'Show Run' Script with Bryan Dufresne | Learn To Code With AI Course

Ever wanted someone to handhold you through a script? This is that video. In this informal conversation with Bryan Dufresne, a network engineer, and Erika Dietrick, a software engineer, we walk you through Bryan's script that pulls the 'show run' and 'show ver' of a group of switches. You'll learn how what we've covered in the course so far applies to a real world automation example, how we think through solving problems programmatically, where AI fits into the picture, and more. IN THIS VIDEO... 00:20 - Why we're doing this video / introducing Bryan 01:17 - Introducing the script: pulling "show run" & "show ver" from multiple switches 03:40 - Choosing libraries, where to import them 05:19 - Handling credentials 07:24 - Organizing your script 07:55 - More on handling credentials 08:30 - Prepping connection to netmiko, using variables 10:54 - Advice for learning netmiko 12:14 - AI code suggestions in your developer environment 13:44 - Handling sensitive info in networking 14:04 - Pulling data from a CSV 14:40 - Writing to files 21:53 - Establishing a connection to each switch 22:39 - Using a 'for' loop to apply logic to multiple switches 24:18 - When your code is "bad" 25:47 - How Bryan refactored his code 30:55 - Why did Bryan write this? How much automation knowledge did he have prior? 32:19 - What role did AI play in writing this script and in Bryan's automation journey in general? 36:07 - Given the time, how would you add to or improve upon this script? 37:20 - Using a virtual environment in Python 39:33 - The resulting script output!! 40:32 - Securely prompt for passwords with 'getpass' 41:48 - Mindset for figuring out what to automate 47:01 - Where to follow Bryan's work LINK TO CODE https://github.com/y-bry/python_for_neteng/tree/main BRYAN'S LINKEDIN https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryan-dufresne/ COURSE DESCRIPTION Network engineers need automation skills, but learning to code is boring, time-consuming, and abstract. Right? ...In this YouTube course, I teach coding skills in the age of AI and ever-pressing cybersecurity threats, leveraging the many conversations and insights I gained as a former developer advocate at Cisco Systems. After all... the greatest barrier I've seen to automation outreach efforts is the blatant overlooking of the glaringly obvious: many network engineers just don't know how to code yet (or how to solve problems with code), and they don't have the right resources to get them there. This course is not for showboating my skills; it's for practically addressing coding skills in a way that's not off-putting and leaves you eager to continue learning. Piggybacking off of DEVNET-2720, my most recent Cisco Live presentation, I've initially divided this course into 3 levels: Level 1: Foundational skills (critical thinking skills) you NEED to know before using AI Level 2: Guided AI use and instructions to drastically speed up your learning journey Level 3: Guided code generation using AI coding assistants, including the do's and the don'ts In a currently drafted and undisclosed Level 4, I'll start guiding you through more advanced content HOW TO SUPPORT [[ contact via LinkedIn/TikTok/Substack DMs ]] 🔁 SHARE these videos to help us unlock fan monetization on YouTube 🙋‍♂️ VOLUNTEER to be a guest in one of her coding videos (both novice & expert welcome) 📖 SUBSCRIBE to Substack on underdiscussed tech topics 🎤 HOST Erika on your podcast to promote her free coding courses 🤝 HIRE Erika to teach workshops at your company or university LinkedIn: / erikadietrick TikTok: / erika_thedev Substack: https://erikathedev.substack.com/ ABOUT THE YOUTUBER ERIKA DIETRICK is a software engineer, technical content creator, and former Developer Advocate at Cisco Systems in North Carolina, USA. Her six years of experience ranges from network to software engineering across Fortune 100s and startups alike; she has found herself in the cybersecurity space for most of that time. She holds CCNA and DevNet Associate certifications as well as a Master of Software Engineering from East Carolina University. You can follow her on most social media platforms @erika_thedev.