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Device Attributes

Version 4.3 introduced the ability to add attributes to a device based on the IP Fabric Unique Serial Number. In versions before 6.0.0, this only supported manually changing a device’s siteName, routingDomain, or stpDomain. IP Fabric now supports adding custom attributes. Attribute names may not contain any spaces or special characters.

Attribute Requirements

Attribute field warning

Attribute names must match the following regex: /^[a-zA-Z][a-zA-Z0-9_]*[a-zA-Z0-9]+$/. The underscore _ is valid and will later be used to denote hierarchical attributes (i.e., REGION_COUNTRY).

Global Attributes

Attributes can be assigned globally or locally to an individual snapshot. To assign global attributes, navigate to Settings → Discovery & Snapshots → Global Configuration → Device Attributes. Once an attribute is assigned, a new snapshot is required for it to be applied.

Device Attributes table

  • Serial number is IP Fabric’s “Unique Serial Number” (API column sn). Note that this is not the Serial Number column, which represents the Hardware SN (API column snHw). Devices discovered via API can also be assigned using Device Attributes.
  • Hostname is populated by IP Fabric when a device matching the Serial number is found.
  • Attribute is the Device Attribute to assign.
  • Value is the attribute’s value to assign.

Creating Rules in the UI

To create a rule in the UI, click + Add attribute and fill out the form:

Device Attributes - create rule

The dropdown is intuitive and will let you search based on SN or hostname.

Device Attributes - dropdown

Creating Rules via the API

This is the preferred method of creating rules as it allows for bulk importing.

Method Put
URL https://<IPF_URL>/api/v6.0/attributes/global
Data {"attributes": [{"sn": "<IPF SERIAL NUMBER>", "value": "<ATTRIBUTE NAME>", "name": "<ATTRIBUTE VALUE>"}]}

Creating Global Attributes in Python

Please see the examples at examples/settings/attributes_mgmt_ip.py and examples/settings/attributes_sitename.py.

Local Attributes

Local or “Snapshot-Specific” Attributes are applied during discovery and stored in the snapshot file separate from the global settings. Currently, you are able to:

  1. Update from the global settings:
    1. Update global device attributes in Settings → Discovery & Snapshots → Global Configuration → Device Attributes.
    2. Go to Discovery Snapshot.
    3. Select a snapshot and navigate to its Settings → Device Attributes.
    4. Click Override with global settings.
  2. Use the API (or Python SDK) to view, add, or edit a snapshot’s Local Attributes.

Editing a snapshot’s Local Attributes will require recalculations if a device’s siteName, routingDomain, or stpDomain have been changed.

Creating Local Attributes in Python

Please see the example at examples/settings/local_attributes.py.

Device Attributes Import/Export

The device attributes import/export feature allows you to manage custom device attributes using CSV files, making it easy to bulk-add or update device information.

Device Attributes Import/Export

Export Functionality

Export Current Data

  • Click the Export button to download all existing device attributes as a CSV file.
  • The file will be named Device_Attributes.csv.
  • The CSV file contains the following columns: Serial Number, Hostname, Attribute, Value.

Import Functionality

File Requirements

  • Format: CSV file only
  • Maximum size: 10 MB
  • Required columns: Serial Number, Attribute, Value
  • Optional column: Hostname (for reference only)

Import Options

Import Data
  • Adds new attributes from the CSV file.
  • Duplicate handling: Prevents adding attributes that already exist for a device; duplicate rows are ignored and the import continues.
  • Existing data remains unchanged.
Import & Replace
  • This option overrides all existing attributes and imports new ones.

Warning

Use with caution — this operation completely replaces your attribute data.