itential-automation

name	itential-automation
description	Itential Automation Platform (IAP) — network automation orchestration, device configuration management, compliance enforcement, workflow execution, golden config, lifecycle management, and gateway services via 65+ MCP tools. Use when automating network changes through Itential, running compliance plans, deploying golden configs, or orchestrating IAP workflows
license	Apache-2.0
user-invocable	true
metadata	{"openclaw":{"requires":{"bins":"[Truncated]","env":"[Truncated]"}}}

Itential Automation Platform

MCP Server

Field	Value
Repository	itential/itential-mcp
Transport	stdio (default), SSE, HTTP
Python	3.10+ (supports 3.10, 3.11, 3.12, 3.13)
Dependencies	fastmcp, ipsdk>=0.7.0, python-toon, wsproto
Install	pip install itential-mcp
Entry Point	itential-mcp run
Auth	Basic (user/pass), OAuth 2.0, JWT
Container	ghcr.io/itential/itential-mcp:latest

Environment Variables

Required

Variable	Purpose
ITENTIAL_MCP_PLATFORM_HOST	IAP hostname or IP address
ITENTIAL_MCP_PLATFORM_USER	Username for platform authentication
ITENTIAL_MCP_PLATFORM_PASSWORD	Password for platform authentication

Optional

Variable	Default	Purpose
ITENTIAL_MCP_PLATFORM_PORT	443	Platform connection port
ITENTIAL_MCP_PLATFORM_TIMEOUT	30	Request timeout (seconds)
ITENTIAL_MCP_PLATFORM_DISABLE_TLS	false	Disable TLS to platform
ITENTIAL_MCP_PLATFORM_DISABLE_VERIFY	false	Skip certificate verification
ITENTIAL_MCP_SERVER_TRANSPORT	stdio	Transport type (stdio/sse/http)
ITENTIAL_MCP_SERVER_LOG_LEVEL	INFO	Log verbosity
ITENTIAL_MCP_SERVER_TOOLS_PATH	—	Custom tools directory

---

Tools by Category

Platform Health (1 tool)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_health	—	Comprehensive platform health: status, system, server, applications, adapters (5 parallel API calls)

Configuration Manager — Devices (4 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_devices	—	List all devices known to the platform with connection details
get_device_configuration	name	Fetch the current running configuration from a device
backup_device_configuration	name, description?, notes?	Create a config backup with optional metadata; returns backup ID
apply_device_configuration	device, config	Deploy configuration commands to a target device

Configuration Manager — Compliance (3 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_compliance_plans	—	List all compliance plans (config validation rules for org standards)
run_compliance_plan	name	Execute a compliance plan against devices; returns pass/fail results
describe_compliance_report	report_id	Detailed compliance report: rule violations, device status, config analysis

Configuration Manager — Device Groups (4 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_device_groups	—	List all device groups with member devices
create_device_group	name, description?, devices?	Create a new device group for bulk operations
add_devices_to_group	name, devices	Add devices to an existing group
remove_devices_from_group	name, devices	Remove devices from a group

Configuration Manager — Golden Config (3 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_golden_config_trees	—	List all Golden Configuration trees with versions
create_golden_config_tree	name, device_type, template?, variables?	Create a new Golden Config tree with Jinja2 template
add_golden_config_node	tree_name, name, version?, path?, template?	Add a hierarchical config node to a tree

Configuration Manager — Inventory (5 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_inventories	—	List all inventories with node counts
describe_inventory	name	Inventory details: groups, actions, tags, nodes with attributes
create_inventory	name, groups, description?, devices?	Create a new inventory with groups and optional devices
add_nodes_to_inventory	inventory_name, nodes	Bulk add nodes with connection attributes and tags
delete_inventory	name	Permanently remove an inventory

Configuration Manager — Templates (1 tool)

Tool	Parameters	Description
render_template	template, variables?	Render a Jinja2 template string with variables

Operations Manager — Workflows (5 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_workflows	—	List all enabled workflow API endpoints with input schemas
start_workflow	route_name, data?	Execute a workflow by route; returns job ID, tasks, status, metrics
get_jobs	name?, project?	List workflow execution instances with status and timing
describe_job	object_id	Full job details: tasks, status, metrics, timestamps
expose_workflow	name, route_name?, project?, endpoint_name?, endpoint_description?, endpoint_schema?	Create an API endpoint trigger to expose a workflow

