Manage your deployment using Ansible
Ansible helps to automate the process of deploying applications, configurations, and updates across your deployment. This article offers step-by-step instructions on using Ansible for managing your deployment with efficiency.
Step 1: Determine what to deploy
Before you start, identify what you need to deploy, such as applications, services, configurations, and environment variables.
Step 2: Set up your Ansible project
Create a directory structure for your Ansible project. One crucial way to organize your playbook content is Ansible’s “roles” feature. For more information, see Roles in the Ansible documentation.
The following are two example directory structures for your reference:
Example directory structure #1
production # inventory file for production servers
staging # inventory file for staging environment
group_vars/
group1.yml # here we assign variables to particular groups
group2.yml
host_vars/
hostname1.yml # here we assign variables to particular systems
hostname2.yml
library/ # if any custom modules, put them here (optional)
module_utils/ # if any custom module_utils to support modules, put them here (optional)
filter_plugins/ # if any custom filter plugins, put them here (optional)
site.yml # master playbook
webservers.yml # playbook for webserver tier
dbservers.yml # playbook for dbserver tier
roles/
common/ # this hierarchy represents a "role"
tasks/ #
main.yml # <-- tasks file can include smaller files if warranted
handlers/ #
main.yml # <-- handlers file
templates/ # <-- files for use with the template resource
ntp.conf.j2 # <------- templates end in .j2
files/ #
bar.txt # <-- files for use with the copy resource
foo.sh # <-- script files for use with the script resource
vars/ #
main.yml # <-- variables associated with this role
defaults/ #
main.yml # <-- default lower priority variables for this role
meta/ #
main.yml # <-- role dependencies
library/ # roles can also include custom modules
module_utils/ # roles can also include custom module_utils
lookup_plugins/ # or other types of plugins, like lookup in this case
webtier/ # same kind of structure as "common" was above, done for the webtier role
monitoring/ # ""
fooapp/ # ""
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Example directory structure #2
inventories/
production/
hosts # inventory file for production servers
group_vars/
group1.yml # here we assign variables to particular groups
group2.yml
host_vars/
hostname1.yml # here we assign variables to particular systems
hostname2.yml
staging/
hosts # inventory file for staging environment
group_vars/
group1.yml # here we assign variables to particular groups
group2.yml
host_vars/
stagehost1.yml # here we assign variables to particular systems
stagehost2.yml
library/
module_utils/
filter_plugins/
site.yml
webservers.yml
dbservers.yml
roles/
common/
webtier/
monitoring/
fooapp/
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Step 3: Configure your inventory
Define your inventory file (inventory.ini). An inventory file typically lists the hosts that you want to manage by using Ansible, along with necessary details such as host names, IP addresses, and group memberships. For example:
# Hostname and ip address
[UBUNTU2004]
<ip address>
[UBUNTU2204]
<ip address>
[RHEL8]
<ip address>
[RHEL9]
<ip address>
[DEBIAN11]
<ip address>
[DEBIAN12]
<ip address>
[SUSE15]
<ip address>
[all:children]
UBUNTU2004
UBUNTU2204
RHEL8
RHEL9
DEBIAN11
DEBIAN12
SUSE15
[all:vars]
ansible_user=<ansible execute user e.g root>
ansible_password=<>
ansible_ssh_common_args='-o StrictHostKeyChecking=no'
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Step 4: Create Ansible playbooks
Create playbooks (.yml files) to automate deployment tasks. The section provides example playbooks for automating different deployment tasks.
Example playbook for patching Linux distributions
To patch various Linux distributions using Ansible, you can create a YAML playbook file named patch-for-different-distribution.yml and populate the file with tasks similar to the following. The hosts directive defines the target hosts from the inventory (inventory.ini in this context) that are targeted to execute the playbook tasks.
- name: Upgrade and Reboot RHEL & Debian family Linux distros
hosts: <host1,host2,host3> # replace with your actual hosts in the inventory file.
vars:
reboot_connect_timeout: 5
reboot_post_reboot_delay: 15
reboot_timeout: 600
tasks:
# Upgrade RHEL family OS packages
- name: Upgrade RHEL Family OS packages
ansible.builtin.yum:
name: '*'
state: latest
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "RedHat"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "7"
# Upgrade RHEL family OS packages
- name: Upgrade RHEL Family OS packages
ansible.builtin.yum:
name: '*'
state: latest
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "RedHat"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "8"
# Upgrade RHEL family OS packages
- name: Upgrade RHEL Family OS packages
ansible.builtin.yum:
name: '*'
state: latest
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "RedHat"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "9"
# Ubuntu Family upgrade
- name: Update repositories cache
apt:
update_cache: yes
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Ubuntu"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "20"
- name: Update all packages to their latest version
apt:
name: "*"
state: latest
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Ubuntu"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "22"
# Debian Family upgrade
- name: Upgrade the OS (apt-get dist-upgrade)
apt:
upgrade: dist
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Debian"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "11"
- name: Upgrade the OS (apt-get dist-upgrade)
apt:
upgrade: dist
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Debian"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "12"
# Reboot after upgrade
- name: Reboot host
reboot:
connect_timeout: ""
post_reboot_delay: ""
reboot_timeout: ""
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Example playbook for installing .Net environments
The following example playbook installs different versions of .Net environments on the specific Linux distributions.
