Inside r/networkautomation: The Sarcastic Guru’s Guide to Reddit’s Best Sub

The “Wong Edan” Manifesto: Why You’re Still Copy-Pasting Like a Script Kiddie

Greetings, fellow packet-pushers and manual-configuration masochists! It is I, your resident technical lunatic, here to tell you that if you are still logging into 500 switches one by one to change a VLAN description, you are officially “Edan” (crazy)—but not the good kind of crazy. In the real world of 2024 and beyond, we have this magical place called r/networkautomation. It’s a subreddit filled with people who realized that life is too short to let a serial console cable be their only friend. If you aren’t part of this community, you’re basically the guy trying to win a Formula 1 race on a tricycle.

The r/networkautomation community is the definitive hub for sharing knowledge and engaging with a growing community of network automation specialists. It’s not just a place to beg for Python scripts; it’s a battlefield where the “CLI-monkeys” evolve into “Infrastructure as Code” (IaC) architects. Whether you’re arguing about the superiority of Ansible vs. Python or debating if YANG modeling is actually worth the headache, this subreddit has the receipts. Let’s dive into the technical abyss, shall we?

1. The Holy Trinity: Netmiko, Ansible, and Python

According to the consensus in the r/networkautomation archives—specifically the legendary threads from late 2024—the path to enlightenment starts with three specific pillars. If you want to get started in network automation, the community suggests you don’t need to be a software engineer from day one. You just need to stop being afraid of the terminal.

• Netmiko: The ultimate SSH library for Python. It simplifies multi-vendor interactions. If you’re transitioning from manual CLI to scripts, this is your first hit of the good stuff.
• Ansible: The “agentless” savior. It uses YAML, which looks like English if you squint hard enough. It’s the gateway drug for enterprise-scale automation.
• Python: The engine under the hood. Once you hit the limits of Ansible’s playbooks, you’ll be crawling back to Python to handle complex logic and API interactions.

One notable discussion from September 2023 highlighted a common struggle: “Ansible vs. Python + Netmiko (or Nornir).” One user noted that while they started with Python + Netmiko and dabbled in Nornir, they found Nornir “just added unnecessary complexity” for their specific environment. This is the beauty of the sub—it’s not about the “best” tool, but the tool that actually keeps your network from exploding at 3 AM.

# A classic Netmiko snippet often discussed for beginners
from netmiko import ConnectHandler

device = {
    'device_type': 'cisco_ios',
    'host': '10.0.0.1',
    'username': 'wong_edan',
    'password': 'password123',
}

with ConnectHandler(**device) as net_connect:
    output = net_connect.send_command('show ip int brief')
    print(output)

2. Source of Truth: Netbox, Nautobot, and the War on Excel

If your “Source of Truth” is an Excel spreadsheet named IP_ADDRESSES_FINAL_V2_USE_THIS_ONE.xlsx, please leave. r/networkautomation advocates for professional tools like Netbox and Nautobot. As mentioned in discussions around September 2024, these open-source platforms are the bedrock of modern automation.

Netbox isn’t just an IPAM (IP Address Management) tool; it’s a Source of Truth (SSoT). The subreddit frequently emphasizes that you cannot automate what you cannot define. You use Netbox to model your desired state, and then you use tools like Ansible (AWX) or Python (Nornir and NAPALM) to make that state a reality. For those with deeper pockets, the sub also mentions “expensive products,” but the “Wong Edan” way is to master the open-source stack first so you actually understand how the gears turn.

Key Entities in the SSoT Ecosystem:

• Netbox: Focuses on simplicity and data integrity.
• Nautobot: An extensible fork of Netbox designed for complex app development.
• NAPALM: A Python library that provides a unified API for multi-vendor device manipulation.

3. To YANG or Not To YANG? That is the Overkill Question

Technical maturity in network automation tools often leads to the YANG (Yet Another Next Generation) data modeling debate. A particularly spicy thread from April 23, 2025, tackled this head-on. The verdict? YANG is probably overkill for most network operators modeling their own services.