Automation Studio — Command Templates (6 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_command_templates	—	List all command templates from global space and projects
describe_command_template	name, project?	Detailed template info including commands and validation rules
run_command_template	name, devices, project?	Execute a command template against devices with rule evaluation
run_command	cmd, devices	Execute a single CLI command across multiple devices
create_command_template	name, commands, project?, description?, os?, pass_rule?, ignore_warnings?	Create a template with commands and validation rules (<!variable!> syntax)
update_command_template	name, commands, project?, description?, os?, pass_rule?, ignore_warnings?	Update an existing command template

Automation Studio — Templates (4 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_templates	template_type?	List all templates, optionally filtered by type (textfsm/jinja2)
describe_template	name, project?	Template details: content, sample data, type, group, command
create_template	name, template_type, group, project?, command?, template?, sample_data?	Create a new TextFSM or Jinja2 template
update_template	name, project?, command?, template?, sample_data?	Update existing template (partial update supported)

Automation Studio — Projects (2 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_projects	—	List all Automation Studio projects
describe_project	name	Project details including component types, folders, references

Lifecycle Manager (7 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_resources	—	List all resource models with descriptions
create_resource	name, schema, description?	Create a resource model with JSON Schema definition
describe_resource	name	Resource details including lifecycle actions and input schemas
get_instances	resource_name	List all instances of a resource model
describe_instance	resource_name, instance_name	Instance details: data, last action, state
run_action	resource_name, action_name, instance_name?, instance_description?, input_params?	Execute a lifecycle action; returns job ID and status
get_action_executions	resource_name, instance_name	Execution history: timestamps, status, before/after states

Adapters (4 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_adapters	—	List all adapters with name, version, state
start_adapter	name, timeout?	Start a stopped adapter; waits for RUNNING state
stop_adapter	name, timeout?	Stop a running adapter; waits for STOPPED state
restart_adapter	name, timeout?	Restart a running adapter (use start_adapter for stopped ones)

Applications (4 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_applications	—	List all applications with name, version, state
start_application	name, timeout?	Start a stopped application
stop_application	name, timeout?	Stop a running application
restart_application	name, timeout?	Restart a running application

Gateway Manager (3 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_services	—	List all services with name, cluster, type, description
get_gateways	—	List connected gateways with status
run_service	name, cluster, input_params?	Execute a gateway service; returns stdout, stderr, return code, timing

Integrations (3 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_integrations	model?	List integration instances, optionally filtered by model
get_integration_models	—	List all integration models with version info
create_integration_model	model	Create an integration model from OpenAPI spec

Workflow Engine — Metrics (6 tools)

Tool	Parameters	Description
get_job_metrics	—	Aggregate job metrics across all workflows
get_job_metrics_for_workflow	name	Job metrics filtered by workflow name
get_task_metrics	—	Comprehensive task metrics across all workflows
get_task_metrics_for_workflow	name	Task metrics filtered by workflow name
get_task_metrics_for_app	name	Task metrics filtered by application name
get_task_metrics_for_task	name	Metrics for a specific task across all workflows

Dynamic Tool Bindings

The server also supports dynamically registered tools:

• Endpoint bindings — Expose IAP workflow triggers as MCP tools via ITENTIAL_MCP_TOOL_<NAME>_TYPE=endpoint
• Service bindings — Expose Gateway Manager services as MCP tools via ITENTIAL_MCP_TOOL_<NAME>_TYPE=service

---

Workflows

1. Platform Health Check

get_health → assess status/system/server/applications/adapters health
→ get_adapters → check for DEAD/STOPPED adapters
→ get_applications → check for stopped applications
→ Report overall platform status → GAIT

2. Device Configuration Audit

get_devices → inventory all managed devices
→ get_device_groups → understand grouping strategy
→ get_compliance_plans → list org compliance rules
→ run_compliance_plan(plan_name) → execute against devices
→ describe_compliance_report(report_id) → review violations
→ Severity-sort findings → GAIT

3. Golden Config Deployment

get_golden_config_trees → review available configs
→ get_devices → select target devices
→ render_template(jinja2_template, variables) → preview config
→ backup_device_configuration(device) → baseline before change
→ apply_device_configuration(device, rendered_config) → deploy
→ get_device_configuration(device) → verify post-change
→ GAIT

4. Workflow Orchestration

get_workflows → discover available automations
→ get_projects → review Automation Studio projects
→ start_workflow(route_name, data) → trigger execution
→ describe_job(object_id) → monitor progress and tasks
→ get_job_metrics_for_workflow(name) → performance analysis
→ GAIT

