Building AI Agents for Network Operations: Design LLM-powered NetOps workflows with Python, Ollama, MCP, and tool calling
Paperback
General ComputersNetworkingProgramming
ISBN13: 9781808346835
Publisher: Packt Publishing
Published: Jul 29 2026
Pages: 226
Weight: 0.87
Height: 0.48 Width: 7.50 Depth: 9.25
Language: English
Build AI-assisted network troubleshooting workflows that parse CLI output, call approved tools, use MCP, and keep evidence visible for review
Key Features:
- Build local LLM workflows for NetOps using Python, Ollama, and validated CLI data
- Create troubleshooting agents that use memory, approved tools, and clear evidence
- Package reusable network tools with MCP and plan controlled read-only pilots
Book Description:
Network troubleshooting is full of clues, but they are often buried in noisy alerts, long CLI output, missing topology context, and incomplete handoffs. Building AI Agents for Network Operations shows how to use AI agents, LLMs, and network automation in a controlled way, so engineers can get clearer evidence without giving up validation or operational control.
You will start with local LLM workflows using Ollama and Python, then use a simple RACE prompt structure to make repeatable NetOps tasks clearer, safer, and easier to review. You will parse interface and BGP output into structured data, build a chatbot that keeps troubleshooting context, and connect the model to approved tools for device status, interfaces, reachability, topology, and BGP health. You will then build an agentic troubleshooting loop, package reusable network tools with MCP, and learn how to evaluate these workflows against logging, approvals, observability, runbooks, feature flags, and read-only pilot readiness.
By the end of this book, you will have a practical path for turning AI ideas into NetOps workflows that can be tested in a lab, reviewed by your team, and adapted toward real-world network operations with the right controls.
What You Will Learn:
- Run local LLM workflows with Ollama and Python
- Shape reliable NetOps prompts using RACE
- Parse CLI and BGP output into structured JSON
- Build chatbots that remember troubleshooting context
- Connect AI agents to approved network tools
- Create evidence-based troubleshooting loops
- Expose reusable network tools with MCP
- Plan read-only pilots with safety controls
Who this book is for:
This book is for network engineers, NetOps engineers, NOC engineers, SREs, DevOps engineers, and network automation professionals who want to apply AI to troubleshooting without losing control. Basic networking and CLI familiarity will help, beginner Python knowledge is useful for following the labs.
Table of Contents
- Understanding AI Agents for Network Operations
- LLM Fundamentals and Local Setup
- Prompt Engineering for Network Automation
- Parsing Network Outputs into Structured Data
- Building a Network Chatbot with Memory
- Designing Tools and Agentic Workflows
- Building the Main Network Troubleshooting Agent
- From Lab Agents to Reusable Tools with MCP
- Moving Toward Production-Ready Network Agents
- Appendix: AI Network Agent Design Toolkit
Also in
General Computers
All Data Are Local: Thinking Critically in a Data-Driven Society
Loukissas, Yanni Alexander
Paperback
Comptia Network+ Certmike: Prepare. Practice. Pass the Test! Get Certified!: Exam N10-008
Chapple, Mike
Zacker, Craig
Paperback
Interactive Theorem Proving and Program Development: Coq'art: The Calculus of Inductive Constructions
Bertot, Yves
Castéran, Pierre
Hardcover
Seven Databases in Seven Weeks: A Guide to Modern Databases and the Nosql Movement
Redmond, Eric
Wilson, Jim
Perkins, Luc
Paperback
R for Data Science: Import, Tidy, Transform, Visualize, and Model Data
Grolemund, Garrett
Wickham, Hadley
Paperback
The Reverse Centaur's Guide to Life After AI: How to Think about Artificial Intelligence--Before It's Too Late
Doctorow, Cory
Paperback
Designing Data-Intensive Applications: The Big Ideas Behind Reliable, Scalable, and Maintainable Systems
Kleppmann, Martin
Riccomini, Chris
Paperback
If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies: Why Superhuman AI Would Kill Us All
Yudkowsky, Eliezer
Soares, Nate
Hardcover
AI for Good: How Real People Are Using Artificial Intelligence to Fix Things That Matter
Tyrangiel, Josh
Hardcover
The Year in Tech, 2026: The Insights You Need from Harvard Business Review
Anthony, Scott D.
Webb, Amy
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
Human Raised: Nurturing Connection, Curiosity & Lifelong Learning in the Age of AI
Suskind, Dana, MD
Hardcover
Hbr's 10 Must Reads on AI (with Bonus Article How to Win with Machine Learning by Ajay Agrawal, Joshua Gans, and AVI Goldfarb)
Review, Harvard Business
Davenport, Thomas H.
