Cisco pyATS vs NAPALM

Cisco pyATS is a Python framework for network testing, automation, and validation, available free under the Apache 2.0 license. It supports sanity, feature, solution, system, and scale test and verification workflows, with reusable data-driven tests ranging from simple checks to complex asynchronous suites. Genie libraries provide device connectivity, parsers, APIs, platform-agnostic feature models, reusable test cases, and a YAML-driven test runner. Built-in device libraries cover Cisco IOS, IOS XE, IOS XR, NX-OS, and ASA; plugins and extensions can add other platforms. Connections can use CLI, NETCONF, or RESTCONF. XPRESSO manages test suites, environments, testbeds, resources, live test views, and archived results with comparisons and analytics. It supports on-demand, bundled, and scheduled runs through Jenkins and Docker backends. Cisco also documents Ansible community integrations and out-of-the-box RobotFramework support. pyATS runs on Linux and macOS and supports self-hosted deployment. Cisco says more than 75% of its codebase is open source on GitHub. Email support is best-effort and usually receives a reply within a day.

NAPALM is a free Python library for automating network devices from multiple vendors through a shared API. It connects to devices, changes configurations, and retrieves operational data. Its core drivers cover Arista EOS, Cisco IOS, Cisco IOS-XR, Cisco NX-OS, and Juniper JunOS, with additional community drivers. Configuration methods include replace, merge, compare, commit-confirm, and rollback, although availability depends on the platform. Getters can return device facts, configurations, interface information, BGP neighbors, and environment data, with coverage varying by driver. For validation, NAPALM can compare live device state against YAML expectations and create a compliance report. The project identifies integrations with Ansible, SaltStack, and StackStorm. Installation uses `pip install napalm`, which includes the currently available core drivers. Version 5.1.0 and later supports Python 3.9 and later. It is self-hosted, licensed under Apache-2.0, and free at free. Documentation advises checking platform-specific caveats before use.