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Learnansible.dev

At Learnansible.dev, our mission is to provide a comprehensive and accessible resource for individuals and teams who want to learn and master Ansible. We believe that Ansible is a powerful tool for automating IT infrastructure and streamlining workflows, and we are committed to helping our users unlock its full potential.

Our website offers a range of resources, including tutorials, guides, and hands-on exercises, that cater to learners of all levels. Whether you are a beginner who is just getting started with Ansible or an experienced user who wants to deepen your knowledge, we have something for you.

We are dedicated to creating a supportive and inclusive community of learners who can share their experiences and insights with one another. We believe that collaboration and knowledge-sharing are key to mastering Ansible and achieving success in your IT career.

Thank you for choosing Learnansible.dev as your go-to resource for learning Ansible. We are excited to help you on your journey to becoming an Ansible expert!

Video Introduction Course Tutorial

/r/ansible Yearly

Introduction

Ansible is an open-source automation tool that allows you to automate IT tasks such as configuration management, application deployment, and infrastructure orchestration. It is simple to use, agentless, and can be used to manage both Linux and Windows systems. This cheat sheet will cover everything you need to know to get started with Ansible.

Installation

To install Ansible, you need to have Python 2.7 or 3.5+ installed on your system. You can install Ansible using pip, the Python package manager, or your system's package manager.

Using pip:

pip install ansible

Using your system's package manager:

Ubuntu/Debian:

sudo apt-get install ansible

CentOS/RHEL:

sudo yum install ansible

Configuration

Ansible uses a configuration file called ansible.cfg to define settings such as the location of your inventory file and the default user to use when connecting to remote hosts. The default location for ansible.cfg is /etc/ansible/ansible.cfg, but you can also create a local version in your project directory.

Inventory

The inventory file is where you define the hosts that Ansible will manage. You can define hosts by IP address, hostname, or FQDN. You can also group hosts together and apply tasks to the entire group.

Here is an example inventory file:

[web]
web1 ansible_host=192.168.1.10
web2 ansible_host=192.168.1.11

[db]
db1 ansible_host=192.168.1.12
db2 ansible_host=192.168.1.13

[all:vars]
ansible_user=ubuntu

In this example, we have defined two groups, web and db, and assigned hosts to each group. We have also defined a variable, ansible_user, that will be used as the default user when connecting to remote hosts.

Modules

Ansible uses modules to perform tasks on remote hosts. Modules can be used to manage files, install packages, start and stop services, and much more. Ansible comes with a large number of built-in modules, and you can also create your own custom modules.

Here are some examples of built-in modules:

• file: Manage files and directories
• apt: Manage packages on Debian/Ubuntu systems
• yum: Manage packages on CentOS/RHEL systems
• service: Manage services
• user: Manage users and groups

Playbooks

Playbooks are YAML files that define a set of tasks to be executed on remote hosts. Playbooks can be used to perform complex tasks such as deploying applications, configuring servers, and managing infrastructure.

Here is an example playbook:

---
- name: Install Apache
  hosts: web
  become: true
  tasks:
    - name: Install Apache
      apt:
        name: apache2
        state: present
    - name: Start Apache
      service:
        name: apache2
        state: started

In this example, we have defined a playbook that will install Apache on hosts in the web group. We have used the apt module to install the apache2 package and the service module to start the Apache service.

Roles

Roles are a way to organize your playbooks and reuse code across multiple playbooks. A role is a collection of tasks, files, templates, and variables that can be used to perform a specific function.

Here is an example role directory structure:

myrole/
├── tasks/
│   ├── main.yml
│   └── install.yml
├── files/
│   └── myconfig.conf
├── templates/
│   └── mytemplate.j2
├── vars/
│   └── main.yml
└── meta/
    └── main.yml

In this example, we have defined a role called myrole. The tasks directory contains two YAML files, main.yml and install.yml, that define the tasks to be executed. The files directory contains a configuration file called myconfig.conf. The templates directory contains a Jinja2 template called mytemplate.j2. The vars directory contains a file called main.yml that defines variables used by the role. The meta directory contains a file called main.yml that defines metadata about the role.

Variables

Variables can be used to store data that is used by tasks and playbooks. Variables can be defined in a variety of ways, including in inventory files, playbooks, and roles.

Here is an example playbook that uses variables:

---
- name: Install Apache
  hosts: web
  become: true
  vars:
    apache_port: 80
  tasks:
    - name: Install Apache
      apt:
        name: apache2
        state: present
    - name: Configure Apache
      template:
        src: apache.conf.j2
        dest: /etc/apache2/apache2.conf
      notify:
        - Restart Apache
    - name: Start Apache
      service:
        name: apache2
        state: started
  handlers:
    - name: Restart Apache
      service:
        name: apache2
        state: restarted

In this example, we have defined a variable called apache_port that is used by the template module to configure Apache. We have also defined a handler that will be triggered when the Apache configuration is changed.

Templates

Templates are used to generate configuration files and other text files. Templates use the Jinja2 templating language and can include variables, loops, and conditionals.

Here is an example template:

# This is a template for the Apache configuration file
Listen {{ apache_port }}

<VirtualHost *:{{ apache_port }}>
    ServerName {{ server_name }}
    DocumentRoot {{ document_root }}
</VirtualHost>

In this example, we have defined a template for an Apache configuration file. The template includes variables for the Apache port, server name, and document root.

Conclusion

This cheat sheet has covered the basics of Ansible, including installation, configuration, inventory, modules, playbooks, roles, variables, and templates. With this knowledge, you should be able to start using Ansible to automate your IT tasks and manage your infrastructure more efficiently. For more information, check out the Ansible documentation and the resources available on learnansible.dev.

Common Terms, Definitions and Jargon

1. Ansible: An open-source automation tool used for configuration management, application deployment, and task automation.
2. Playbook: A YAML file that contains a set of instructions for Ansible to execute.
3. Inventory: A file that contains a list of hosts and groups that Ansible can manage.
4. Module: A pre-written script that performs a specific task in Ansible.
5. Task: A single unit of work that Ansible performs.
6. Role: A collection of tasks, files, templates, and variables that can be reused across multiple playbooks.
7. Variable: A value that can be used in a playbook or role to customize the behavior of Ansible.
8. Conditionals: A statement that controls the flow of execution in a playbook based on a condition.
9. Loop: A construct that allows a task to be repeated multiple times.
10. Handler: A task that is triggered by another task.
11. Vault: A feature in Ansible that allows you to encrypt sensitive data.
12. Fact: A piece of information about a host that Ansible discovers and stores for later use.
13. Ad-hoc command: A one-time command that is run against a group of hosts.
14. SSH: A protocol used for secure remote access to a host.
15. YAML: A human-readable data serialization format used in Ansible.
16. Jinja2: A templating language used in Ansible to generate dynamic content.
17. Filter: A function used in Jinja2 templates to modify data.
18. Template: A file that contains Jinja2 code and is used to generate configuration files.
19. Debugging: The process of finding and fixing errors in Ansible playbooks.
20. Idempotence: The property of Ansible tasks that ensures they can be run multiple times without changing the system state.

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