What is Live Network Context?

NetBrain’s continuously refreshed model of your network’s device state, topology, and path, spanning physical, cloud, and virtual infrastructure (the context-aware digital twin). It reflects what the network looks like right now, and the goals of the network, not a static diagram or inferred model.

How is this different from a periodic network snapshot?

Baseline topology and device state refresh on a configurable schedule, daily is typical, so you’re never working from a snapshot that’s gone stale between refreshes. On top of that, any workflow that needs current data, diagnosis, a change, a path check, pulls it fresh from the network the moment it runs, rather than waiting for the next scheduled cycle.

Does NetBrain support Kubernetes and multi-cloud environments?

Yes. Device and topology coverage extends across hybrid and multi-cloud platforms alongside Kubernetes overlays, as part of the same model used for on-premises infrastructure.

What is the One-IP Table?

A single, continuously refreshed shareable source of truth for every IP, MAC, and switch port across the network, used for incident response, change-impact analysis, and baseline comparison.

What is Application Path, and how does it use Dynatrace?

Application Path maps business-application experience from APMs such as Dynatrace onto the network path it depends on, so app and network teams work from the same picture.

How is Live Network Context different from a digital twin?

Live Network Context is the full model, including current network state built from live data at the moment of use. The context-aware digital twin is the baseline layer inside it, the versioned topology and device configuration that live path and state data get layered onto. The defined goals and spec of the network (or intent) are the goals, policies, industry best practices, design and architecture that guide how your Network is meant to operate. Combined, these comprise Live Network Context which is a reference kept current with what’s happening on the network.

Live Network Context

Every agent decision, every governed change, and every network map draws on one thing: a live model of your hybrid, multi-vendor network. Live Network Context is how NetBrain builds that model and keeps it current, layer by layer.

Network Topology and Device Discovery

NetBrain builds an on-demand, live model of your end-to-end hybrid network, layering fresh data pulled the moment of action onto a baseline that refreshes on a configurable schedule.

Device:
configuration, utilization, and software version for every device, physical, virtual, or cloud, from any vendor, kept current on a scheduled baseline and refreshed on demand the moment an action needs it.
Topology:
switching and routing detail across underlay, overlay, and virtual cloud paths, spanning physical, virtual, cloud, and software-defined infrastructure, built from a continuously maintained baseline rather than a single static scan.
SDN/SDx Network Operations:
software-defined networks are first-class citizens in NetBrain’s live network context, not an afterthought. ACI, NSX, Cisco SD-WAN, Viptela, VeloCloud, and the broader SDx category are modeled with the same depth as traditional infrastructure — topology, path, configuration, intent, and change governance all apply. ACI tenant, application, EPG, and contract topology is visible alongside the physical underlay.
One-IP Table:
a single source of truth for every IP, MAC, switch port, and device-specific detail in NetBrain’s live network context. Through automated discovery and the Visual Parser, NetBrain builds and refreshes the table on a scheduled baseline: merging entries from multiple sources, keying on interface instance, and comparing against prior state so any change is visible.It tracks every IP, maps it to its true L2/L3 gateway, and resolves cloud, load balancer, and endpoint IPs.
Incident response:
automatically determines the L2/L3 devices for an IP during a service disruption.
AI-powered troubleshooting:
Deep Diagnosis uses the One-IP Table to draw maps, trace paths, and launch diagnostics.
Change validation:
locates every path and device an IP traverses or touches, for accurate change impact analysis.
Baseline comparison:
flags any IP or MAC that has shifted gateway, port, or VLAN since the last discovery snapshot.
Kubernetes workloads, service meshes, and network policies show up in the same topology as the cloud network underneath them, in one map, not a separate tool.
Broad multi-vendor coverage across hybrid and multi-cloud environments, extending into the vendors most tools skip.

A network that changes constantly needs a model that keeps up, not memorized once and left to drift. Build it by importing existing config and CLI data, or by discovering the live network directly.

Live Network State Capture

NetBrain captures the control plane, data plane, and management plane at the same time, across your hybrid and multi-cloud network, not one inferred from another. That’s the difference between a network state an agent can act on, and one you have to double-check first.

