Variable Models

Overview

The Variable models provide a structured way to manage variable resources in Palo Alto Networks' Strata Cloud Manager. These models represent reusable values that can be referenced across configurations. The models handle validation of inputs and outputs when interacting with the SCM API.

Models

The module provides the following Pydantic models:

• VariableBaseModel: Base model with fields common to all variable operations
• VariableCreateModel: Model for creating new variables
• VariableUpdateModel: Model for updating existing variables
• VariableResponseModel: Response model for variable operations

All models use extra="forbid" configuration, which rejects any fields not explicitly defined in the model.

Model Attributes

VariableBaseModel

Attribute	Type	Required	Default	Description
name	str	Yes	None	Name of the variable. Max length: 63 chars
type	str	Yes	None	Variable type (see Variable Types)
value	str	Yes	None	Value of the variable
description	str	No	None	Description of the variable
folder	str	No*	None	Folder scope. Pattern: ^[a-zA-Z0-9\-_. ]+$. Max: 64
snippet	str	No*	None	Snippet scope. Pattern: ^[a-zA-Z0-9\-_. ]+$. Max: 64
device	str	No*	None	Device scope. Pattern: ^[a-zA-Z0-9\-_. ]+$. Max: 64

* Exactly one of folder, snippet, or device must be provided

VariableCreateModel

Inherits all fields from VariableBaseModel without additional fields. Includes container validation.

VariableUpdateModel

Extends VariableBaseModel by adding:

Attribute	Type	Required	Default	Description
id	UUID	Yes	None	The unique identifier of the variable

VariableResponseModel

Extends VariableBaseModel by adding:

Attribute	Type	Required	Default	Description
id	UUID	Yes	None	The unique identifier of the variable
overridden	bool	No	None	Whether the variable is overridden
labels	List[str]	No	None	Labels assigned to the variable
parent	str	No	None	Parent folder or container
snippets	List[str]	No	None	Snippets associated with the variable
model	str	No	None	Device model information
serial_number	str	No	None	Device serial number
device_only	bool	No	None	Whether variable is device-only

Variable Types

The type field must be one of the following values:

Type	Description
percent	Percentage value
count	Count/number value
ip-netmask	IP address with subnet mask
zone	Security zone
ip-range	IP address range
ip-wildcard	IP wildcard mask
device-priority	Device priority value
device-id	Device identifier
egress-max	Maximum egress value
as-number	AS number
fqdn	Fully qualified domain name
port	Port number
link-tag	Link tag
group-id	Group identifier
rate	Rate value
router-id	Router identifier
qos-profile	QoS profile
timer	Timer value

Exceptions

The Variable models can raise the following exceptions during validation:

• ValueError: Raised when field validation fails (e.g., invalid type, missing container)
• ValidationError: Raised by Pydantic when model validation fails

Model Validators

Type Validation

The type field is validated to ensure it matches one of the allowed variable types:

from scm.models.setup.variable import VariableCreateModel

# This will raise a validation error
try:
    variable = VariableCreateModel(
        name="test-var",
        type="invalid-type",
        value="test",
        folder="Texas"
    )
except ValueError as e:
    print(f"Validation error: {e}")
    # Output: type must be one of [...], got invalid-type

Container Validation

Variables must have exactly one container field set (folder, snippet, or device):

from scm.models.setup.variable import VariableCreateModel

# Error: No container specified
try:
    VariableCreateModel(
        name="test-var",
        type="ip-netmask",
        value="192.168.1.0/24"
    )
except ValueError as e:
    print(f"Error: {e}")

# Error: Multiple containers specified
try:
    VariableCreateModel(
        name="test-var",
        type="ip-netmask",
        value="192.168.1.0/24",
        folder="Texas",
        snippet="web-config"
    )
except ValueError as e:
    print(f"Error: {e}")

Usage Examples

Creating a Variable

from scm.client import Scm

# Initialize client
client = Scm(
    client_id="your_client_id",
    client_secret="your_client_secret",
    tsg_id="your_tsg_id"
)

# Using dictionary
variable_data = {
    "name": "subnet-variable",
    "type": "ip-netmask",
    "value": "192.168.1.0/24",
    "description": "Network subnet for department A",
    "folder": "Texas"
}

response = client.variable.create(variable_data)
print(f"Created variable: {response.name} with ID: {response.id}")

Updating a Variable

from scm.client import Scm

# Initialize client
client = Scm(
    client_id="your_client_id",
    client_secret="your_client_secret",
    tsg_id="your_tsg_id"
)

# Fetch existing variable
existing = client.variable.fetch(name="subnet-variable", folder="Texas")

# Modify attributes using dot notation
existing.value = "10.0.0.0/16"
existing.description = "Updated network subnet"

# Pass modified object to update()
updated = client.variable.update(existing)
print(f"Updated variable: {updated.name}")

Listing Variables

from scm.client import Scm

# Initialize client
client = Scm(
    client_id="your_client_id",
    client_secret="your_client_secret",
    tsg_id="your_tsg_id"
)

# List all variables
all_variables = client.variable.list()

for variable in all_variables:
    print(f"Variable: {variable.name}")
    print(f"Type: {variable.type}")
    print(f"Value: {variable.value}")

# Filter by type
ip_variables = client.variable.list(type="ip-netmask")

# Filter by labels
labeled_variables = client.variable.list(labels=["network"])

Fetching a Variable by Name

from scm.client import Scm

# Initialize client
client = Scm(
    client_id="your_client_id",
    client_secret="your_client_secret",
    tsg_id="your_tsg_id"
)

# Fetch variable by name and folder
variable = client.variable.fetch(name="subnet-variable", folder="Texas")
if variable:
    print(f"Found variable: {variable.name}")
    print(f"ID: {variable.id}")
    print(f"Type: {variable.type}")
    print(f"Value: {variable.value}")
else:
    print("Variable not found")