gh-phaezer-claude-mkt-plugins-networking/commands/review-network-config.md

description, argument-hint

description	argument-hint
Review network configurations for errors and best practices	Optional configuration files or paths

You are initiating a comprehensive network configuration review using a structured workflow to identify errors, validate best practices, and provide improvement recommendations.

Workflow Steps

1. Gather Configuration Information

If the user provides configuration files or paths, use those directly. Otherwise, ask the user for:

Configuration Files:

• File paths to review or paste configuration content directly
• Configuration type (interfaces, netplan, FRR, SONiC, vendor-specific)
• Multiple files if reviewing a complete setup

Review Scope:

• Target environment (production, staging, development, lab)
• Criticality level (mission-critical, business-critical, standard)
• Specific concerns or focus areas
• Known issues to investigate

Context Information:

• Network architecture type (data center, campus, branch, etc.)
• Scale (number of devices, interfaces, routes)
• Existing vs. new deployment
• Recent changes (if troubleshooting)

2. Launch network-architecture-reviewer Agent

Use the Task tool to launch the network-architecture-reviewer agent with a detailed prompt:

Review the following network configuration files for errors and best practices:

Configuration Type: [interfaces/netplan/FRR/SONiC/etc.]
Environment: [production/staging/lab]
Criticality: [mission-critical/business-critical/standard]

Configuration Files:
[Paste configuration content or provide file paths]

Please perform a comprehensive review including:

1. Syntax Validation
   - Check for configuration syntax errors
   - Validate proper formatting and indentation
   - Identify typos and common mistakes

2. Logical Validation
   - Verify IP addressing scheme (no conflicts, proper subnetting)
   - Check routing logic and gateway configurations
   - Validate interface relationships
   - Confirm VLAN and network segmentation

3. Best Practices Assessment
   - Evaluate against industry standards
   - Check for recommended practices
   - Assess scalability and maintainability
   - Review documentation quality

4. Common Pitfalls and Anti-patterns
   - Identify single points of failure
   - Check for routing loops or suboptimal routing
   - Look for security vulnerabilities
   - Find performance bottlenecks

5. Recommendations
   - Prioritize issues by severity (Critical, High, Medium, Low)
   - Provide specific corrective actions
   - Suggest improvements and optimizations
   - Include relevant documentation references

Focus areas (if specified): [user-specified concerns]

3. Analyze Review Output

When the agent returns the review, organize findings by:

• Critical Issues: Must fix before deployment
• High Priority: Should fix soon
• Medium Priority: Fix when convenient
• Low Priority: Nice-to-have improvements

4. Create Issue Report

Structure the review findings in a clear report format:

Executive Summary:

• Overall assessment (Ready/Needs Work/Major Issues)
• Total number of issues by severity
• Top 3-5 critical findings
• Recommendation (Deploy/Fix and Review/Major Rework)

Detailed Findings: For each issue:

[SEVERITY] Category: Issue Title

Location: <file>:<line> or <section>

Description:
<Clear description of what's wrong>

Impact:
<Potential consequences if not fixed>

Current Configuration:
<Show problematic configuration snippet>

Recommended Fix:
<Specific corrective action with example>

Reference:
<Link to documentation or best practice guide>

5. Validate Findings

Review the findings for accuracy:

• Verify each issue is actually a problem in context
• Check that recommendations are appropriate for the environment
• Ensure fixes won't introduce new issues
• Validate that all critical items are caught

6. Provide Remediation Plan

Create a prioritized remediation plan:

Immediate Actions (Critical - Fix Before Deployment):

1. Issue description and fix
2. Estimated time to fix
3. Testing required

Short-term Actions (High Priority - Fix Within 1 Week):

1. Issue description and fix
2. Estimated time to fix
3. Testing required

Medium-term Actions (Medium Priority - Fix Within 1 Month):

1. Issue description and fix
2. Estimated time to fix
3. Testing required

Long-term Improvements (Low Priority - Plan for Future):

1. Enhancement description
2. Benefits
3. Effort estimate

7. Include Validation Commands

Provide commands to validate each fix:

For Interface Configurations:

# Debian/Ubuntu /etc/network/interfaces
sudo ifup --no-act <interface>
sudo ifquery <interface>

# Netplan
sudo netplan --debug try
sudo netplan generate

# Verify after applying
ip addr show
ip route show

For FRR Configurations:

# Validate configuration syntax
sudo vtysh -f /etc/frr/frr.conf --dry-run

# Check after applying
sudo vtysh -c "show running-config"
sudo vtysh -c "show ip bgp summary"
sudo vtysh -c "show ip ospf neighbor"

For SONiC Configurations:

# Validate JSON syntax
python3 -m json.tool config_db.json
jq . config_db.json

# Check after applying
show running-config
show interfaces status
show ip bgp summary

8. Document Best Practices

Include best practices reference for the configuration type:

General Networking:

• No conflicting default gateways
• Proper subnet sizing with growth room
• Consistent naming conventions
• Comprehensive documentation
• Version control for configurations

Routing:

• Authentication on routing protocols
• Route filtering and summarization
• Appropriate protocol selection for scale
• Redundant paths where needed
• Convergence time considerations

High Availability:

• Eliminate single points of failure
• Redundancy protocols (VRRP, LACP, etc.)
• Fast failover mechanisms (BFD)
• Tested failure scenarios

Security:

• Management network isolation
• Encrypted management protocols (SSH, not Telnet)
• ACLs for traffic control
• Logging and monitoring configured
• Regular security updates

Review Categories and Checks

Configuration Syntax and Correctness

For /etc/network/interfaces:

• Valid syntax and indentation
• Loopback interface configured
• Proper use of auto/allow-hotplug
• Valid IP addresses and CIDR notation
• No gateway conflicts
• Required packages documented (vlan, bridge-utils, etc.)

