.. _netconf_plugins:

Netconf plugins
===============

.. contents::
   :local:
   :depth: 2

Netconf plugins are abstractions over the Netconf interface to network devices. They provide a standard interface for Ansible to execute tasks on those network devices.

These plugins generally correspond one-to-one to network device platforms. Ansible loads the appropriate netconf plugin automatically based on the ``ansible_network_os`` variable. If the platform supports standard Netconf implementation as defined in the Netconf RFC specification, Ansible loads the ``default`` netconf plugin. If the platform supports propriety Netconf RPCs, Ansible loads the platform-specific netconf plugin.

.. _enabling_netconf:

Adding netconf plugins
-------------------------

You can extend Ansible to support other network devices by dropping a custom plugin into the ``netconf_plugins`` directory.

.. _using_netconf:

Using netconf plugins
------------------------

The netconf plugin to use is determined automatically from the ``ansible_network_os`` variable. There should be no reason to override this functionality.

Most netconf plugins can operate without configuration. A few have additional options that can be set to affect how tasks are translated into netconf commands. A ncclient device-specific handler name can be set in the netconf plugin or else the value of ``default`` is used as per ncclient device handler.

Plugins are self-documenting. Each plugin should document its configuration options.

.. _netconf_plugin_list:

Listing netconf plugins
-----------------------

These plugins have migrated to collections on `Ansible Galaxy <https://galaxy.ansible.com>`_. If you installed Ansible version 2.10 or later using ``pip``, you have access to several netconf plugins.
You can use ``ansible-doc -t netconf -l`` to see the list of available plugins.
Use ``ansible-doc -t netconf <plugin name>`` to see plugin-specific documentation and examples.


.. seealso::

   :ref:`Ansible for Network Automation<network_guide>`
       An overview of using Ansible to automate networking devices.
   :ref:`Communication<communication>`
       Got questions? Need help? Want to share your ideas? Visit the Ansible communication guide
