# Netconf enabled Platform Options

This page offers details on how the netconf connection works in Ansible 2.7 and how to use it.

Topics

- Netconf enabled Platform Options
  - Connections Available
  - Using NETCONF in Ansible 2.6 onwards
    - Enabling NETCONF
    - Example NETCONF inventory `[junos:vars]`
    - Example NETCONF Task
    - Example NETCONF Task with configurable variables

## Connections Available

| NETCONF * all modules except `junos_netconf`, which enables NETCONF
--- | ---
Protocol | XML over SSH
Credentials | uses SSH keys / SSH-agent if present accepts `-u myuser -k` if using password
Indirect Access | via a bastion (jump host)
Connection Settings | `ansible_connection: netconf`

For legacy playbooks, Ansible still supports `ansible_connection=local` for the netconf_config module only. We recommend modernizing to use `ansible_connection=netconf` as soon as possible.

## Using NETCONF in Ansible 2.6 onwards

### Enabling NETCONF

Before you can use NETCONF to connect to a switch, you must:

- install the `ncclient` Python package on your control node(s) with `pip install ncclient`
- enable NETCONF on the Junos OS device(s)

To enable NETCONF on a new switch via Ansible, use the platform specific module via the CLI connection or set it manually. For example set up your platform-level variables just like in the CLI example above, then run a playbook task like this:

    - name: Enable NETCONF
      connection: network_cli
      junos_netconf:
      when: ansible_network_os == 'junos'

Once NETCONF is enabled, change your variables to use the NETCONF connection.

### Example NETCONF inventory `[junos:vars]`

    [junos:vars]
    ansible_connection=netconf
    ansible_network_os=junos
    ansible_user=myuser
    ansible_ssh_pass=!vault |

### Example NETCONF Task

    - name: Backup current switch config
      netconf_config:
        backup: yes
      register: backup_junos_location

### Example NETCONF Task with configurable variables

    - name: configure interface while providing different private key file path
      netconf_config:
        backup: yes
      register: backup_junos_location
      vars:
        ansible_private_key_file: /home/admin/.ssh/newprivatekeyfile

Note: For nectonf connection plugin configurable variables .. _Refer: https://docs.ansible.com/ansible/latest/plugins/connection/netconf.html

Warning

Never store passwords in plain text. We recommend using SSH keys to authenticate SSH connections. Ansible supports ssh-agent to manage your SSH keys. If you must use passwords to authenticate SSH connections, we recommend encrypting them with Ansible Vault.