- name: Install dotnet runtime environment on Linux distros
hosts: <host1,host2,host3> # replace with your actual hosts in the inventory file.
tasks:
# Install dotnet runtime environment on RHEL7
- name: Enable the rhel-7-server-dotnet-rpms repository
command: subscription-manager repos --enable=rhel-7-server-dotnet-rpms
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "RedHat"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "7"
- name: Install dotnet runtime environment on RHEL7
ansible.builtin.yum:
name: rh-dotnet60-aspnetcore-runtime-6.0
state: present
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "RedHat"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "7"
- name: Remove /usr/bin/dotnet if it exists
file:
path: /usr/bin/dotnet
state: absent
- name: Create a symbolic link
file:
src: /opt/rh/rh-dotnet60/root/usr/lib64/dotnet/dotnet
dest: /usr/bin/dotnet
state: link
# RHEL8 linux vda install dotnet runtime environment
- name: Install dotnet-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.dnf:
name: dotnet-runtime-8.0
state: present
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "RedHat"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "8"
- name: Install aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.dnf:
name: aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
state: present
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "RedHat"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "8"
# RHEL9 linux vda install dotnet runtime environment
- name: Install dotnet-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.dnf:
name: dotnet-runtime-8.0
state: present
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "RedHat"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "9"
- name: Install aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.dnf:
name: aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
state: present
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "RedHat"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "9"
# Ubuntu20.04 linux vda install dotnet runtime environment
- name: Register Microsoft key and feed
shell: |
wget https://packages.microsoft.com/config/ubuntu/20.04/packages-microsoft-prod.deb -O packages-microsoft-prod.deb
dpkg -i packages-microsoft-prod.deb
rm packages-microsoft-prod.deb
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Ubuntu"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "20"
- name: Install dotnet-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.apt:
name: dotnet-runtime-8.0
state: present
update_cache: yes
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Ubuntu"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "20"
- name: Install aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.apt:
name: aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
state: present
update_cache: yes
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Ubuntu"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "20"
# Ubuntu22.04 linux vda install dotnet runtime environment
- name: Install dotnet-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.apt:
name: dotnet-runtime-8.0
state: present
update_cache: yes
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Ubuntu"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "22"
- name: Install aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.apt:
name: aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
state: present
update_cache: yes
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Ubuntu"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "22"
# Debian11 linux vda install dotnet runtime environment
- name: Register Microsoft key and feed
shell: |
wget https://packages.microsoft.com/config/debian/11/packages-microsoft-prod.deb -O packages-microsoft-prod.deb
dpkg -i packages-microsoft-prod.deb
rm packages-microsoft-prod.deb
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Debian"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "11"
- name: Install dotnet-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.apt:
name: dotnet-runtime-8.0
state: present
update_cache: yes
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Debian"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "11"
- name: Install aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.apt:
name: aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
state: present
update_cache: yes
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Debian"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "11"
# Debian12 linux vda install dotnet runtime environment
- name: Register Microsoft key and feed
shell: |
wget https://packages.microsoft.com/config/debian/12/packages-microsoft-prod.deb -O packages-microsoft-prod.deb
dpkg -i packages-microsoft-prod.deb
rm packages-microsoft-prod.deb
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Debian"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "12"
- name: Install dotnet-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.apt:
name: dotnet-runtime-8.0
state: present
update_cache: yes
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Debian"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "12"
- name: Install aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.apt:
name: aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
state: present
update_cache: yes
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Debian"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "12"
# Sles15 linux vda install dotnet runtime environment
- name: Register Microsoft key and feed
shell: |
sudo rpm -Uvh https://packages.microsoft.com/config/sles/15/packages-microsoft-prod.rpm
sudo ln -s /etc/yum.repos.d/microsoft-prod.repo /etc/zypp/repos.d/microsoft-prod.repo
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "SLES"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "15"
- name: Install dotnet-runtime-8.0
community.general.zypper:
name: dotnet-runtime-8.0
state: present
update_cache: yes
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "SLES"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "15"
- name: Install aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
community.general.zypper:
name: aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
state: present
update_cache: yes
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "SLES"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "15"
# Amazon2 linux vda install dotnet runtime environment
- name: Install dotnet-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.yum:
name: dotnet-runtime-8.0
state: present
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Amazon"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "2"
- name: Install aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
ansible.builtin.yum:
name: aspnetcore-runtime-8.0
state: present
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Amazon"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "2"
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Example playbooks for upgrading the Linux VDA
To automate the Linux VDA upgrades using Ansible, you can create two separate playbooks. One playbook, such as get_the_build.yml, is dedicated to downloading and transferring the Linux VDA package to the target machines (hosts). The other playbook, for example linux_upgrade.yml, contains tasks designed to upgrade the Linux VDA on the target machines using the previously downloaded package.
