[Day#1c PyATS Series] Why pyATS? Why not just stick to Netmiko / NAPALM / Paramiko which are easier?

Many network engineers ask: “Why should I learn pyATS when simpler options like Netmiko or NAPALM already exist?”

Let’s break it down.

---

1. What Netmiko and NAPALM Offer

Netmiko and NAPALM are excellent tools for:

• Connecting to network devices over SSH
• Sending CLI commands (like show ip int brief)
• Retrieving raw text output

These libraries are lightweight and ideal for ad-hoc automation or one-off scripts.

However, when moving towards production-grade, large-scale network validation, they start to show limitations.

---

2. What pyATS Brings to the Table

Feature	Netmiko/NAPALM	pyATS
Multi-vendor Support	Limited, driver-dependent	Extensive (Cisco, Arista, Juniper, Palo Alto, Fortinet)
Structured Output	Raw text, manual parsing	Genie parsers provide structured JSON-like data
Testing Framework	Must build from scratch	Built-in testing with Easypy jobs and reusable scripts
Parallel Connections	Requires threading setup	Native support for concurrency
Reusable Testbeds	Not abstracted	Testbed abstraction via testbed.yml
Reporting and Logs	Print to console	Generates HTML, JSON, and CLI reports out of the box
Scalability	Complex to scale	Designed for hundreds of devices simultaneously

---

3. Why pyATS is Worth Learning

pyATS is Cisco’s official network automation testing framework, built to handle vendor-agnostic validation across enterprise and service provider networks.

With pyATS, you can:

• Diff pre- and post-change configurations automatically
• Validate routing protocols, interface statistics, or any state across hundreds of devices
• Produce professional-grade HTML and JSON reports for NOC or management teams

This level of automation is not practical with raw Netmiko/NAPALM scripts unless you build significant scaffolding yourself.

---

4. Is pyATS Harder to Use?

Yes, pyATS has a steeper initial learning curve:

• Requires setting up virtual environments and dependencies
• Needs understanding of testbed abstractions (testbed.yml)

But once set up, you spend less time writing repetitive code and more time automating actual network validations.

In contrast, Netmiko scripts often grow unwieldy as network size increases.

---

5. Real-World Example

Task: Validate OSPF neighbor states on 400 routers and flag any failures.

• Netmiko Approach: Write scripts to connect to each router, send commands, parse text, and manually compare outputs.
• pyATS Approach: Load testbed.yml, run pyats learn ospf, get structured data instantly, and assert states.

Result: With pyATS, the same validation takes a fraction of the code and time.

---

Why It Matters

As networks grow in size and complexity, traditional manual validation and even basic automation scripts struggle to keep up. Organizations today demand vendor-agnostic, scalable, and reliable automation frameworks that can handle hundreds or thousands of devices efficiently.

This is where pyATS stands out. Unlike lightweight libraries such as Netmiko or NAPALM, pyATS provides:

• A unified API for managing devices across multiple vendors
• Built-in testing workflows to catch issues before they impact production
• Structured data output for seamless integration with dashboards and reports
• Scalability from small labs to large enterprise networks

For network engineers, adopting pyATS means moving beyond ad-hoc scripts toward enterprise-grade automation practices. It enables faster validation cycles, reduces human errors, and supports DevNet-style CI/CD pipelines for network changes.

If you’re serious about network automation, pyATS is not just another tool—it’s a mindset shift. It prepares you for the future of infrastructure as code, where testing and validation are no longer optional.

---

Ready to Level Up?

Stop writing one-off scripts that don’t scale. Start building automation workflows that deliver real business impact. Learn pyATS today and future-proof your career in the world of network automation.