Iansiti, Marco
Paperback
A Giant Leap: How AI Is Transforming Healthcare and What That Means for Our Future
Wachter, Robert
Hardcover
The Agi Chronicles: The Inside Story of the Race to Create an Artificial Superintelligence
Roose, Kevin
Hardcover
The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech's Hype and Create the Future We Want
Bender, Emily M.
Hanna, Alex
Hardcover
Generative Ai: The Insights You Need from Harvard Business Review
Cremer, David De
Review, Harvard Business
Mollick, Ethan
Paperback
CompTIA Network+ Certification All-in-One Exam Guide, Ninth Edition (Exam N10-009)
Weissman, Jonathan S.
Paperback
Fans First: Change The Game, Break the Rules & Create an Unforgettable Experience
Cole, Jesse
Paperback
AI Literacy in Any Class: Preparing Students to Thrive in an AI Future in Any Grade Level or Content Area
Miller, Matt
Paperback
Fundamentals of Data Engineering: Plan and Build Robust Data Systems
Reis, Joe
Housley, Matt
Paperback
Atlas of AI: Power, Politics, and the Planetary Costs of Artificial Intelligence
Crawford, Kate
Paperback
Minecraft: Guide Collection 4-Book Boxed Set (Updated): Survival (Updated), Creative (Updated), Redstone (Updated), Combat
The Official Minecraft Team
Mojang Ab
Hardcover
AI Snake Oil: What Artificial Intelligence Can Do, What It Can't, and How to Tell the Difference
Kapoor, Sayash
Narayanan, Arvind
Paperback
Python Crash Course, 3rd Edition: A Hands-On, Project-Based Introduction to Programming
Matthes, Eric
Paperback
We Are as Gods: A Survival Guide for the Age of Abundance
Kotler, Steven
Diamandis, Peter H.
Hardcover
AI with Intention: Principles and Action Steps for Teachers and School Leaders
Frontier, Tony
Paperback
Hands-On Machine Learning with Scikit-Learn and Pytorch: Concepts, Tools, and Techniques to Build Intelligent Systems
Géron, Aurélien
Paperback
Human + Machine, Updated and Expanded: Reimagining Work in the Age of AI
Daugherty, Paul R.
Wilson, H. James
Hardcover
The Eureka Machine: Why AI Is the Key to Unlocking a New Era of Scientific Discoveries
Socher, Richard
Hardcover
Artificial Intelligence: A Guide for Thinking Humans (with a New Preface)
Mitchell, Melanie
Paperback
The Thinking Machine: Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the World's Most Coveted Microchip
Witt, Stephen
Hardcover
Hands-On Large Language Models: Language Understanding and Generation
Grootendorst, Maarten
Alammar, Jay
Paperback
The Black Swan: Second Edition: The Impact of the Highly Improbable: With a New Section: On Robustness and Fragility
Taleb, Nassim Nicholas
Paperback
Embedded Systems with ARM Cortex-M Microcontrollers in Assembly Language and C: Fourth Edition
Zhu, Yifeng
Paperback
Tubes: A Journey to the Center of the Internet with a New Introduction by the Author
Blum, Andrew
Paperback
The Empty Center: Permission, Connection, and What We Build When the Future is Uncertain
Drumwright, Hayes
Hardcover
CompTIA Tech+ Certification All-in-One Exam Guide, Third Edition (Exam FC0-U71)
Wempen, Faithe
Paperback
Fundamentals of Software Architecture: A Modern Engineering Approach
Richards, Mark
Ford, Neal
Paperback
Power and Prediction: The Disruptive Economics of Artificial Intelligence
Gans, Joshua
Goldfarb, Avi
Agrawal, Ajay
Hardcover
AI Projects with Raspberry Pi: High-Performance Artificial Intelligence for Robotics, Security, Home Automation, and Vision
Hattersley, Lucy
Jepson, Brian
Paperback
AP Computer Science a Premium, 13th Edition: Prep Book with 6 Practice Tests + Comprehensive Review + Online Practice (2026)
Carman, Chris
Teukolsky, Roselyn, M. S.
