An efficient tool to execute configuration backups, network state snapshots, system readiness checks, and operating system upgrades of Palo Alto Networks firewalls and Panorama appliances.
This pull request introduces multi-threading to the get_firewall_info function, significantly improving its performance by enabling concurrent fetching of system information for firewalls managed by Panorama. This enhancement addresses the performance bottleneck identified in issue #[Issue Number], where the sequential processing of firewalls was leading to increased execution times, especially in environments with a large number of managed firewalls.
Changes
Added a new helper function fetch_firewall_info, designed to fetch system information for a single firewall.
Refactored get_firewalls_info to utilize concurrent.futures.ThreadPoolExecutor, allowing multiple instances of fetch_firewall_info to run concurrently.
Maintained the return structure of get_firewalls_info as a list of dictionaries, aggregating the results from each thread.
Implemented error handling within fetch_firewall_info to manage individual firewall fetch failures gracefully.
Included a configurable max_workers parameter in get_firewalls_info to control the level of concurrency and manage system resource utilization effectively.
Performance Impact
Initial tests have shown a substantial reduction in execution time for the get_firewalls_info function, particularly in scenarios with a high number of firewalls. This improvement not only enhances the efficiency of operations that rely on this function but also contributes to a better user experience by reducing wait times.
Testing
Comprehensive testing has been conducted to ensure that the new multi-threaded approach delivers the expected performance improvements without compromising the accuracy of the fetched firewall information.
Additional tests have been added to cover edge cases, error handling, and scenarios with varying numbers of firewalls to ensure reliability and robustness.
Backward Compatibility
The changes introduced in this pull request are backward compatible. The external interface and return type of the get_firewalls_info function remain unchanged, ensuring that existing code relying on this function will continue to work as expected.
Future Considerations
Monitoring and tuning the max_workers parameter based on real-world usage patterns and system resource availability.
Exploring further optimizations and enhancements in error handling and data aggregation techniques.
This pull request represents a significant step forward in optimizing the performance of firewall management tasks and is a direct response to the needs identified by the community and users of the system.
Overview
This pull request introduces multi-threading to the get_firewall_info function, significantly improving its performance by enabling concurrent fetching of system information for firewalls managed by Panorama. This enhancement addresses the performance bottleneck identified in issue #[Issue Number], where the sequential processing of firewalls was leading to increased execution times, especially in environments with a large number of managed firewalls.
Changes
fetch_firewall_info, designed to fetch system information for a single firewall.get_firewalls_infoas a list of dictionaries, aggregating the results from each thread.get_firewalls_infoto control the level of concurrency and manage system resource utilization effectively.Performance Impact
Initial tests have shown a substantial reduction in execution time for the
get_firewalls_infofunction, particularly in scenarios with a high number of firewalls. This improvement not only enhances the efficiency of operations that rely on this function but also contributes to a better user experience by reducing wait times.Testing
Comprehensive testing has been conducted to ensure that the new multi-threaded approach delivers the expected performance improvements without compromising the accuracy of the fetched firewall information.
Additional tests have been added to cover edge cases, error handling, and scenarios with varying numbers of firewalls to ensure reliability and robustness.
Backward Compatibility
The changes introduced in this pull request are backward compatible. The external interface and return type of the
get_firewalls_infofunction remain unchanged, ensuring that existing code relying on this function will continue to work as expected.Future Considerations
Monitoring and tuning the max_workers parameter based on real-world usage patterns and system resource availability. Exploring further optimizations and enhancements in error handling and data aggregation techniques.
This pull request represents a significant step forward in optimizing the performance of firewall management tasks and is a direct response to the needs identified by the community and users of the system.