NetBox Enterprise Overview

Overview

NetBox Enterprise is a self-hosted NetBox distribution built by NetBox Labs for organizations deploying NetBox in their own infrastructure. It provides a streamlined installation and upgrade experience through an embedded Kubernetes cluster, along with enterprise-grade features and professional support.

Key Benefits:

• Simplified Deployment: Fully managed installer handles Kubernetes cluster setup and NetBox deployment
• Enterprise Features: Advanced capabilities including SSO authentication, LDAP/SAML integration, plugin management, and backup/restore
• Professional Support: Access to NetBox Labs engineering team for technical assistance
• Flexible Architecture: Use embedded components or integrate with external PostgreSQL, Redis, and S3-compatible storage
• Automated Updates: Simplified upgrade process through admin console
• Production Ready: Battle-tested deployment architecture used by enterprise customers

Key Concepts:

• Embedded Cluster: Self-contained Kubernetes cluster (k0s distribution) deployed and managed by the installer
• Admin Console: Web-based management interface (KOTS) for configuration and upgrades on port 30000
• Diode: Data ingestion service for automated network discovery and reconciliation
• Embedded Components: Bundled PostgreSQL (CrunchyData operator), Redis, and OpenEBS storage
• External Integration: Connect to external PostgreSQL, Redis, and S3-compatible storage
• Replicas: Multiple NetBox and worker instances for load distribution (limits based on license tier)

Architecture

NetBox Enterprise uses an embedded Kubernetes cluster architecture that provides production-grade infrastructure with minimal configuration:

Component Options

NetBox Enterprise provides flexibility in choosing between embedded and external components:

Component	Embedded Option	External Option	When to Use External
PostgreSQL	CrunchyData Postgres Operator	AWS RDS, Cloud SQL, managed PostgreSQL	Existing managed databases (requires 3 databases: netbox, diode, hydra)
Redis	Redis with Sentinel (single instance by default, scales with multi-node)	AWS ElastiCache, managed Redis	Existing managed caching infrastructure
Object Storage	Local persistent volume	AWS S3, MinIO, DigitalOcean Spaces	Required for multi-node/HA deployments
Kubernetes	Embedded k0s cluster	N/A	Embedded cluster required

Diode Data Ingestion

Diode is the data ingestion service bundled with NetBox Enterprise. It enables automated network discovery and reconciliation by accepting data from external sources and applying it to NetBox through a changeset workflow.

Architecture

Diode consists of several components:

Component	Purpose
Ingester	Receives data via gRPC (port 443) from external sources and SDKs
Reconciler	Compares ingested data against current NetBox state and creates changesets
Reconciler Pro	Enhanced reconciler with additional data mapping capabilities
Auth	Handles authentication for Diode API access
Hydra	OAuth2 provider for Diode service-to-service authentication

How It Works

1. External sources send data to the Diode Ingester via gRPC on port 443
2. The Ingester validates and queues incoming data
3. The Reconciler compares ingested data with the current NetBox state
4. Changesets are created for any differences found
5. If diode_auto_apply_changesets is enabled, changesets are applied automatically; otherwise, they require manual review in NetBox

Database Requirements

Diode requires two additional databases beyond the main NetBox database:

• diode — stores ingestion state and changeset data
• hydra — stores OAuth2 tokens and client credentials

When using the embedded PostgreSQL, these databases are created automatically. When using an external PostgreSQL instance, all three databases (netbox, diode, hydra) must be provisioned.

Configuration

Diode is enabled by default in NetBox Enterprise. The key configuration option is:

• Auto Apply Changesets (diode_auto_apply_changesets): When enabled, changesets created by Diode are applied to NetBox automatically without manual review. Disabled by default.

This setting is available in the Admin Console under Config.

Scaling and License Tiers

NetBox Enterprise supports horizontal scaling of application and worker replicas. The maximum number of replicas depends on your license tier:

License Tier	NetBox Replicas	Worker Replicas
Starter	1	1
Professional	1–4	1–4
Premium	1–8	1–8

Replica counts are configured per node — in multi-node deployments, the total replicas scale with the number of nodes.

Resource Presets

NetBox Enterprise provides resource presets to match different workload requirements. Select a preset in the Admin Console under Config > Resources.

Preset	NetBox CPU (req/limit)	NetBox Memory (req/limit)	Worker CPU (req/limit)	Worker Memory (req/limit)
Regular	200m / 1000m	750Mi / 1500Mi	100m / 1000m	128Mi / 1500Mi
Large	500m / 2000m	1500Mi / 3000Mi	250m / 2000m	256Mi / 3000Mi
Extra Large	1000m / 4000m	3000Mi / 6000Mi	500m / 4000m	512Mi / 6000Mi
2x Large	2000m / 8000m	6000Mi / 12000Mi	1000m / 8000m	1024Mi / 12000Mi

Choose a larger preset if you experience out-of-memory errors on worker pods or need to process large Git repository syncs. See Troubleshooting for guidance.

Deployment Scenarios

Production Deployment

Recommended for production NetBox Enterprise deployments:

• Use Case: Production NetBox instance
• Resources: 8 vCPU, 24 GB RAM, 100 GB SSD
• Components: Embedded PostgreSQL and Redis, or external managed services
• Replicas: 2 or more NetBox application replicas (Professional or Premium tier)
• Backup: Regular database backups configured

Development and Testing

Recommended for non-production environments:

• Use Case: Development, staging, or testing
• Resources: 4 vCPU, 16 GB RAM, 50 GB SSD
• Components: All embedded components
• Replicas: 1 NetBox replica
• Backup: Optional

Getting Started

To deploy NetBox Enterprise, follow this process:

1. Review Requirements: Check system requirements for your distribution

   • Ubuntu requirements
   • RHEL requirements
   • Linux system changes

2. Prepare Your Host: Configure firewall, disable swap, load kernel modules

3. Install NetBox Enterprise: Follow the installation guide

4. Configure NetBox: Use Admin Console to configure superuser, replicas, database, and authentication

5. Deploy and Verify: Deploy NetBox and verify access on ports 80/443

6. Migrate Data (Optional): Import existing NetBox data using the migration guide

7. Configure Plugins (Optional):

   • Enable built-in plugins
   • Install custom plugins

8. Configure Authentication (Optional):

   • SAML SSO
   • Azure AD SSO
   • OIDC SSO
   • LDAP

Support and Documentation

• Installation Issues: See troubleshooting guide
• Technical Support: Contact your NetBox Enterprise support representative
• Release Information: Review release notes before upgrading
• Backup and Recovery: Configure database backups