Catalyst Center - IP Address Management Provider Integration
This document provides an overview and REST API specification for an
external IP Address Management (IPAM) Provider Service for integration with a Catalyst Center.
Catalyst Center ships with a fully functional internal IPAM Service.
All IP address conflict detection and pool reservation is done by the Catalyst Center IPAM service.
The Catalyst Center may optionally use an external or
third-party IP Address Manager (IPAM) Provider for the purpose of working with externally managed
IP addresses and IP address pools.
This provides for better integration with an externally resources and
enables more efficient use of IP scope.
Catalyst Center's internal IPAM Service provides its own internal interface and services.
These are then transformed internally to use external services, as needed.
IP address conflict detection and IP pool reservation is executed internally by the Catalyst Center IPAM Service.
Two third party integration modules are included in Catalyst Center, as shipped,
one for IPAM Provider Infoblox and one for Bluecat.
Other IPAM Providers may be configured for use with Catalyst Center by providing an IPAM Provider REST API service that meets the Catalyst Center IPAM Provider specification.
Workflow
Catalyst Center receives a request to reserve an IP pool or assign an IP address and forwards the request to the Catalyst Center internal IPAM Services module.
Catalyst Center IPAM Services validates the request and checks for overlapping pools or finding the next available subnet.
If configured with an external IPAM Provider, Catalyst Center IPAM Services will request corresponding services from the IPAM Provider and will transform the response back to the Catalyst Center IPAM service caller.
On the event of failure or error, the request will be rolled back and the caller request will be denied.
IPAM Provider Integration Requirements
- Cisco IPAM Provider must provide the complete Cisco IPAM Provider REST API including error handling, as described by this guide.
- Catalyst Center must be version 1.2.6 or later.
Configuration
Third party IPAM Provider configuration is in the Catalyst Center GUI interface.
This may be done during the first-time administrator login wizard, or from the Settings page.
The configuration page can be found at Cisco Catalyst Center: System Settings: IP Address Manager or
at the bottom of the Catalyst Center: System 360 page.
Catalyst Center: System Settings: IP Address Manager - Configuration Values
Configuration a two step process. The first step consists of entering the name, API URL, credentials, and provider type:
Server Name: Enter a useful descriptive label or name for this external provider, used for internal identification only.
Server Url: Enter the full API service URL root, e.g.
https://services.example.com/IPAM/cisco/api.Username, Password: Enter authentication credentials for this IPAM Provider service.
Provider: This is a pull-down selector. Select GENERIC if integrating with an IPAM Service Provider presenting a Cisco IPAM Service Provider API. Select INFOBLOX or BLUECAT if using with one of the pre-installed integration modules.
Once these parameters are entered the Catalyst Center will initiate connection/authentication with a POST '/ipam/token' and then, using the token obtained, issue an API request for a list of 'Views' using the GET '/ipam/view'.
The IPAM provider must provide at least one 'View'. A 'View' can be thought of as discreet definition or configuration spaces. (They are called 'Views' in the INFOBLOX UI and 'Configurations' in the BLUECAT UI.)
Once one or more Views are obtained, the View list will be displayed as a selector in the IPAM configuration page. The second step is selection of a single View.
- View: Select a single View to complete the IPAM Provider configuration.
When the IPAM Provider integration is confirmed by the Catalyst Center a success system message is displayed in the UI and the IPAM Provider is displayed in the Catalyst Center in the System 360 tab.
For more information see section
Configure System Settings: Configure an IP Address Manager in the Cisco Catalyst Center Administrator Guide for your release version.
(Cisco Catalyst Center Maintain and Operate Guides.)