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TextFSM

Python module which implements a template based state machine for parsing semi-formatted text. Originally developed to allow programmatic access to information returned from the command line interface (CLI) of networking devices.

The engine takes two inputs - a template file, and text input (such as command responses from the CLI of a device) and returns a list of records that contains the data parsed from the text.

A template file is needed for each uniquely structured text input. Some examples are provided with the code and users are encouraged to develop their own.

By developing a pool of template files, scripts can call TextFSM to parse useful information from a variety of sources. It is also possible to use different templates on the same data in order to create different tables (or views).

TextFSM was developed internally at Google and released under the Apache 2.0 licence for the benefit of the wider community.

Before contributing

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If you are an individual writing original source code and you're sure you own the intellectual property, then you'll need to sign an individual CLA. Individual CLAs can be signed electronically. If you work for a company that wants to allow you to contribute your work, then you'll need to sign a corporate CLA. The Google CLA is based on Apache's. Note that unlike some projects (notably GNU projects), we do not require a transfer of copyright. You still own the patch.

Sadly, even the smallest patch needs a CLA.