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Netdot turns a Linux server into a central record of your switches, routers, links, addresses, and physical connections. Install its documented Perl, database, and Apache stack; add devices with controlled SNMP credentials; run topology discovery; enrich records with site and cabling details; then schedule rediscovery so the documentation follows network changes. Netdot 1.0.8 is the release identified by its manual, while the public repository’s latest visible commit is dated January 27, 2021, so validate every installation step on your distribution before deploying it in production.
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What Netdot documents and how it is built
The Netdot project describes itself as “an open source tool designed to help network administrators collect, organize and maintain network documentation.” Its documented feature set covers SNMP-based device discovery, Layer 2 topology, IPv4 and IPv6 address management, address visualization, IP/MAC tracking, cable-plant records, contacts, exports, and role-based access control.
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Think of Netdot as an inventory system backed by discovery data, not as a replacement for every monitoring or configuration-management platform. It can provide the authoritative inventory and address data that other systems consume, while operators use the web interface or automation scripts to correct information that protocols cannot reveal.
The four parts of a Netdot deployment
| Part | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Database | Stores devices, interfaces, addresses, links, contacts, locations, and historical discovery data. MySQL is fully supported in the documented release; PostgreSQL support is described as partial. |
| Perl back-end libraries | Implement Netdot’s data model and discovery logic. The libraries can also be used as an API by other code. |
| HTML::Mason web interface | Provides the browser-based screens for entering devices, reviewing discovery results, editing records, and managing users. |
| Command-line scripts | Run discovery, topology collection, pruning, exports, and scheduled updates without an interactive browser session. |
The manual identifies version 1.0.8 and carries 2018 copyright metadata. The repository’s latest visible commit is January 27, 2021. Those dates matter when you assess operating-system compatibility, dependency versions, and security review: the documentation does not establish support for current Ubuntu or other modern distributions.
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Plan the Linux server before installing
Use a dedicated or tightly controlled Linux host that can reach every management interface you intend to discover. Netdot needs network access to SNMP agents and, if you use its generated files or integrations, access to the systems that consume those files.
- Operating system: Debian or Ubuntu follows the project’s
make apt-installpath; RPM-based systems usemake rpm-install. Distribution-specific package names and newer Perl dependencies may require adjustment. - Database: Prefer MySQL for the documented release because it is fully supported there. PostgreSQL is only partially supported according to the manual.
- Web server: Apache is configured with one of the supplied authentication templates.
- Privileges: Installation and package steps require administrative privileges. Runtime jobs need permission to read Netdot’s configuration and write its generated output.
- SNMP access: Prepare read-only credentials where possible, define which subnets may poll them, and verify that firewalls permit the required SNMP traffic.
- Backups: Back up the database and the Netdot configuration before enabling automated pruning or large imports.
The manual includes special patch instructions for Ubuntu 16.04. Treat those instructions as historical guidance rather than proof that an up-to-date Ubuntu release is supported; test the complete stack in a staging host first.
Install Netdot from the project source
The source repository is available at https://github.com/cvicente/Netdot.git. The sequence below follows the project’s documented workflow. Exact database credentials, Apache paths, and package names depend on your distribution, so use the manual’s corresponding installation section when a step asks for site-specific values.
- Clone the source and enter it.
git clone https://github.com/cvicente/Netdot.git
cd Netdot - Install the platform prerequisites. On Debian or Ubuntu, run the project target with the required privileges:
make apt-install
On an RPM-based distribution, ensuremakeis installed and run:make rpm-install - Check dependencies before configuring the site.
make testdeps
This reports missing Perl modules and other prerequisites without assuming that every package name is identical across distributions. - Install missing modules. Use the project’s dependency target where appropriate:
make installdeps
If your distribution packages some modules under different names, install the individual CPAN modules identified bymake testdepsinstead of repeatedly forcing a failed bulk install. - Create the site configuration.
cp etc/Default.conf etc/Site.conf
Editetc/Site.conffor the database connection, filesystem locations, web path, authentication choices, and other values that are specific to your server. Keep this file protected because it contains operational settings that automation will use. - Create and initialize the database. Follow the project manual’s database installation steps for the selected backend, then place the resulting connection details in
etc/Site.conf. Confirm that the Netdot database user can create or update the schema before moving on to Apache. - Configure Apache. Select the supplied local, RADIUS, Kerberos, or LDAP template that matches your authentication plan. Include or enable that configuration in Apache, check the syntax, reload the service, and make sure the configured
/netdot/path reaches the Netdot application.
Do not skip the dependency test after changing distribution packages. A server can have a working Perl interpreter while still missing a module that only fails when discovery or an export runs.
