netbox-community-netbox/docs/release-notes/version-2.7.md

# v2.7.0 (FUTURE)

**Note:** This release completely removes the topology map feature ([#2745](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/2745)).

**Note:** NetBox v2.7 is the last major release that will support Python 3.5. Beginning with NetBox v2.8, Python 3.6 or
higher will be required.

## New Features

### Enhanced Device Type Import ([#451](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/451))

NetBox now supports the import of device types and related component templates using definitions written in YAML or
JSON. For example, the following will create a new device type with four network interfaces, two power ports, and a
console port:

```yaml
manufacturer: Acme
model: Packet Shooter 9000
slug: packet-shooter-9000
u_height: 1
interfaces:
  - name: ge-0/0/0
    type: 1000base-t
  - name: ge-0/0/1
    type: 1000base-t
  - name: ge-0/0/2
    type: 1000base-t
  - name: ge-0/0/3
    type: 1000base-t
power-ports:
  - name: PSU0
  - name: PSU1
console-ports:
  - name: Console
```

This new functionality replaces the old CSV-based import form, which did not allow for bulk import of component
templates.

### Bulk Import of Device Components ([#822](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/822))

Device components such as console ports, power ports, and interfaces can now be imported in bulk to multiple devices in
CSV format. Here's an example showing the bulk import of interfaces to several devices:

```
device,name,type
Switch1,Vlan100,Virtual
Switch1,Vlan200,Virtual
Switch2,Vlan100,Virtual
Switch2,Vlan200,Virtual
```

The import form for each type of device component is available under the "Devices" item in the navigation menu.

### External File Storage ([#1814](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/1814))

In prior releases, the only option for storing uploaded files (e.g. image attachments) was to save them to the local
filesystem on the NetBox server. This release introduces support for several remote storage backends provided by the
[`django-storages`](https://django-storages.readthedocs.io/en/stable/) library. These include:

* Amazon S3
* ApacheLibcloud
* Azure Storage
* netbox-community Spaces
* Dropbox
* FTP
* Google Cloud Storage
* SFTP

To enable remote file storage, first install the `django-storages` package:

```
pip install django-storages
```

Then, set the appropriate storage backend and its configuration in `configuration.py`. Here's an example using Amazon
S3:

```python
STORAGE_BACKEND = 'storages.backends.s3boto3.S3Boto3Storage'
STORAGE_CONFIG = {
    'AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID': '<Key>',
    'AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY': '<Secret>',
    'AWS_STORAGE_BUCKET_NAME': 'netbox',
    'AWS_S3_REGION_NAME': 'eu-west-1',
}
```

Thanks to [@steffann](https://github.com/steffann) for contributing this work!

### Rack Elevations Rendered via SVG ([#2248](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/2248))

NetBox v2.7 introduces a new method of rendering rack elevations as an
[SVG image](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scalable_Vector_Graphics) via a REST API endpoint. This replaces the prior
method of rendering elevations using pure HTML and CSS, which was cumbersome and had several shortcomings. Rendering
rack elevations as SVG images via the REST API allows users to retrieve and make use of the drawings in their own
tooling. This also opens the door to other feature requests related to rack elevations in the NetBox backlog.

This feature implements a new REST API endpoint:

```
/api/dcim/racks/<id>/elevation/
```

By default, this endpoint returns a paginated JSON response representing each rack unit in the given elevation. This is
the same response returned by the existing rack units detail endpoint at `/api/dcim/racks/<id>/units/`, which will be
removed in v2.8 (see [#3753](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3753)).

To render the elevation as an SVG image, include the `render=svg` query parameter in the request. You may also control
the width and height of the elevation drawing (in pixels) by passing the `unit_width` and `unit_height` parameters. (The
default values for these parameters are 230 and 20, respectively.) Additionally, the `face` parameter may be used to
request either the `front` or `rear` of the elevation. Below is in example request:

```
/api/dcim/racks/<id>/elevation/?render=svg&face=rear&unit_width=300&unit_height=35
```

Thanks to [@hellerve](https://github.com/hellerve) for doing the heavy lifting on this!

## Changes

### Topology Maps Removed ([#2745](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/2745))

The topology maps feature has been removed to help focus NetBox development efforts. Please replicate any required data
to another source before upgrading NetBox to v2.7, as any existing topology maps will be deleted.

### Supervisor Replaced with systemd ([#2902](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/2902))

The NetBox [installation documentation](https://netbox.readthedocs.io/en/stable/installation/) has been updated to
provide instructions for managing the WSGI and RQ services using systemd instead of supervisor. This removes the need to
install supervisor and simplifies administration of the processes.

