netbox-custom-objects (prototype)

Technology prototype — no warranty

This repository is not an official NetBox Labs release. It is a technology prototype that demonstrates ideas for extending the Custom Objects plugin (COT metadata, Related Tabs, portable schema UI, COT Views, local bundles).

It is not maintained as error-free or production-ready, makes no claim to completeness or stability, and must not be adopted as-is into NetBox Labs or production. Use at your own risk.

Example bundles (Security, IPAM tree, Cisco demos) live in a companion repository: github.com/christianbur/netbox-custom-objects-bundels

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What this prototype demonstrates

Built on a NetBox Labs baseline (Custom Objects with Related Tabs), this fork adds:

Area	Summary
COT metadata	Fields link_table, menu_name, metadata on Custom Object Type
Related Tabs	Outgoing references, n:m junction traversal, separate tabs per menu_name
Field groups	Sections ordered by display weight instead of alphabetical group name
Portable schema UI	Export tab and define-via-text (JSON/YAML) in the plugin admin
COT Views	Registerable extra tabs / proxy list pages per COT (views field)
Local bundles	Drop-in packages under bundles_path (default /opt/netbox/local) with GUI enable/disable
object_proxy	Field type: list page shows instances of a referenced type
Branching	Extra hooks when netbox_branching is installed

Detailed design notes:

• PROTOTYPE_COT_ENHANCEMENTS.md — COT fields, Related Tabs, navigation, schema UI
• docs/bundle-validation-plan.md — validation strategy for bundle schemas
• FEATURE_REQUEST_COT_VIEWS_AND_BUNDLES.md — draft feature request for NetBox Labs

n:m link tables (link_table) — in plain terms

Many-to-many (n:m) means many objects on side A can relate to many on side B — e.g. many devices linked to many security zones.

In Custom Objects this is usually a junction COT: a dedicated type whose rows are links, with two object fields (one endpoint each).

Example (security-object-link):

• Field netbox_object → device, prefix, interface, …
• Field policy_object → zone, address, service, …

Without link_table, the Custom Objects tab on a device lists the link rows themselves. With link_table: true, the tab traverses the junction and shows the far endpoint (the zone or address you care about), with the link as secondary via context.

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Example bundles

Working demos use bundles from the companion repo:

git clone https://github.com/christianbur/netbox-custom-objects-bundels.git /opt/netbox/local

Includes security/ (policy COTs, rulebook / matrix / IP-analyzer views), ipam_tree/, and cisco_* schema demos.

After cloning: enable bundles under Plugins → Custom Objects → Bundles, then restart NetBox workers (views and URLs register at startup).

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Installation (prototype)

Do not use pip install netboxlabs-netbox-custom-objects — this fork diverges from upstream.

git clone https://github.com/christianbur/netbox-custom-objects.git
cd netbox-custom-objects
pip install -e .

configuration.py:

PLUGINS = [
    # ...
    "netbox_custom_objects",
]

PLUGINS_CONFIG = {
    "netbox_custom_objects": {
        "bundles_path": "/opt/netbox/local",
    },
}

PYTHONPATH must include the bundle root (e.g. /opt/netbox/local) so bundle packages such as security are importable.

./manage.py migrate netbox_custom_objects
# Restart NetBox + workers

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Migrations (0015–0020)

Adds link_table / menu_name / metadata, COT views, Bundle model, and object_proxy field type. Run migrate after every pull.

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Upstream

Production documentation and releases:

• netboxlabs/netbox-custom-objects
• docs/index.md (partially still upstream text; prototype-specific parts are documented above)

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License

Same as upstream — see LICENSE.md.