Cisco Modeling Labs (CML) has lengthy been the go-to platform for community engineers, college students, and builders to design, simulate, and take a look at community topologies in a digital atmosphere. With the discharge of Cisco Modeling Labs model 2.9, we’re excited to introduce some new options that improve its capabilities, providing flexibility, scalability, and ease of use.
Containers: A game-changer for community simulation
One of the compelling new options in CML 2.9 is the power to combine Docker containers. Beforehand, CML was restricted to digital machines (VMs), reminiscent of IOS-XE and Catalyst 9000. Now you may add light-weight, optimized node sorts that devour fewer assets, so you may construct bigger and extra various labs.
CML 2.9 ships with 10 pre-built container pictures, together with:
- Browsers: Chrome and Firefox for in-lab internet entry.
- Routing: Free-Vary Routing (FRR), a light-weight, open-source routing machine supporting OSPF and different protocols.
- Community Companies: Dnsmasq, Syslog, Netflow, Nginx, Radius, and TACACS+ for important community capabilities.
- Utilities: Internet-tools (filled with 20+ community instruments like T-shark and Nmap) and a ThousandEyes agent for monitoring.
This opens up a complete new world of prospects, permitting you to simulate complicated situations with specialised instruments and companies straight inside your CML topology. As a result of containers are light-weight and resource-efficient, you may run extra companies with out a heavy influence on system efficiency. Plus, you’ve gotten the pliability to create and combine your personal customized container pictures from DockerHub or different sources.
Containers in CML combine seamlessly with VM nodes, permitting you to attach them throughout the similar community topology and allow full bidirectional communication. As a result of containers use considerably much less CPU, reminiscence, and disk than VMs, they begin sooner and allow you to run extra nodes on the identical {hardware}. For big CML labs, use containers and clustering for optimum efficiency. Containers are light-weight, making it attainable to scale labs effectively by working companies or routing capabilities that don’t require a full VM.
How can I share labs with different customers?
For groups and academic environments, CML 2.9 introduces a extra fine-grained permission system. As a lab proprietor or system admin, now you can share labs with different customers, giving collaborators entry to work on shared tasks or studying actions. This characteristic enables you to transfer past the fundamental learn/write entry obtainable in earlier variations. The brand new permission ranges embody:
- View: Permits customers to see the lab however prevents any state adjustments or edits
- Exec: Grants permission to view and work together with the lab; as an illustration, you can begin and cease nodes
- Edit: Allows customers to change the lab, reminiscent of transferring, including, or deleting nodes and altering configurations
- Admin: Provides you full entry to the lab, in addition to permits you to share the lab with different customers
This enhanced management streamlines collaboration, making certain customers have precisely the suitable degree of entry for his or her duties.
→ See product documentation for particulars on setup and use.
How does node disk picture cloning work?
Uninterested in repeatedly configuring customized nodes on your labs? Node disk picture cloning in CML 2.9 resolves this challenge. When you’ve custom-made a node’s configuration or made particular edits, now you can clone that node’s disk picture and reserve it as a brand new picture sort. This implies sooner lab setup for incessantly used gadgets and configurations, saving you priceless time.
Node disk picture cloning is great for saving time in lab setup whenever you’ve modified a node, reminiscent of Ubuntu, so as to add further instruments and wish to create a brand new node sort that has those self same instruments put in.
How do I handle labs utilizing the exterior labs repository and Git integration?
CML 2.9 introduces Git integration, permitting you to straight tie your CML occasion to an exterior Git repository. This characteristic adjustments the way you entry and handle pattern labs. As a substitute of manually downloading and importing particular person lab recordsdata, now you can present a repository URL, and CML will sync the content material, making it obtainable below the Pattern Labs menu.
Cisco offers a set of pattern labs on the CML Neighborhood GitHub on the Cisco DevNet website, together with certification-aligned labs (reminiscent of CCNA), which might be imported with a single click on.
This characteristic additionally permits you to add Git repositories (reminiscent of GitLab and Bitbucket), empowering you to handle your personal lab content material seamlessly.
CML helps any Git-based repo, however authentication for personal repos will not be supported. We’ve added some CCNA labs, and we’re working to combine extra superior certification content material, reminiscent of CCNP, into the pattern labs repositories. Offline customers will get a pre-synced snapshot at set up.
What are different new CML 2.9 enhancements?
Past the numerous new options, CML 2.9 consists of these enhancements:
- Elevated scalability: The restrict of concurrently working nodes has risen from 320 to 520.
- Internet framework substitute (FastAPI): The product now makes use of FastAPI as its new API internet framework, leading to improved supportability, sooner API efficiency, enhanced documentation, and improved validation.
- API assist for bulk operations: Simplify your automation efforts with new API capabilities that permit for bulk operations, reminiscent of fence-selecting and deleting teams of nodes with a single API name.
- Allow all node definitions by default: This quality-of-life enchancment permits you to import all labs by default, no matter whether or not a specific node and picture definition can be found in your system.
- Customized font for terminal home windows: Now you can configure customized fonts on your console terminal home windows to match your most well-liked CLI expertise.
- IP tackle visibility: Now you can view the assigned IP addresses for interfaces linked to an exterior NAT connector.
Discover the ability of CML 2.9
CML 2.9 underscores our dedication to delivering a state-of-the-art community simulation platform. As we increase its capabilities and discover additional container orchestration, superior lab automation, and new API developments, we encourage our group to contribute to the rising library of pattern labs on our DevNet GitHub repository. And we’re working to make including new node sorts even simpler sooner or later.
Able to discover the ability of CML 2.9? Obtain it now to check out these new options right this moment.
Go away a remark beneath and tell us what you suppose!
📣 Cisco Modeling Labs 2.9 is now obtainable!
Rise up to hurry on the most recent adjustments: https://t.co/kW2gpvVmaP#CML
— Cisco Modeling Labs (@CiscoVIRL) July 21, 2025
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