Product Overview of Pica8 Nymble (and related technologies)
Pica8’s Nymble Automation Framework, along with its associated technologies such as PicOS and AmpCon, constitutes a comprehensive network automation and management solution designed to simplify and enhance the efficiency of network operations.
What Nymble Does
Nymble is a network automation and configuration management tool that enables users to remotely provision, configure, and manage network switches across branch offices and other network environments. This framework is built on top of the open-source Ansible platform, allowing for automated and centralized management of network devices.
Key Features and Functionality
Network Automation and Configuration
- Nymble automates the initial switch configuration, provisioning, and deployment, as well as ongoing lifecycle management functions. This includes automated turn-on and configuration of all PicOS-powered switches, centralized installation of configuration files, and automatic upgrades.
Web-Based Interface
- The framework includes a web-based interface that simplifies the creation of switch-specific configurations, which are stored in the customer’s database. This interface is user-friendly and easy to navigate.
Integration with PicOS
- Nymble works in conjunction with Pica8’s PicOS, a Linux-based network operating system (NOS) that supports Layer 2 and Layer 3 protocols, OpenFlow, and Debian Linux. PicOS is designed to run on commodity network hardware, offering a flexible and cost-effective alternative to proprietary systems.
Centralized Management
- The solution provides centralized configuration upgrades and management, allowing IT teams to manage all remote switches from a single location. This includes visibility of all remote switches, role-based access control, and detailed reporting.
Security and Compliance
- Nymble enhances network security through features such as compliance checking, configuration validation, and integration with network access control (NAC) tools. This ensures automated network access policy enforcement and a robust security posture.
Scalability and Flexibility
- Unlike traditional stacking requirements, Nymble allows for the use of a mix of different switch models, eliminating the need for uniform switch stacks. This approach is more stable, offers more bandwidth, and is highly scalable.
Ansible Integration
- The framework leverages Ansible and Ansible Tower, providing access to a vast library of pre-built automation scripts. This enables customization of network automation routines through standard and configurable playbooks.
AI-Ready and Future-Proofed Architecture
- Nymble is designed with an AI-ready architecture, ensuring it is future-proofed and capable of integrating with emerging technologies and tools.
Licensing and Cost Efficiency
- Pica8 offers a simple, single license model for its all-in-one network automation platform. This license includes both the AmpCon Network Controller and blocks of PicOS software, with no restrictions on port size or performance. This approach helps in reducing operational expenses (OPEX).
In summary, Pica8’s Nymble Automation Framework, combined with PicOS and AmpCon, provides a powerful, flexible, and cost-effective solution for network automation, configuration management, and security, making it an attractive alternative to traditional proprietary network solutions.