A company uses equipment from multiple vendors in a data center fabric to deliver SDN, enable maximum flexibility, and provide the best return on investment. Which YANG data model should be adopted…

Proprietary YANG models are specific to a single vendor's implementation and would require separate, siloed automation tooling for each vendor in the fabric, undermining the multi-vendor flexibility goal.

OpenConfig is an industry-driven initiative producing vendor-neutral YANG data models developed collaboratively by network operators and multiple vendors to create a common programmatic interface for configuration and telemetry. In a multi-vendor environment, OpenConfig abstracts vendor-specific implementation differences behind a unified model, allowing a single automation framework to manage devices from any participating vendor. This directly maximizes both flexibility and ROI by avoiding vendor lock-in while delivering comprehensive feature coverage for SDN fabric automation.

Native YANG models are vendor-developed and device-specific, meaning they vary across vendors and cannot provide a unified interface for a heterogeneous multi-vendor environment.

IETF YANG models cover fundamental, broadly standardized constructs such as interfaces and routing but are less comprehensive than OpenConfig for the richer, operationally focused features required in modern SDN fabrics.