Baseline refresh runs on a configurable schedule your team controls, daily is typical. Live data is pulled fresh from the network the moment a workflow triggers it, on demand, not a stale snapshot waiting to be checked.
Cross-domain and application context folds in through Application Path, and through the wider integrations layer that pulls in APM, observability, and ITSM signal.

Each layer builds on the one below it: device state feeds topology, topology feeds live path, and live path feeds the intent comparison that happens in Network Intent. That’s what makes the model compounding instead of flat, and it’s the same foundation the whole NetBrain Agent Team reasons from.

Network Mapping and Pathing

Discover and visualize network architecture, configurations, and device relationships, without hand-drawing a diagram. Configure so the moment a ticket or alert fires, NetBrain assembles the map that matters with: devices, topology, paths, and the policies that should hold, so your team starts troubleshooting with context already assembled, not scrambling to build it first.

Visualize Layer 2, Layer 3, overlay, and underlay topology on the same map.
Overlay ITSM, NPM, and SIEM multi-vendor data on top of the live map, so third-party context sits alongside your network.
Export maps, inventory, configuration, and routing detail to Microsoft Word and Visio when you need it outside NetBrain.
Drill down into any device from the map, with full inventory reporting behind it.
The One-IP Table anchors it all: a single source of truth for every IP, MAC, and switch port across the hybrid, multi-cloud network, continuously refreshed and baselined so any shift in gateway, port, or VLAN is immediately visible.

Pathing runs application traffic on a live map with all points along the way. Generate an A-to-B path across datacenter, WAN and cloud on demand, and simulate a path change against a copy of the live model before you touch anything real.

AI Path validates any end-to-end path against current network state on demand, flagging policy violations and reachability risk before they become incidents, then explains the hop-by-hop result in plain language.
Overlay diagnostic data from third-party sources on the same path.
Compare a live application path against its intended golden path and catch every deviation.
View historical traffic paths against current state to see how behavior has shifted over time.
Integrate application path data from APMs like Dynatrace to incorporate business-application data to the exact part of the network it depends on, so a slow-app ticket shows the hops it crossed.

Cross-domain path computation ties network, application, and cloud context into one calculation, not three separate tool lookups.

Parser Assistant by AI

Convert CLI output into production-ready parser rules in minutes, not hours. Engineers paste raw device output and the AI generates accurate, validated parser rules on the spot. Behind the scenes, the AI produces regex and structured extraction logic — you describe what you want, it handles the syntax.

Describe what you want in plain English. AI handles the pattern matching.
AI generates validated patterns that work the first time. No debugging.
Your network team knows the CLI outputs. That’s all the expertise needed.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Live Network Context?: NetBrain’s continuously refreshed model of your network’s device state, topology, and path, spanning physical, cloud, and virtual infrastructure (the context-aware digital twin). It reflects what the network looks like right now, and the goals of the network, not a static diagram or inferred model.
How is this different from a periodic network snapshot?: Baseline topology and device state refresh on a configurable schedule, daily is typical, so you’re never working from a snapshot that’s gone stale between refreshes. On top of that, any workflow that needs current data, diagnosis, a change, a path check, pulls it fresh from the network the moment it runs, rather than waiting for the next scheduled cycle.
Does NetBrain support Kubernetes and multi-cloud environments?: Yes. Device and topology coverage extends across hybrid and multi-cloud platforms alongside Kubernetes overlays, as part of the same model used for on-premises infrastructure.
What is the One-IP Table?: A single, continuously refreshed shareable source of truth for every IP, MAC, and switch port across the network, used for incident response, change-impact analysis, and baseline comparison.
What is Application Path, and how does it use Dynatrace?: Application Path maps business-application experience from APMs such as Dynatrace onto the network path it depends on, so app and network teams work from the same picture.
How is Live Network Context different from a digital twin?: Live Network Context is the full model, including current network state built from live data at the moment of use. The context-aware digital twin is the baseline layer inside it, the versioned topology and device configuration that live path and state data get layered onto. The defined goals and spec of the network (or intent) are the goals, policies, industry best practices, design and architecture that guide how your Network is meant to operate. Combined, these comprise Live Network Context which is a reference kept current with what’s happening on the network.