when importing devices, why are both manufacturer and device type required

[aliber4079]

hi, when importing devices /dcim/devices/import/, why are both manufacturer and device type required, wouldn't device type slug be all that is required to relate a device to a device type?

[pheus]

Hi,

Good question. The reason both fields are required is that a device type slug is only unique within a manufacturer, not globally across all manufacturers.

For example, two different manufacturers could both have a device type with the same slug or model name. Because of that, NetBox cannot safely assume that the slug alone identifies a single device type. Including the manufacturer makes the lookup unambiguous and prevents the import from accidentally matching the wrong device type.

So in short: the manufacturer + device type slug combination is needed to uniquely identify the device type during import.

[aliber4079]

thanks!