quick-start-simunet.md

SimuNet Quick Start Guide

This guide will help you quickly get started with NetDriver SimuNet service.

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Installation
  • Prepare
  • Configuration
  • Option 1: Install via PyPI
  • Option 2: Install via Docker
• Connecting to Simulated Devices
• Next Steps

Introduction

SimuNet is a network device simulator that emulates SSH terminal behavior of real network devices. It's designed for:

• Automated Testing: Test automation scripts without real hardware
• Development and Debugging: Develop and test new plugins safely
• Demonstrations and Training: Provide simulated environments for demos

Key Features

• Multi-Vendor Support: Emulates devices from Cisco, Huawei, Juniper, and more
• Easy Setup: Simple YAML configuration for device definitions
• Plugin-Based: Uses the same plugin system as the Agent
• Realistic Behavior: Emulates device prompts, modes, and command responses
• High Performance: AsyncSSH-based SSH server for multiple simultaneous connections

Installation

Prepare

Create and enter a directory for running simunet. Then:

1. Create Configuration Directory

mkdir -p config/simunet logs

2. Download Default Configuration File

curl -o config/simunet/simunet.yml https://raw.githubusercontent.com/OpenSecFlow/netdriver/master/config/simunet/simunet.yml

Configuration

The SimuNet configuration file is located at config/simunet/simunet.yml:

logging:
  level: INFO
  log_file: logs/simunet.log

devices:
  - vendor: cisco          # Vendor
    model: nexus          # Model
    version: 9.6.0        # Version
    port: 18020           # SSH port

  - vendor: huawei
    model: usg
    version: V500R001C10
    port: 18022

  - vendor: juniper
    model: srx
    version: 12.0
    port: 18028

The downloaded sample configuration includes all device types currently supported by SimuNet. You can remove devices that are not needed.

Configuration Explanation

1. Device Parameters:

   • vendor: Device vendor (must match plugin vendor name)
   • model: Device model (must match plugin model name)
   • version: Device version (for plugin selection)
   • port: SSH port for this simulated device

2. Logging Configuration:

   • level: Log level (INFO, DEBUG, TRACE)
   • log_file: Path to log file

Important Notes:

• Each device must have a unique port
• Vendor and model must match an available plugin
• Port range 18020-18100 is recommended to avoid conflicts

Choose one of the following installation methods:

Option 1: Install via PyPI

Prerequisites

• Python 3.12 or higher
• pip (Python package installer)

Installation Steps

1. Install NetDriver SimuNet Package

pip install netdriver-simunet

2. Verify Installation

python -c "import netdriver.simunet; print('NetDriver Agent installed successfully')"

Run

uvicorn netdriver.agent.main:app --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8001

Option 2: Install via Docker

Prerequisites

• Docker 20.10 or higher
• Docker Compose (optional)

Using Docker Run

docker run -d \
  --name netdriver-simunet \
  -p 18020-18040:18020-18040 \
  -v $(pwd)/config:/app/config \
  -v $(pwd)/logs:/app/logs \
  ghcr.io/opensecflow/netdriver/netdriver-simunet:latest

Because simunet will listen on a port for a kind of device, So the docker need mapping a range of ports. You can also using docker host network mode instead maping a range of ports.

Docker instance run usign host network mode

docker run -d \
  --name netdriver-simunet \
  --network host \
  -v $(pwd)/config:/app/config \
  -v $(pwd)/logs:/app/logs \
  ghcr.io/opensecflow/netdriver/netdriver-simunet:latest

Check log

Run tail command to check logs

tail -f logs/simunet.log

Connecting to Simulated Devices

Using SSH Client

You can connect to simulated devices using any SSH client:

# Connect to Cisco Nexus simulated device
ssh admin@localhost -p 18020

username and passowrd can be any string

After successful connection, you can execute commands as you would on a real device:

Next Steps

Now that you have SimuNet running, you can set up NetDriver Agent to connect to SimuNet