### Redis Configuration ([#3282](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3282))

NetBox v2.6 introduced request caching and added the `CACHE_DATABASE` option to the existing `REDIS` database
configuration parameter. This did not, however, allow for using two different Redis connections for the separate caching
and webhook queuing functions. This release modifies the `REDIS` parameter to accept two discrete subsections named
`webhooks` and `caching`. This requires modification of the `REDIS` parameter in `configuration.py` as follows:

Old Redis configuration:

```python
REDIS = {
    'HOST': 'localhost',
    'PORT': 6379,
    'PASSWORD': '',
    'DATABASE': 0,
    'CACHE_DATABASE': 1,
    'DEFAULT_TIMEOUT': 300,
    'SSL': False,
}
```

New Redis configuration:

```python
REDIS = {
    'webhooks': {
        'HOST': 'redis.example.com',
        'PORT': 1234,
        'PASSWORD': 'foobar',
        'DATABASE': 0,
        'DEFAULT_TIMEOUT': 300,
        'SSL': False,
    },
    'caching': {
        'HOST': 'localhost',
        'PORT': 6379,
        'PASSWORD': '',
        'DATABASE': 1,
        'DEFAULT_TIMEOUT': 300,
        'SSL': False,
    }
}
``` 

Note that the `CACHE_DATABASE` parameter has been removed and the connection settings have been duplicated for both
`webhooks` and `caching`. This allows the user to make use of separate Redis instances if desired. It is fine to use the
same Redis service for both functions, although the database identifiers should be different.

### WEBHOOKS_ENABLED Configuration Setting Removed ([#3408](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3408))

As `django-rq` is now a required library, NetBox assumes that the RQ worker process is running. The installation and
upgrade documentation has been updated to reflect this, and the `WEBHOOKS_ENABLED` configuration parameter is no longer
used. Please ensure that both the NetBox WSGI service and the RQ worker process are running on all production
installations.

### API Choice Fields Now Use String Values ([#3569](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3569))

NetBox's REST API presents fields which reference a particular choice as a dictionary with two keys: `value` and
`label`. In previous versions, `value` was an integer which represented a particular choice in the database. This has
been changed to a more human-friendly "slug" string, which is essentially a simplified version of the choice's `label`.

For example, The site model's `status` field was previously represented as:

```json
"status": {
    "value": 1,
    "label": "Active"
},
```

In NetBox v2.7, it now looks like this:

```json
"status": {
    "value": "active",
    "label": "Active",
    "id": 1
},
```

This change allows for much more intuitive representation and manipulation of values, and removes the need for API
consumers to maintain local mappings of static integer values.

Note that that all v2.7 releases will continue to accept the legacy integer values in write requests (`POST`, `PUT`, and
`PATCH`) to maintain backward compatibility. Additionally, the legacy numeric identifier is conveyed in the `id` field
for convenient reference as consumers adopt to the new string values. This behavior will be discontinued in NetBox v2.8.

## Enhancements

* [#33](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/33) - Add ability to clone objects (pre-populate form fields)
* [#648](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/648) - Pre-populate form fields when selecting "create and
  add another"
* [#792](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/792) - Add power port and power outlet types
* [#1865](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/1865) - Add console port and console server port types
* [#2669](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/2669) - Relax uniqueness constraint on device and VM names
* [#2902](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/2902) - Replace `supervisord` with `systemd`
* [#3455](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3455) - Add tenant assignment to virtual machine clusters
* [#3520](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3520) - Add Jinja2 template support for graphs
* [#3525](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3525) - Enable IP address filtering using multiple address
  parameters
* [#3564](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3564) - Add list views for all device components
* [#3538](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3538) - Introduce a REST API endpoint for executing custom
  scripts
* [#3655](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3655) - Add `description` field to organizational models
* [#3664](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3664) - Enable applying configuration contexts by tags
* [#3706](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3706) - Increase `available_power` maximum value on
  PowerFeed
* [#3731](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3731) - Change Graph.type to a ContentType foreign key field
* [#3801](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3801) - Use YAML for export of device types

## Bug Fixes

* [#3830](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3830) - Ensure deterministic ordering for all models
* [#3900](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3900) - Fix exception when deleting device types
* [#3914](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3914) - Fix interface filter field when unauthenticated
* [#3919](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3919) - Fix utilization graph extending out of bounds when
  utilization > 100%
* [#3927](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3927) - Fix exception when deleting devices with secrets
  assigned
* [#3930](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3930) - Fix API rendering of the `family` field for
  aggregates

## Bug Fixes (From Beta)

* [#3868](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3868) - Fix creation of interfaces for virtual machines
* [#3878](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3878) - Fix database migration for cable status field

## API Changes

* Choice fields now use human-friendly strings for their values instead of integers (see
  [#3569](https://github.com/netbox-community/netbox/issues/3569)).
* Introduced the `/api/extras/scripts/` endpoint for retrieving and executing custom scripts
* circuits.CircuitType: Added field `description`
* dcim.ConsolePort: Added field `type`
* dcim.ConsolePortTemplate: Added field `type`
* dcim.ConsoleServerPort: Added field `type`
* dcim.ConsoleServerPortTemplate: Added field `type`
* dcim.DeviceRole: Added field `description`
* dcim.PowerPort: Added field `type`
* dcim.PowerPortTemplate: Added field `type`
* dcim.PowerOutlet: Added field `type`
* dcim.PowerOutletTemplate: Added field `type`
* dcim.RackRole: Added field `description`
* extras.Graph: Added field `template_language` (to indicate `django` or `jinja2`)
* extras.Graph: The `type` field has been changed to a content type foreign key. Models are specified as
  `<app>.<model>`; e.g. `dcim.site`.
* ipam.Role: Added field `description`
* secrets.SecretRole: Added field `description`
* virtualization.Cluster: Added field `tenant`