Bulk IP Address Allocation (Netbox) - Operations Manager

At this point, we have a JSON Form that will allow us to upload an Excel file and a workflow that will process the data and prepare it for automation.  We also have a pre-built workflow that allocates IP addresses in NetBox.  The next thing we need to do is create is a Transformation that will take the data we get from our spreadsheet and turn it into the data format our pre-built workflow requires in order to run.  Before doing so, we first need to run our workflow and see what the data coming out of the Excel to JSON task looks like.  To do this, we will create an Automation. Automations allow users to control when, how and with what data a workflow should run.

Operations Manager Video

Step 1

From the IAP Dashboard, select Operations Manager and then select Create an Automation.

Step 2

Name the Automation Lab – Bulk Allocate IP Addresses – NetBox – XX  (XX represents your initials) and click Create.

Step 3

From here, we will take the various pieces of our automation, such as our workflow and form, and link them together.  First, select the Lab – Bulk Allocate IP Addresses – NetBox – XX workflow from the Workflow dropdown.

Step 4

We are ready to create a new trigger.  Triggers define how the automation will be kicked off.   These include an API endpoint, a scheduled trigger, an event trigger, or a manual trigger.  For this exercise we will use a Manual trigger.  

 Click the + button.  

Step 5

A new trigger opens on the right-hand side of the window.  Name the trigger Manual and select Manual from the type dropdown.

Step 6

Our automation requires user input.  In the Form field, select the Lab – NetBox Form – XX form.

Step 7

The automation is complete, click Save Changes. The new trigger will appear on the left side of the screen.

Step 8

We are ready to test our automation.  Click the Run button.

Step 9

The Manual trigger opens on the right side of the screen and prompts you to upload a file.   Upload the IP Request file to the form and click Run Manually.

Step 10

The results will open in a new Operations Manager tab.  The Query task shows that the excel spreadsheet data was received and passed to the Excel to JSON task.

Step 11

Select the Excel to JSON task and the Outgoing tab.  The response object shows the name of the excel sheet, Hosts.  It also shows each object on the sheet as one row in the response data.  This is the data that will be sent to the pre-built workflow.

Hover your cursor over the 3 vertical dots in the response object window, copy the response data, and paste it into a text editor, such as Notepad, for use when creating our transformation in the next step of the training.