Ansible Fundamentals

Ansible Fundamentals

Playbooks

• A playbook is a YAML file that defines a set of tasks to be executed on a group of servers.
• Playbooks are the core of Ansible's configuration management and deployment capabilities.
• They can contain one or multiple plays, which are a set of tasks executed on a specific group of hosts.
• Playbooks can be used to:
  • Configure servers
  • Deploy applications
  • Manage infrastructure
  • Automate repetitive tasks

Modules

• Ansible modules are small pieces of code that perform a specific task.
• Modules are the building blocks of Ansible's automation capabilities.
• There are over 1,000 modules available in Ansible, including:
  • File management (e.g., copying, deleting, and editing files)
  • Network management (e.g., managing DNS, FTP, and HTTP)
  • Database management (e.g., managing MySQL, PostgreSQL, and Oracle)
  • Cloud management (e.g., managing AWS, Azure, and OpenStack)
• Custom modules can be created to perform specific tasks.

Roles

• Ansible roles are a way to organize playbooks and modules to perform a specific function or set of functions.
• Roles are essentially a collection of playbooks and modules that can be easily reused across different environments.
• Roles can be used to:
  • Set up a web server
  • Configure a database
  • Deploy a specific application
• Roles can be shared and reused across different teams and organizations.

Inventory Management

• Ansible's inventory is a file that defines the hosts and groups in an environment.
• The inventory file is used to organize servers into groups based on their characteristics, such as:
  • Environment (e.g., dev, prod, staging)
  • Location (e.g., datacenter, cloud)
  • Function (e.g., web servers, database servers)
• Inventory files can be static (defined in a file) or dynamic (generated using a script or program).
• Ansible provides a built-in inventory system, but it can also integrate with other inventory systems, such as LDAP or cloud providers.

Learn about Ansible's core concepts, including playbooks, modules, roles, and inventory management. Understand how to automate configuration management and deployment tasks.