Arista Programming Essentials (APE)


Course Content

Everyone in networking should learn to program, but they don’t necessarily need to be a developer. This course is designed to get networking people up to speed on Python, with a focus on Arista’s eAPI, so that they can write useful automation scripts in a short period of time.

This is an intensive course that aims to get students writing Python code in order to use eAPI to automate Arista switches. Code that they can actually use in the real world. The class is filled with hands-on labs writing scripts that the students will be able to take home with them. This is not a “go to college to learn everything about Python so I can be a developer” class. This is a “Give me a twoday cram-session so that I can write some scripts for my Arista switches” class.

Written and taught by Gary A. Donahue (author of Network Warrior and Arista Warrior as well as Lead Trainer at Arista), this class will give you just the edge you need in the modern world of network automation.

Who should attend

Network engineers, network operators, and network administrators who are interested in understanding the programming behind Arista switches.


A basic knowledge of programming in any language (yes, even BASIC) is required, no matter how long ago you learned it. As a test, students must understand the following question:

Q. Given the following statement, in almost any programming language, what will be the value of the variable b? a = b = c = ‘Arista’

A. The answer is ‘Arista’ because statements are evaluated from right to left, so the following is what happens:

  • c is assigned the value ‘Arista’ (A literal string)
  • b is assigned the value contained in c (‘Arista’)
  • a is assigned the value contained in b (‘Arista’)

This simple flow of logic is not covered in the class because it is a basic programming concept. If this seems confusing, you may be better served taking an introduction to programming class before attempting this class.

Outline: Arista Programming Essentials (APE)


  • Python Overview
  • Data Types
  • User Input and Time
  • Pretty Python
  • Program Flow
  • Functions, Modules, and Packages
  • File I/O
  • Exception Handling
  • Miscellaneous Topics
  • Example Screen Scraping


  • Understanding eAPI
  • Using eAPI
  • pyeapi



Online Training

Duration 2 days

  • US$ 1,995
Classroom Training

Duration 2 days

  • United States: US$ 1,995
Click City Name To Book Schedule
This is an Instructor-Led Classroom course
United States