Sign in securely and establish ownership
Open the configured /netdot/ URL after Apache is running. The manual documents an initial admin login and explicitly instructs administrators to change that password immediately after the first login. Do this before importing any device or exposing the service beyond the administration network.
Create accounts and roles that match actual responsibilities. Keep broad administrative rights for a small number of trusted operators; use narrower operator or regular-user permissions for people who only need to inspect records or edit a defined class of data. Test a non-administrator account in a private browser session so you know which changes it can and cannot make.
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Add switches, routers, and other SNMP devices
Use the web interface for a small initial set
In the web UI, go to Management → Devices and enter the hostname or IP address, SNMP community, owner, user, location, and contacts. Save the record and run discovery. Start with one representative switch and one router so you can verify credentials, naming, interface data, and topology behavior before importing an entire network.
Use a read-only SNMP community whenever the device supports it. If a device uses SNMPv3 or a non-default context, confirm that the Netdot release and its underlying modules support the authentication and privacy settings you intend to use; the documented workflow specifically shows a community value, so do not assume every newer SNMP feature is covered.
Choose the command-line import that matches the job
| Use case | Documented command form | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| One device | updatedevices.pl -H <device-name> -I -c <community> |
Validate a new device or rerun discovery after correcting credentials. |
| An IP subnet | updatedevices.pl -B 192.168.1.0/24 |
Process a defined address block rather than typing hosts individually. |
| A text inventory | updatedevices.pl -E <text-file> -I |
Import a prepared list when hostnames or addresses already exist in another inventory. |
The script also has modes for retrieving ARP caches and switch forwarding tables. Use those collection modes after basic device discovery succeeds; they provide different evidence from interface polling and are especially useful when tracing which endpoint appeared on which switch port.
Run a single-device test first and inspect the resulting interfaces, IP addresses, DNS behavior, and neighbor information in the record. If the hostname resolves to the wrong management address, correct DNS or enter the intended address explicitly before scaling the command to a subnet.
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Construct a topology map from multiple evidence sources
Netdot does not infer every cable from one protocol. Its topology discovery can combine CDP or LLDP neighbor announcements, spanning-tree information, switch forwarding tables, and router point-to-point subnets. Each source answers a different question:
- CDP/LLDP: Provides an explicit neighbor relationship when both devices advertise compatible discovery information.
- Spanning tree: Helps identify Layer 2 paths and blocked or alternate links on participating switches.
- Forwarding tables: Show which switch port learned a MAC address, helping associate an endpoint or downstream switch with a port.
- Router point-to-point subnets: Reveal routed links that may not appear as a Layer 2 neighbor relationship.
Run topology discovery
Use the command-line topology option -T after the relevant devices have current interface and neighbor data. Add --recursive when you want Netdot to follow unknown neighbors discovered during the run and attempt to bring them into the inventory. Recursive discovery can expand quickly, so restrict SNMP reachability and review the resulting device list after the first run.
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When a link is still missing, inspect whether both ends were discovered, whether the relevant protocol is enabled, and whether the forwarding table was collected at the right time. A topology gap is often an evidence problem rather than a drawing problem: a device with no current SNMP data cannot contribute a reliable neighbor record.
Correct what protocols cannot see
Enrich the device and interface records with location, contacts, interface descriptions, jacks, modules, IP information, and DNS behavior. Netdot also permits manually fixed neighbors when discovery cannot detect a link, such as a passive patch panel or a device that does not advertise a supported protocol.
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Use Netdot for IP address and service documentation
Netdot’s IPAM covers both IPv4 and IPv6. Organize hierarchical address blocks, visualize allocations, and use IP/MAC tracking to connect addresses with observed hardware. Enter the ownership, location, and contact information that your operations team needs to answer “who uses this address?” without consulting a separate spreadsheet.
Netdot can generate BIND DNS and ISC DHCPD configuration files. Treat those files as generated artifacts: review them, validate them with the target service’s own checker, and deploy them through your existing change-control process rather than allowing an unreviewed cron job to overwrite production configuration.
Export inventory to monitoring and configuration systems
Netdot can export or generate data for Nagios, Sysmon, RANCID, Cacti, and SmokePing. The useful pattern is to make Netdot the maintained inventory and address record, then let each downstream system consume the subset it needs:
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| Consumer type | Netdot data that helps | Operational benefit |
|---|---|---|
| Monitoring | Device names, interfaces, addresses, and roles | Reduces hand-maintained host and service lists. |
| Configuration backup | Device inventory and management addresses | Gives backup jobs a current target list. |
| Graphing and latency checks | Interfaces, links, and endpoint addresses | Provides consistent inputs for traffic and reachability tools. |
| DNS and DHCP services | IPAM allocations and associated names | Generates service configuration from documented assignments. |
Keep ownership clear: a generated monitoring file is an output, while the device and address record in Netdot is the source that must be corrected when reality changes.