5. Command Template Execution

get_command_templates → list available templates
→ describe_command_template(name) → review commands and rules
→ get_device_groups → select target group
→ run_command_template(name, devices) → execute with rule evaluation
→ Review per-device results → GAIT

6. Lifecycle Resource Management

get_resources → discover resource models
→ describe_resource(name) → review lifecycle actions and schemas
→ get_instances(resource_name) → list existing instances
→ run_action(resource, action, instance, params) → execute lifecycle action
→ get_action_executions(resource, instance) → verify execution history
→ GAIT

7. Integration Model Onboarding

get_integration_models → review existing integrations
→ create_integration_model(openapi_spec) → register new model
→ get_integrations(model) → verify instance created
→ GAIT

---

Integration with Other Skills

Skill	Integration
pyats-network	Use Itential command templates to run structured commands; compare pyATS parsed output with Itential compliance results
pyats-config-mgmt	Itential golden config as the desired state; pyATS for pre/post verification; ServiceNow for CR gating
netbox-reconcile	Itential inventories reflect NetBox source of truth; compliance plans validate against NetBox-defined intent
nautobot-sot	Same as NetBox — cross-reference Itential device inventory with Nautobot IPAM data
infrahub-sot	Cross-reference Infrahub schema-driven nodes with Itential device groups and inventories
servicenow-change-workflow	Gate all Itential config deployments behind ServiceNow Change Requests
gait-session-tracking	Every Itential workflow execution, config push, and compliance run logged in GAIT
fmc-firewall-ops	Itential workflows can orchestrate firewall policy changes validated by FMC search
nso-device-ops	Itential as the orchestration layer on top of NSO for multi-vendor service deployment
te-network-monitoring	Validate network health via ThousandEyes after Itential config deployments
aws-network-ops	Itential workflows for hybrid network automation spanning on-prem and AWS
gcp-compute-ops	Itential lifecycle management for resources spanning on-prem and GCP

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Tag-Based Tool Filtering

Itential MCP supports tag-based filtering to restrict which tools are exposed:

Tag	Tools	Use Case
health	1	Platform monitoring
configuration_manager	15	Device config, compliance, golden config, templates, inventories
operations_manager	5	Workflow execution and job management
automation_studio	12	Command templates, projects, device commands, TextFSM/Jinja2 templates
lifecycle_manager	7	Resource models, instances, lifecycle actions
workflow_engine	6	Job and task performance metrics
adapters	4	Adapter lifecycle management
applications	4	Application lifecycle management
gateway_manager	3	Gateway and service operations
integrations	3	Integration model management

Use --include-tags to restrict to specific categories or --exclude-tags to hide experimental tools.

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Itential vs Other Orchestration Platforms

Capability	Itential IAP	Cisco NSO	Ansible
Focus	Full lifecycle automation orchestration	Network service orchestration	Config management + ad-hoc tasks
Device Management	Inventory, groups, config backup/push	CDB, device sync, NED-based	Inventory, groups, playbooks
Compliance	Built-in compliance plans + reports	Custom via templates	Custom via assert/compliance roles
Golden Config	Hierarchical tree-based with versioning	Config templates via services	Jinja2 templates in roles
Workflow Engine	Visual workflow builder + API triggers	Service deployment plans	Playbooks + AWX/Tower
Lifecycle Mgmt	Resource models with action schemas	Service lifecycle via FASTMAP	Roles with tags
MCP Tools	65+ tools across 10 categories	5 tools (devices + services)	N/A
Integration	OpenAPI-based integration models	NED packages	Modules + collections
Gateway	Gateway Manager for distributed execution	LSA for distributed NSO	Execution environments

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Guardrails

• Gate config deployments — All apply_device_configuration calls must be preceded by a ServiceNow Change Request in Implement state
• Always backup first — Call backup_device_configuration before any apply_device_configuration
• Verify after deployment — Call get_device_configuration after applying changes to confirm they took effect
• Compliance before and after — Run run_compliance_plan pre- and post-change to verify compliance posture
• Record in GAIT — Every workflow execution, config push, compliance run, and template operation must be logged
• Adapter health awareness — Check get_adapters for DEAD or STOPPED adapters before attempting device operations
• Case-sensitive names — Workflow names, device names, template names, and plan names are all case-sensitive in the IAP API