--- title: Explore Configurations of Unfamiliar Devices with netlab... description: netlab, a Python package, can generate device configurations for dozens of networking vendor devices without requiring VM or container managers like Vagrant or... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/explore-configurations-of-unfamiliar-devices-with-netlab-ipspace-net-blog-hc33jfyud twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Explore Configurations of Unfamiliar Devices with netlab « ipSpace.net blog | daily.dev og:description: netlab, a Python package, can generate device configurations for dozens of networking vendor devices without requiring VM or container managers like Vagrant or... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/explore-configurations-of-unfamiliar-devices-with-netlab-ipspace-net-blog-hc33jfyud og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/Hc33jfyUD.png og:image:alt: Explore Configurations of Unfamiliar Devices with netlab « ipSpace.net blog og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Explore Configurations of Unfamiliar Devices with netlab « ipSpace.net blog **[ipSpace.net Blog](https://daily.dev/sources/ipspace)** · 3 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary netlab, a Python package, can generate device configurations for dozens of networking vendor devices without requiring VM or container managers like Vagrant or containerlab. The workflow involves installing the networklab Python package, finding an appropriate lab topology from netlab-examples, BGP labs, IS-IS labs, or EVPN/VXLAN labs, then running `netlab create -d -o config ` to generate configuration files. The output is organized per node and per technology module (e.g., bgp, evpn, vlan, vxlan), making it easy to explore how unfamiliar devices should be configured for specific networking technologies. Sample Cisco IOL VLAN, VXLAN, and EVPN configurations are shown as concrete examples. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### How do I generate network device configurations without setting up VMs or containers? The netlab Python package can generate device configurations for dozens of networking vendor devices without Vagrant or containerlab. Install the `networklab` package in a virtual environment, find a lab topology from netlab-examples or BGP/IS-IS/EVPN labs, then run `netlab create -d -o config `. Output is placed in a `node_files` directory with per-node, per-technology configuration files. _Network engineers evaluating multi-vendor configs without lab hardware track tools like netlab on daily.dev._ ### How do I use netlab to generate EVPN/VXLAN configuration for Cisco IOL? Run `netlab create -d iol -p clab -o config ` to generate EVPN/VXLAN configs for Cisco IOL. The `-p clab` flag is needed for container-only devices like IOL. The resulting `node_files` directory contains separate files per technology module — bgp, evpn, vlan, vxlan — each with the relevant IOS/XE configuration snippets including bridge-domain, NVE interface, and BGP address-family l2vpn evpn stanzas. _Those building EVPN/VXLAN labs across vendors find the latest netlab updates on daily.dev._ --- Tags: [#python](https://daily.dev/tags/python) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/explore-configurations-of-unfamiliar-devices-with-netlab-ipspace-net-blog-hc33jfyud) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Explore Configurations of Unfamiliar Devices with netlab « ipSpace.net blog","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/explore-configurations-of-unfamiliar-devices-with-netlab-ipspace-net-blog-hc33jfyud","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/explore-configurations-of-unfamiliar-devices-with-netlab-ipspace-net-blog-hc33jfyud"},"datePublished":"2026-08-11T08:54:26.516Z","dateModified":"2026-08-11T09:08:52.907Z","description":"netlab, a Python package, can generate device configurations for dozens of networking vendor devices without requiring VM or container managers like Vagrant or...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--HRgLpUt6--/f_auto/v1722860399/public/Placeholder%2003","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--HRgLpUt6--/f_auto/v1722860399/public/Placeholder%2003","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"ipSpace.net Blog","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"ipSpace.net Blog","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--xS7E82MT--/f_auto,q_auto/v1786438303/logos/ipspace?_a=BAMAMicg0","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/ipspace"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/explore-configurations-of-unfamiliar-devices-with-netlab-ipspace-net-blog-hc33jfyud","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"python","timeRequired":"PT3M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"ipSpace.net Blog","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/ipspace"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Explore Configurations of Unfamiliar Devices with netlab « ipSpace.net blog"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/explore-configurations-of-unfamiliar-devices-with-netlab-ipspace-net-blog-hc33jfyud#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"How do I generate network device configurations without setting up VMs or containers?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"The netlab Python package can generate device configurations for dozens of networking vendor devices without Vagrant or containerlab. Install the `networklab` package in a virtual environment, find a lab topology from netlab-examples or BGP/IS-IS/EVPN labs, then run `netlab create -d -o config `. Output is placed in a `node_files` directory with per-node, per-technology configuration files. Network engineers evaluating multi-vendor configs without lab hardware track tools like netlab on daily.dev."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"How do I use netlab to generate EVPN/VXLAN configuration for Cisco IOL?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Run `netlab create -d iol -p clab -o config ` to generate EVPN/VXLAN configs for Cisco IOL. The `-p clab` flag is needed for container-only devices like IOL. The resulting `node_files` directory contains separate files per technology module — bgp, evpn, vlan, vxlan — each with the relevant IOS/XE configuration snippets including bridge-domain, NVE interface, and BGP address-family l2vpn evpn stanzas. Those building EVPN/VXLAN labs across vendors find the latest netlab updates on daily.dev."}}]} ```