Automate rediscovery without overloading the network
The project’s sample cron strategy retrieves forwarding and ARP tables, rediscovers devices and topology, prunes old data, exports text documentation, and generates configurations for external systems. The manual gives this example hourly job:
0 * * * * root /usr/local/netdot/bin/updatedevices.pl -DIFAT
Treat that line as a starting point, not a universal interval. Polling frequency should reflect the number of devices, SNMP response time, switch CPU limits, WAN latency, and the maintenance window available for exports. A small lab may tolerate hourly full collection; a large or fragile network may need staggered jobs.
Stage automation safely
- Run the exact command interactively as the account that cron will use and record its output.
- Schedule discovery before pruning so a temporary SNMP outage does not make valid records look abandoned.
- Use
--matchingto restrict updates to a device-name pattern while testing a new site or device class. - Separate high-cost topology and forwarding-table collection from lightweight inventory refreshes if one combined run exceeds your polling window.
- Archive logs and alert on non-zero exit status, authentication failures, and unusually large changes in device or interface counts.
- Review generated DNS, DHCP, monitoring, and configuration-backup outputs before production deployment.
When devices are added, renamed, or moved, run a targeted update first, then allow the regular schedule to establish the new baseline. This shortens the period in which downstream systems operate with stale inventory.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Use the REST interface for controlled integrations
Netdot documents a REST interface under /rest/. The /rest/devinfo endpoint exposes extensive device information, while /rest/updatedev supports importing devices. Build integrations around the fields your process actually owns and log every write so an automated import can be traced back to its source.
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Authorization is role-sensitive. Administrators can edit or delete generic REST resources; operators and regular users have narrower permissions and purpose-specific editing paths. Test API credentials against a non-production record, grant the smallest role that can perform the required operation, and keep write-capable credentials out of scripts readable by ordinary users.
Troubleshoot the failures you are most likely to meet
The installer reports missing modules
Run make testdeps again and install the named modules with make installdeps or your distribution’s package manager. Avoid assuming that a module’s CPAN name and operating-system package name are identical. Re-run the test after each package change so the remaining failure is visible.
Apache serves an error or the login path is wrong
Check that the selected authentication template is included or enabled, that its filesystem paths match etc/Site.conf, and that Apache’s configuration test passes before reload. Confirm that the browser path is the configured /netdot/ location rather than an unconfigured virtual-host alias.
Discovery returns no interfaces
Verify the management address, community, routing, firewall rules, and the device’s SNMP view. Re-run the one-device command with the same credentials used in the web record. If the device responds to a basic SNMP check but Netdot still records nothing, inspect dependency errors and the script output rather than immediately importing more hosts.
Neighbors or links are missing
Confirm that CDP or LLDP is enabled where appropriate, that both endpoints were discovered, and that forwarding or spanning-tree data was collected. Routed point-to-point links may require the router-subnet evidence instead of Layer 2 data. Use a fixed neighbor only after documenting why protocol evidence is unavailable.
Topology expands beyond the intended site
Recursive mode follows unknown neighbors. Remove --recursive for a bounded run, restrict SNMP reachability with network policy, or use --matching to limit updates while you review the discovered scope.
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Inspect the cron account, executable path, environment, and log output. A schedule that runs but cannot write the database or generated files can look healthy until someone checks the timestamps. Compare discovery counts over several runs and investigate sudden drops before pruning old data.
Operational checklist
- Record the Netdot version, operating-system release, database backend, and Apache authentication method.
- Change the initial
adminpassword and restrict administrative access to trusted networks. - Use read-only SNMP credentials and limit which hosts may poll network infrastructure.
- Back up the database and
etc/Site.confbefore upgrades, imports, or pruning. - Start with representative devices, verify interfaces and links, then expand by subnet or inventory file.
- Keep contact, location, jack, module, and interface-description fields current; discovery cannot supply all physical details.
- Review fixed neighbor relationships whenever equipment or cabling changes.
- Stage REST and generated-file integrations with least-privilege accounts and change review.
- Set cron intervals from measured polling load rather than copying the hourly example unchanged.
- Test upgrades in a disposable host because the documented release and repository activity predate current Linux distributions.
When Netdot is a sensible choice
Netdot is most useful when you need one documented relationship between devices, interfaces, addresses, physical locations, and contacts, and you are prepared to maintain the parts SNMP cannot discover. Its command-line tools make repeatable collection practical, while the web interface gives operators a place to correct and enrich the resulting records.
Adopt it with a defined ownership model: decide who approves device records, who can create fixed links, which system owns DNS or DHCP changes, and how generated exports move into production. With those boundaries in place, Netdot can serve as a durable network documentation source rather than another isolated inventory list.
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