Configuring Configuration Template VLANs - missing

[david_n_m_bond]

I think that the ability to set a Configuration Template VLAN unique subnetted VLAN using cidr and mask is missing from the API.

Please can anyone provide an example of how this is done?

[Ryan_Miles]

Are you trying to configure the VLAN of a MX bound to a template? Or, do you mean you want to configure the template's VLAN config? AFAIK the API can only do basic tasks with regards to templates like list, create, delete, bind, unbind.

[david_n_m_bond]

We have a requirement to automate the creation of the Template VLAN configs for very large networks.

The API should be able to do everything that you can do in the UI.  I know that Meraki wouldn't want Ansible to include a "ask a human to do these 100 steps" task!  And I KNOW the right answer isn't to screen scrape the UI.  I've been there circa 1998 and I don't want to go back.

[Ryan_Miles]

The goal is 100% coverage/parity in UI and API. That's not where we're at today.

[david_n_m_bond]

Understood.  What percentage coverage would you say exists today?

This is core to a project affecting large customer (3000+ device) deployments.  How do we get a prioritized feature request in?

[GreenMan]

I would suggest you contact your Cisco & Meraki partner account team - and also similar for the big customers in question (to get more weight behind your ask).

I can't help thinking also that, if you're wanting to automate your processes using API, why not do that for all the Networks, individually, rather than manipulating Templates via API as an interim step?    I can see you have big customers, which may make a difference, but it's generally the case that people use Templates until they doesn't really do what you need (and most can  keep the number of Templates to a manageable number, where they work ok) but then move solely to API, to manage at scale, if not.

[david_n_m_bond]

Thanks - we will chase the various accounts teams.

I take your point about Config Templates not serving much of a purpose on a fully-orchestrated system.  However, as we migrate to full orchestration and with users still performing some manual steps in the UI, Config Templates are a reality and we need to automate their creation.

Thanks for your help so far - I will leave this as "unresolved" until the API endpoints are added.

[NetworkLarry]

Have you tried to use this endpoint?
https://developer.cisco.com/meraki/api-v1/#!update-network-appliance-vlan

[david_n_m_bond]

Yes, we have tried this and the POST and PUT both require appliance IP and subnet and ignore cidr and mask.

The API is deficient.

[NetworkLarry]

That's because the subnet size is dictated by the template configuration and the network inherits that definition.  You may need to re-think your template definitions.  If you are trying to do a one size fits all template and use variable sized subnets per site, it won't work.  We have regional templates named with suffixes of -Large, -Medium, -Small , and -Tiny configured with corresponding subnet sizes.  We have /16 subnets defined per region that we assign the site subnet blocks for the vlans for each site in our IPAM system and configure the gateway IP's on the appliance vlans.  

I have a Python program I will be updating in the next couple weeks from API V0 to V1 so I will see if V1 handles it differently than V0 did.  In API V0, I was able to update the vlan subnets of a network using the Meraki API package.  

[david_n_m_bond]

Hi @NetworkLarry - any luck updating that script to V1?

[NetworkLarry]

Not yet, other non-programming projects have taken priority.  I tried to work on it last week, but every time I started, I got interrupted.  Hoping this week is better and I can get started on it and finish it. It is the last big program I have that uses APIv0.

[david_n_m_bond]

Replying to my own comment - we may have some progress, here (around line 70):

https://github.com/panoramicdata/Meraki.Api/blob/main/Meraki.Api.Test/ConfigurationTemplateTests.cs