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Batfish

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What Batfish is

Batfish is an open-source tool for analyzing network device configurations and checking whether a network meets policy and behavior requirements. It can examine deployed configurations and validate planned changes before deployment, using configuration files rather than direct access to network devices. Its checks cover undefined references, MTU and AAA settings, and whether devices match specified configuration templates. Security checks can confirm that sensitive services are reachable only from specified subnets or devices, and that traffic follows expected paths. For reliability analysis, Batfish can assess whether end-to-end reachability survives any single-link or single-device failure, and whether services such as DNS are globally reachable. It can compare reachability between current and planned configurations, assess ACL or firewall changes, and check functional equivalence between configurations from different vendors. Pybatfish provides a Python 3 SDK for interacting with the service, and example Jupyter notebooks are available. An all-in-one Docker container includes Batfish and example notebooks. Batfish runs on operating systems that support Docker, with containers actively tested on Mac OS X and Ubuntu 16.04 LTS. Supported configurations span platforms including Arista, AWS, Azure, Cisco, Juniper, and Palo Alto Networks; support for Aruba, Dell Force10, and Foundry is limited. The project directs questions and feature requests to its Slack community or GitHub and includes an Apache License 2.0 license.

Who it suits

Batfish suits network teams that want to check configuration policy, security, and reachability before or after changes without connecting directly to network devices. It is also useful for teams comparing configurations across vendors or validating resilience to a single device or link failure.

What it does well

  • Analyzes configurations without direct access to network devices.
  • Validates planned changes before deployment.
  • Checks security policy and expected traffic paths.
  • Assesses reachability after a single-link or device failure.
  • Includes a Python SDK and example Jupyter notebooks.
  • Open source under the Apache License 2.0.

What to know first

  • Core analysis requires network device configurations.
  • Support is limited for Aruba, Dell Force10, and Foundry.

Limits

Support for Aruba, Dell Force10, and Foundry platforms is limited.

Getting started

  1. Install or run the all-in-one Docker container on an operating system that supports Docker.
  2. Provide the network device configurations for analysis.
  3. Use Pybatfish, or explore the example Jupyter notebooks, to interact with the Batfish service.
  4. For questions or feature requests, contact the project through its Slack community or GitHub.

Verdict

Choose Batfish if you need configuration-based checks for policy, security, change impact, or network resilience. Teams working with Aruba, Dell Force10, or Foundry should account for the project's limited support for those platforms.

Questions

How much does Batfish cost?

Batfish is free and open source.

Does Batfish need direct access to network devices?

No. Core analysis uses network device configurations and does not require direct device access.

What operating systems can run Batfish?

It can run on any operating system that supports Docker. Its containers are actively tested on Mac OS X and Ubuntu 16.04 LTS.

Which network platforms does Batfish support?

Supported configurations include platforms such as Arista, AWS, Azure, Cisco, Juniper, and Palo Alto Networks. Support for Aruba, Dell Force10, and Foundry is limited.

Does Batfish have a Python client?

Yes. Pybatfish is a Python 3 SDK for interacting with the Batfish service.

What license does Batfish use?

The Batfish repository includes an Apache License 2.0 license.

Facts from Batfish's own pages

Change analysis
Batfish can compare current and planned reachability, assess ACL or firewall changes, and test functional equivalence between configurations from different vendors. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Change comparisons
Batfish can compare reachability across current and planned configurations and assess functional equivalence between configurations from different vendors. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Change validation
Batfish can validate planned configuration changes before deployment and deployed configurations as well. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Community support
The project directs users with questions or feature requests to its Slack community or GitHub. · batfish.org, 5 Oct 2026
Configuration checks
Checks include undefined references, settings such as MTU and AAA, and whether devices meet specified configuration templates. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Deployment
The project provides an all-in-one Docker container that includes Batfish and example Jupyter notebooks. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Device access
Core analysis requires network device configurations and does not require direct access to network devices. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Failure analysis
Batfish can check whether end-to-end reachability is preserved after any single-link or single-device failure. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Integrations
The maker documents Ansible modules for extracting and validating configuration facts and asserting network behavior in playbooks. · batfish.org, 5 Oct 2026
License
Batfish is released under the Apache Software License, Version 2.0. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Operating systems
Batfish can run on any operating system that supports Docker; its containers are actively tested on Mac OS X and Ubuntu 16.04 LTS. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Pre-deployment checks
Batfish can validate configuration changes before deployment to help ensure only correct changes are deployed. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Purpose
Batfish analyzes network device configurations to find policy violations and validate network behavior. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Python client
Pybatfish is a Python SDK for interacting with the Batfish service. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Reliability analysis
Batfish can check reachability after single-link or single-device failures and whether services such as DNS are globally reachable. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Security analysis
Checks can verify that sensitive services are reachable only from specified subnets or devices and that traffic follows expected paths. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Security checks
Supported checks include verifying that sensitive services are reachable only from specified subnets or devices. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Support
The maker directs users with questions or feature requests to its Slack community or GitHub repository. · batfish.org, 5 Oct 2026
Supported configurations
Documented support includes Arista, AWS, Azure, Cisco, Juniper, Palo Alto Networks, and other network platforms; Aruba, Dell Force10, and Foundry have limited support. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Supported devices
Supported configurations include vendors and platforms such as Arista, AWS constructs, Cisco, Juniper, Palo Alto Networks, and SONiC. · batfish.readthedocs.io, 5 Oct 2026
Supported environments
Batfish can run on operating systems that support Docker; its containers are actively tested on Mac OS X and Ubuntu 16.04 LTS. · github.com, 5 Oct 2026
Support limitation
Batfish has limited support for Aruba, Dell Force10, and Foundry platforms. · batfish.readthedocs.io, 5 Oct 2026

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