Fully Automated Network Documentation using Python and AI - Part 2
Manually copy-pasting show command output into a browser chat works fine for a lab, but it falls apart the moment you need to run it against a whole site, on a schedule, or hand it off to a teammate. This video walks through a fully automated network documentation pipeline built on Python, Netmiko, and the Claude API. One YAML inventory, one command, and you get back a finished runbook plus an optional draw.io diagram in minutes.
What you'll learn:
How to set up a YAML inventory file that drives the entire pipeline
How to get an Anthropic API key, store it safely in ~/.bashrc, and understand the real cost
How the one-command pipeline collects, redacts, assembles, calls the API, and restores real values
How to generate a draw.io network diagram with a single flag (no extra API call)
How to switch between Claude, OpenAI, and Gemini and override the default model
How to handle scaling honestly once you have more than 20 devices
The script, inventory example, and a full README with every flag documented are free on GitHub. Works with Claude, OpenAI, or Gemini out of the box.
Chapters:
00:00 Intro
01:08 From 5 Scripts to 1 Command
02:28 Inventory YAML File
04:01 API Keys, Cost, and Setup
06:23 Credentials and Secrets Warning
06:42 Running the Pipeline Live
07:37 Inside the Generated Runbook
09:24 Optional Network Diagram Flag
10:17 Switching AI Providers and Models
11:10 Token Limits and How to Scale
12:14 GitHub, Blog, and What's Next
12:47 Recap
Resources:
GitHub (script, inventory example, README): https://github.com/GTalksTech/netops-...
Blog post companion: https://gtalkstech.com/blog/api-autom...
Anthropic API console (to create your key): https://console.anthropic.com
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