Paperback
Minecraft: Exploded Builds: Medieval Fortress: An Official Mojang Book
Mojang Ab
The Official Minecraft Team
Paperback
AP Computer Science Principles Premium, 2027: 6 Practice Tests + Comprehensive Review + Online Practice
Reichelson, Seth
Paperback
Love Machines: How Artificial Intelligence Is Transforming Our Relationships
Muldoon, James
Hardcover
AI Snake Oil: What Artificial Intelligence Can Do, What It Can't, and How to Tell the Difference
Kapoor, Sayash
Narayanan, Arvind
Hardcover
You Look Like a Thing and I Love You: How Artificial Intelligence Works and Why It's Making the World a Weirder Place
Shane, Janelle
Paperback
Minecraft: Roll for Adventure: The Temple of the Charged Creeper
Forbeck, Matt
Forbeck, Marty
Hardcover
The AI Ultimatum: Preparing for a World of Intelligent Machines and Radical Transformation
Hill, Paul
Brown, Steve
Paperback
You to the Power of Two: Redefining Human Potential in the Age of Identic AI
Bradley, Joseph
Tapscott, Don
Hardcover
The Devops Handbook, 2nd Edition: How to Create World-Class Agility, Reliability, & Security in Technology Organizations
Kim, Gene
Humble, Jez
Debois, Patrick
Paperback
Artificial Intelligence All-In-One for Dummies
Massaron, Luca
Minnick, Chris
Mueller, John Paul
Paperback
The Empty Center: Permission, Connection, and What We Build When the Future is Uncertain
Drumwright, Hayes
Paperback
The Death of Expertise: The Campaign Against Established Knowledge and Why It Matters
Nichols, Tom
Paperback
The Problem with Personalization: How Advertisers Learned to Make and Break Us from Ancient Times to the AI Age
Turow, Joseph
Hardcover
The Fourth Intelligence Revolution: The Future of Espionage and the Battle to Save America
Vinci, Anthony
Hardcover
Designing Machine Learning Systems: An Iterative Process for Production-Ready Applications
Huyen, Chip
Paperback
AI for Educators: Learning Strategies, Teacher Efficiencies, and a Vision for an Artificial Intelligence Future
Miller, Matt
Paperback
RHCSA Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10: Training and Exam Preparation Guide (EX200), Fourth Edition
Ghori, Asghar
Paperback
Graphic Artists Guild Handbook, 17th Edition: Pricing & Ethical Guidelines
The Graphic Artists Guild
Paperback
The Technological Republic: Hard Power, Soft Belief, and the Future of the West
Zamiska, Nicholas W.
Karp, Alexander C.
Hardcover
More Human: How the Power of AI Can Transform the Way You Lead
Hougaard, Rasmus
Carter, Jacqueline
Hardcover
Building Applications with AI Agents: Designing and Implementing Multiagent Systems
Albada, Michael
Paperback
Microsoft 365 Excel All-In-One for Dummies
Ringstrom, David H.
Alexander, Michael
Kusleika, Dick
Paperback
The Experimentation Machine: Finding Product-Market Fit in the Age of AI
Bussgang, Jeffrey J.
Hardcover
The Coming Wave: Technology, Power, and the Twenty-First Century's Greatest Dilemma
Suleyman, Mustafa
Hardcover
What Is Intelligence?: Lessons from AI about Evolution, Computing, and Minds
Aguera Y. Arcas, Blaise
Paperback
Hbr's 10 Must Reads on Artificial Intelligence, Updated and Expanded (Featuring How AI Can Help Managers Think Through Problems by Elisa Farri and Gab
Review, Harvard Business
Davenport, Thomas H.
Agrawal, Ajay
Paperback
Navigeren door het labyrint: Een handleiding voor het beheer van data
Sebastian-Coleman, Laura
Paperback
Prediction Machines, Updated and Expanded: The Simple Economics of Artificial Intelligence
Gans, Joshua
Goldfarb, Avi
Agrawal, Ajay
Hardcover
Comptia A+ Complete Study Guide, 2-Volume Set: Volume 1 Core 1 Exam 220-1201 and Volume 2 Core 2 Exam 220-1202
Buhagiar, Jon
Docter, Quentin
Paperback
Speak Data: Artists, Scientists, Thinkers, and Dreamers on How We Live Our Lives in Numbers
Lupi, Giorgia
Cox, Phillip
Paperback
A Whole New Human: Ten Ways We Must Evolve to Survive and Thrive in the AI Age
Rydall, Derek
Hardcover
On the Future of Species: Authoring Life by Means of Artificial Biological Intelligence
Woolfson, Adrian
Hardcover
R for Data Science: Import, Tidy, Transform, Visualize, and Model Data
Wickham, Hadley
Grolemund, Garrett
Cetinkaya-Rundel, Mine
Paperback
Laptops for Seniors in Easy Steps, 9th Edition: Covers All Laptops with the Windows 11 2024 Update
Vandome, Nick
Paperback
