IOS-XE/IOS-XR/JunOS RESTCONF, Arista eAPI, Fortinet/Checkpoint APIsExamine vendor-specific APIs that extend standard interfaces. Compare Cisco, Juniper, Arista, Fortinet, and Check Point offerings, focusing on authentication, data models, rate limits, and integration patterns for Zambian vendors.
Cisco IOS-XE and IOS-XR RESTCONF usageJunOS REST APIs and JSON data modelsArista eAPI transport and command formatsFortinet and Check Point firewall APIsHandling rate limits and vendor quirks