The community suggests that while YANG is a powerful standard for defining data sent over NETCONF or RESTCONF, many engineers find more success with JSON-schema or even simple Netbox models. Why? Because YANG has a learning curve steeper than a mountain in Central Java. Unless you are building massive carrier-grade service provider frameworks, the r/networkautomation crowd suggests keeping it simple. “Don’t build a space shuttle when you just need a scooter to buy cigarettes,” as the saying (almost) goes.

4. The Scripting vs. DevOps Philosophical Crisis

There is a locked and stickied post from roughly three years ago titled “Scripting vs. DevOps: What’s the end goal of network automation?” This hits at the heart of the community’s evolution. Is the goal just to run a script that saves you 10 minutes, or is it to build a CI/CD pipeline for your network?

The “DevOps” approach mentioned in the sub involves:

• Version Control: Storing your configurations in Git (GitLab/GitHub).
• Automated Testing: Using pyATS or Batfish to verify changes before they hit production.
• Continuous Deployment: Using a runner to push changes automatically when a pull request is merged.

Most users on the sub agree that “Scripting” is a solo activity, while “Network DevOps” is a team sport. If you’re the only one who knows how the Python script works, you haven’t automated the network; you’ve just automated your own job security (and your own stress).

5. Tooling Landscape in 2025: From NAS to Homegrown

Fast forward to June 2025—yes, I have the data from the future—and the list of most used network automation tools has expanded significantly. We are seeing a blend of legacy and “new age” tools appearing in the sub’s rankings:

• Network Automation (NAS): Often discussed in enterprise contexts.
• HP Network Automation & MicroFocus: Mentioned as the “old guard” that many are trying to migrate away from.
• Homegrown Tools: A growing trend where engineers build specific wrappers around APIs. One user recently posted about a tool they built to bridge the gap between legacy SNMP and modern telemetry.

The subreddit serves as a filter. Instead of reading marketing fluff from Cisco or Juniper, you get the raw truth from engineers who have actually tried to use these tools in the trenches. If a tool sucks, r/networkautomation will tell you in the most brutal way possible.

6. Show Me the Money: Salary Outlook for 2026

Let’s talk about the “Gaji” (salary). A thread from May 8, 2026, discusses the Network Automation Engineer salary landscape. The consensus is clear: the gap between a “Standard Network Engineer” and a “Network Automation Engineer” is widening faster than a BGP hijacking incident.

By 2026, companies are no longer looking for people who can just configure OSPF. They want people who can write a Python script to audit OSPF neighbors across 4,000 routers and output the result to a Slack bot. The sub suggests that mastering infrastructure as code and cloud-native networking is the key to hitting those six-figure (USD) brackets. If you don’t automate, your salary stays in the “manual labor” tier. Don’t be “Edan”—learn to code.

7. Beginner-Friendly Resources: Don’t Panic

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, the r/networkautomation community is surprisingly wholesome for beginners. A “sticky” post from late 2024 recommends a specific order of operations for learning:

1. Learn Python Basics: Focus on lists, dictionaries, and loops.
2. Master Netmiko: Get your first “Show” command output into a text file.
3. Explore APIs: Understand REST and how to use requests in Python to talk to a controller (like Cisco DNA Center or Arista CloudVision).
4. Adopt Ansible: Learn how to use templates (Jinja2) to generate configurations.

“I started by introducing automation via Python + Netmiko… with these three (Netmiko, Ansible, Python), you can do nearly everything in network automation.” — A wise sage from the r/networkautomation boards.

Wong Edan’s Verdict

Is r/networkautomation worth your time? Absolutely. It is the only place where you can find someone who understands the visceral pain of a failed firmware upgrade at 2 AM and the pure joy of a Python script that actually works on the first try.

The Final Take: Stop looking for a “magic button.” Network automation isn’t a product you buy; it’s a culture you build. Whether you are using Netbox as your source of truth or fighting the YANG dragon, the experts on Reddit have already made the mistakes so you don’t have to. Join the sub, stop being a CLI-monkey, and start building the future. Otherwise, don’t complain when the “Automation AI” takes your job and leaves you with nothing but your console cable and your tears.

Stay Crazy, Stay Automated.