<![CDATA[Manual configuration workflows in enterprise networks can cause configuration drift, compliance failures, and change-related outages because operational consistency depends heavily on individual execution across large and continuously changing device populations. This paper examines an end-to-end network configuration automation framework based on Infrastructure as Code (IaC) principles to establish a controlled lifecycle for configuration provisioning, validation, deployment, monitoring, remediation, and governance. The framework integrates zero-touch provisioning, continuous compliance validation, risk-governed change management, staged deployment, rollback, and self-validating governance into an interdependent operational process in which each lifecycle phase provides the configuration state and evidence required by subsequent phases. The analysis indicates that deterministic configuration, continuous drift detection, pre-change validation, controlled execution, tested rollback, and automated governance can shift configuration consistency and compliance from periodic administrative activities toward continuously maintained operational properties. The framework also identifies risks associated with extensive automation, including engineering and maintenance requirements, centralized blast radius, incorrect or overly broad remediation, and organizational dependence on controlled automation workflows. These risks are addressed through explicit safeguards, including idempotent reconciliation, validation gates, staged execution, bounded remediation authority, rollback mechanisms, and independent verification of automation health. The resulting framework provides a structured approach for scalable, auditable, and resilient enterprise network operations by integrating configuration management, operational assurance, change control, and governance within a unified lifecycle. The framework further establishes a basis for evaluating automation reliability across heterogeneous and multi-vendor environments, particularly through standardized verification of idempotency, failure containment, and automation blast radius. Such an evaluation can support the safer deployment of automated network operations at increasing scale]]>
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