What is NetBox?

NetBox is an open source web application designed to help manage and document computer networks. Initially conceived by the network engineering team at DigitalOcean, NetBox was developed specifically to address the needs of network and infrastructure engineers. It encompasses the following aspects of network management:

IP address management (IPAM) - IP networks and addresses, VRFs, and VLANs
Equipment racks - Organized by group and site
Devices - Types of devices and where they are installed
Connections - Network, console, and power connections among devices
Data circuits - Long-haul communications circuits and providers
Secrets - Encrypted storage of sensitive credentials

It was designed with the following tenets foremost in mind.

Replicate the Real World

Careful consideration has been given to the data model to ensure that it can accurately reflect a real-world network. For instance, IP addresses are assigned not to devices, but to specific interfaces attached to a device, and an interface may have multiple IP addresses assigned to it.

Serve as a "Source of Truth"

NetBox intends to represent the desired state of a network versus its operational state. As such, automated import of live network state is strongly discouraged. All data created in NetBox should first be vetted by a human to ensure its integrity. NetBox can then be used to populate monitoring and provisioning systems with a high degree of confidence.

Keep it Simple

When given a choice between a relatively simple 80% solution and a much more complex complete solution, the former will typically be favored. This ensures a lean codebase with a low learning curve.

Application Stack

NetBox is built on the Django Python framework and utilizes a PostgreSQL database. It runs as a WSGI service behind your choice of HTTP server.

Function	Component
HTTP Service	nginx or Apache
WSGI Service	gunicorn or uWSGI
Application	Django/Python
Database	PostgreSQL

Getting Started

See the getting started guide for help with getting NetBox up and running quickly.

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