An Empirical Evaluation of Automated Configuration Tools for Software-Defined Networking: A Usability and Performance Perspective

Abstract

The advent of Software Defined Networking (SDN) has ushered in an era where the functions of interconnected devices are no longer constrained by their original design. Instead, these devices, now transformed into "general-purpose" nodes within the network, have roles that are defined by their configuration settings. Given that these configurations can be compiled into a computer file, software tools have been developed to consolidate and automate the administration of configuration parameters across all devices in an SDN network. These tools, akin to source code control tools used in programming languages, are capable of managing configurations for individual or groups of devices simultaneously. This study presents an evaluation of three such tools-Ansible, Puppet, and Chefassessing their merits and demerits across various performance and usability dimensions, including configuration, installation, ease of use, and management capabilities. The comparative analysis reveals Ansible as a remarkably versatile tool, offering a wealth of advantages that make it a compelling choice for a majority of automation and configuration management tasks.