1. OpenFlow Switch Management using NETCONF and YANG
Carl Moberg, VP Technical Marketing
calle@tail-f.com, @cmoberg

2. What You Should Come Away With
• Understanding of IETF NETCONF protocol and YANG
language and it’s major features and benefits
• Understanding of ONF OF-CONFIG specification and it’s
moving parts
• Advantages to the combination of these technologies for
Network Managers and Equipment Providers
• New thoughts on the future of automated network
management!
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3. Introducing Tail-f Systems
Voice Business Mobile Video
Services Ethernet Backhaul Services
Customers expect fast and Complexity of service Faster time-to-market
faultless turn-up of services provisioning exploding expectations
Network Equipment Providers Service Providers
• Reduce development time and • Innovate and differentiate on
project risk service offerings
• Provide more complete operations • Reduce OPEX through automating
management solutions configuration management systems
• Off-load core platform management and processes
development to allow focus on • Drive customer retention through
areas of product differentiation operational excellence
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4. A Brief History of NETCONF and YANG
• 2001: Network Management Roadshow
• 2002: Internet Architecture Board (IAB) Workshop on
Network Management
“The workshop recommends, with
strong consensus from both
protocol developers and
operators, that the IETF focus
resources on the standardization
of configuration management
mechanisms.”
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5. What NETCONF and YANG is and isn’t
• The NETCONF protocol is a formal application
programming interface (API) that allows configuration data
information to be retrieved and manipulated
• The YANG data modeling language is used to model
configuration and state data manipulated by NETCONF
• NETCONF is not replacing CORBA/SOAP/REST; it
provides full set of semantics for configuration management
• YANG is not replacing XSD/RelaxNG/WSDL; it provides
many features specific to configuration management
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6. NETCONF Key Features
• Distinct difference between configuration and operational
data
• Rich configuration management semantics including
validation, rollbacks and transactions
• Extensible protocol based on capabilities exchange
More information:
• RFC 6241
• netconfcentral.org
• slideshare.net
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7. YANG Key Features
• A complete description of API between a NETCONF client
and server
• A hierarchy of data including configuration, state, Remote
Procedure Calls (RPCs), and notifications
• Syntax is compact and optimized for human readers
More information:
• RFC 6020
• yang-central.org
• slideshare.net
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8. Who Is Using It
Equipment Vendors SDOs
• Brocade (MLX, NetIron) • IETF
• Ericsson (SEA 20) – Drives standard
• Cisco (IOS, IOS-XE) • CableLabs
– CCAP (Next-gen CMTS)
• H3C (S9500E)
• Huawei (AR x200) • MEF
– FM, PM, and services
• Juniper (JUNOS >7.5)
• ONF(!)
• Sonus (NBS 5200)
– OF-CONFIG
• Verivue (MDX 9020)
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9. OpenFlow Architecture Overview
Controller
OpenFlow Protocol
Switch
Switch Switch
Switch
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10. Introducing OF-CONFIG
• “The motivation for the OpenFlow
Configuration Protocol (OF-
CONFIG) is to enable the remote Configuration
configuration of OpenFlow Controller
Point
datapaths”
• Provides basic abstractions of OpenFlow
OpenFlow functions OF-CONFIG
Protocol
(NETCONF)
• “OF-CONFIG1.1 requires that
devices supporting OFCONFIG
1.1 MUST implement NETCONF
protocol as the transport.” Switch
Switch
Switch
Operation Context
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11. The Building Blocks
• Configuration Point Configuration
Controller
Point
– Configures set of
Capable Switches
OF-CONFIG OpenFlow
• Capable Switch (NETCONF) Protocol
– Managed entity
OpenFlow Capable Switch
containing set of
Logical Switches Logical Switch Logical Switch
• Logical Switch Resource
Resource
(e.g. Port)
(e.g. Port)
... Resource
Resource
(e.g. Port)
(e.g. Port)
– A set of resources
managed by
Controller
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12. Bringing it Together
• OF-CONFIG includes Configuration
Point
full YANG model
• Implementations
immediately benefit • Validation
• Rollback
from:
• Transactions
– Standard protocol and
language
– Formal API definition Switch
Switch
– NETCONF feature set Switch
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13. Introducing Tail-f NCS
Network
OSS/BSS Engineer EMS/NMS
NET- WEB JAVA /
CLI REST SNMP
CONF UI JavaScript
• Network abstraction engine NCS Service
Models
• Data-model driven
• Multi-vendor support Device
Models
• Device and service models Device Manager
SNMP CLI
ConfD Other
NETCONF
Netconf
SNMP WS
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14. NCS as an OpenFlow Switch Manager
Network
OSS/BSS Engineer EMS/NMS
NET- WEB JAVA /
CLI REST SNMP
CONF UI
•
JavaScript
Import OF-CONFIG modules!
• No code needed NCS Service
Models
• All northbound interfaces
• NETCONF feature set OF-CONFIG
YANG
– Validation Module
– Rollback OF-CONFIG Manager
– Transactions
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15. Example Use Case #2
Bringing up new logical switch
Network
1. Import OF-CONFIG YANG Engineer EMS/NMS
2. Regenerate Interfaces
3. Set up connectivity to switches CLI REST NETCONF
4. Use CLI to bring up logical
switch NCS
Device Manager
5. ...or REST
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16. Example Use Case #2
Bringing up new separated virtual network (set of logical switches)
Network
Engineer EMS/NMS
1. Import OF-CONFIG YANG
2. Regenerate Interfaces
CLI REST NETCONF
3. Set up connectivity to
switches
NCS
4. Bring up candidate
configuration for logical
switches across switches Device Manager
5. Validate configuration
6. Use NETCONF confirmed
commit for transactions
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17. Conclusion
• OF-CONFIG leverages open and standardized NETCONF
and YANG for switch management
• Formal model and well-known protocol reduces time to
market and risk for network equipment provides
• Open, well defined API reduces implementation cost and
risk for network management teams at service providers
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18. Wrap-up and Questions
• Feel free to reach out at:
– Carl Moberg <calle@tail-f.com>
– follow or DM me on @cmoberg on twitter
• ...for any configuration management questions
• Follow us on:
– www.tail-f.com
– LinkedIn (company page, NETCONF and YANG Users Group)
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