For Netplan:

• Valid YAML syntax (spaces, not tabs)
• version: 2 specified
• Correct renderer choice
• Valid CIDR notation
• Proper interface naming
• No conflicting gateways

For FRR:

• Valid daemon configuration
• Correct routing protocol syntax
• Proper route-map and prefix-list definitions
• Valid BGP/OSPF configuration
• Authentication configured

For SONiC:

• Valid JSON syntax
• Required sections present (DEVICE_METADATA)
• Correct interface naming for platform
• Valid feature configuration

Network Design Best Practices

IP Addressing:

• No IP address conflicts or overlaps
• Appropriate subnet sizing
• RFC1918 private addressing used correctly
• Loopback addresses configured
• DHCP vs static appropriate for use case

Routing:

• No routing loops
• Appropriate routing protocol
• Route summarization where applicable
• Route filtering configured
• Redistribution done correctly

High Availability:

• Redundant paths configured
• Bonding/teaming properly configured
• Gateway redundancy (VRRP/HSRP)
• Fast failover (BFD) configured
• Acceptable convergence time

Scalability:

• Design supports growth projections
• Efficient routing protocol usage
• Proper network segmentation
• VLAN design is scalable
• Capacity planning considered

Performance Considerations

• MTU configured appropriately (jumbo frames if needed)
• Link speeds set correctly
• QoS/traffic shaping configured
• Buffer sizes appropriate
• TCP optimization if needed

Operational Considerations

Documentation:

• Clear comments in configuration
• Design decisions documented
• Rollback procedures defined
• Contact information included

Maintainability:

• Consistent naming conventions
• Logical organization
• Modular structure
• Version control friendly

Monitoring:

• Logging configured
• SNMP community strings secure
• Syslog destinations configured
• Interface descriptions present

Common Issues and Fixes

Critical Issues

Multiple Default Gateways:

Problem: Multiple interfaces with gateway defined
Impact: Unpredictable routing behavior
Fix: Remove gateway from secondary interfaces, use static routes instead

IP Address Conflicts:

Problem: Same IP on multiple interfaces or duplicate IPs in network
Impact: Network connectivity failures
Fix: Use unique IPs, implement IPAM system

Routing Loops:

Problem: Routes pointing back to same router
Impact: Packet loops, network outage
Fix: Correct routing table, use route filtering

Invalid Syntax:

Problem: Configuration file won't parse
Impact: Configuration won't apply
Fix: Correct syntax errors, validate before applying

High-Risk Issues

Missing Route Filtering:

Problem: No prefix lists on BGP sessions
Impact: Route leaks, blackhole traffic
Fix: Implement strict prefix filtering

No Redundancy:

Problem: Single path to critical resources
Impact: Outage if link/device fails
Fix: Add redundant links, use bonding/LACP

Weak Security:

Problem: Telnet, HTTP, SNMPv1/v2c enabled
Impact: Security vulnerabilities
Fix: Use SSH, HTTPS, SNMPv3 only

Best Practices Reference

Interface Configuration

• Use descriptive interface descriptions
• Configure appropriate MTU for network type
• Enable only required protocols
• Document interface purpose and connections

Routing Protocols

• OSPF: Use area 0 as backbone, proper area design
• BGP: Implement route filtering, use prefix lists
• IS-IS: Proper NET addressing, level hierarchy
• All: Use BFD for fast failure detection

Network Segmentation

• Separate management from data plane
• Use VLANs for logical separation
• Implement proper inter-VLAN routing
• Document VLAN purposes

Output Format

The review report should include:

1. Executive Summary (1 page)

   • Overall assessment
   • Issue count by severity
   • Key recommendations
   • Deploy/no-deploy decision

2. Detailed Findings (detailed pages)

   • Each issue with severity, location, description
   • Impact analysis
   • Recommended fixes with examples

3. Positive Observations

   • Good practices found
   • Correct implementations
   • Thoughtful design decisions

4. Remediation Roadmap

   • Prioritized action items
   • Fix procedures
   • Testing requirements
   • Timeline estimates

5. Validation Commands

   • Commands to test each fix
   • Expected outputs
   • Verification procedures

Notes

• Review is advisory - final decisions rest with network team
• Consider environment context (lab vs production)
• Balance technical perfection with operational reality
• Provide constructive, actionable feedback
• Include references to official documentation
• Test recommendations before applying to production

Example Task Invocation

review-network-config Please review my FRR BGP configuration for a data center leaf switch. Config file is at /etc/frr/frr.conf and I'm seeing some routes not being advertised to spine neighbors. Environment is production, mission-critical.