Example playbook get_the_build.yml
- hosts: localhost
name: Get the latest release build to local
vars:
build_url: <linux vda download link> # replace with your actual value.
local_tmp: "/tmp/" # replace with your actual value.
remote_tmp: "/tmp/" # replace with your actual value.
linuxvda_file_name : "linux vda rpm/deb file name" # replace with your actual value.
tasks:
- name: Download the file
get_url:
url: ""
dest: ""
tags:
- get
- hosts: <host1,host2,host3> # replace with your actual hosts in the inventory file.
name: Copy a file to remote location
tasks:
- name: Copy vda to the remote machine
ansible.builtin.copy:
src: ""
dest: ""
remote_src: no
tags:
- copy
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Example playbook linux_upgrade.yml
- name: Upgrade Linux VDA and Reboot RHEL & Debian Linux distros
hosts: <host1,host2,host3> # replace with your actual hosts in the inventory file.
vars:
remote_tmp: "/path/to/remote/tmp" # replace with your actual path
rhel7_file_name: "rhel7_file.rpm" # replace with your actual file name
rhel8_file_name: "rhel8_file.rpm" # replace with your actual file name
rhel9_file_name: "rhel9_file.rpm" # replace with your actual file name
ubuntu2004_file_name: "ubuntu2004_file.deb" # replace with your actual file name
ubuntu2204_file_name: "ubuntu2204_file.deb" # replace with your actual file name
debian11_file_name: "debian11_file.deb" # replace with your actual file name
debian12_file_name: "debian12_file.deb" # replace with your actual file name
suse15_file_name: "suse15_file.deb" # replace with your actual file name
amazon2_file_name: "amazon2_file.rpm" # replace with your actual file name
tasks:
# Upgrade RHEL linux vda packages
- name: Upgrade RHEL7 linux vda packages
ansible.builtin.yum:
name: ""
state: present
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "RedHat"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "7"
# Upgrade RHEL linux vda packages
- name: Upgrade RHEL8 linux vda packages
ansible.builtin.yum:
name: ""
state: present
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "RedHat"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "8"
# Upgrade RHEL linux vda packages
- name: Upgrade RHEL9 linux vda packages
ansible.builtin.yum:
name: ""
state: present
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "RedHat"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "9"
# Ubuntu20.04 linux vda upgrade
- name: Ubuntu20.04 linux vda upgrade
ansible.builtin.apt:
deb: ""
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Ubuntu"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "20"
- name: Ubuntu22.04 linux vda upgrade
ansible.builtin.apt:
deb: ""
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Ubuntu"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "22"
# Debian Linux VDA upgrade
- name: Debian11 Linux VDA upgrade
ansible.builtin.apt:
deb: ""
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Debian"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "11"
- name: Debian12 Linux VDA upgrade
ansible.builtin.apt:
deb: ""
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Debian"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "12"
# Sles15 Linux VDA upgrade
- name: Sles15 Linux VDA upgrade
community.general.zypper:
name: ""
state: present
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "SLES"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "15"
# Amazon2 Linux VDA upgrade
- name: Amazon2 Linux VDA upgrade
ansible.builtin.yum:
name: ""
when:
- ansible_facts['distribution'] == "Amazon"
- ansible_facts['distribution_major_version'] == "2"
# Reboot after upgrade
- name: Reboot host
reboot:
connect_timeout: ""
post_reboot_delay: ""
reboot_timeout: ""
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Example playbook for mounting a Network File System (NFS) server as the home directory
The following example playbook mounts an NFS server as the home directory on the target hosts:
- hosts: <host1,host2,host3> # replace with your actual hosts in the inventory file.
vars:
nfs_server = <nfsserver ip address> # replace with your actual values
mount_points = /home/<domain realm>/user1,/home/<domain realm>user2 # replace with your actual values
nfs_shares = user1,user2 # replace with your actual values
owners = user1,user2 # replace with your actual values
groups = group1,group2 # replace with your actual values
tasks:
- name: Enable NFS as home directory
ansible.builtin.command:
cmd: "/opt/Citrix/VDA/bin/ctxreg create -k 'HKLM\\System\\CurrentControlSet\\Control\\Citrix' -t 'REG_DWORD' -v 'CheckUserHomeMountPoint' -d '0x00000001' --force"
register: result
failed_when: result.rc != 0
check_mode: no
- name: Mount NFS shares
ansible.builtin.mount:
path: ""
src: ":"
fstype: nfs
opts: rw,nolock
state: mounted
loop: ""
- name: Set owner, group and mode for NFS client paths
ansible.builtin.file:
path: ""
owner: ""
group: ""
mode: ""
loop: ""
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Example playbooks for remote command execution
Example playbook for modifying registry settings
- hosts: <host1,host2,host3> # replace with your actual hosts in the inventory file.
vars:
registry_key: "your_registry_key" # E.g. registry_key = HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Terminal Server\Wds\icawd
registry_type: "your_registry_type" # E.g. registry_type = REG_DWORD
registry_value: "your_registry_value" # E.g. registry_value = AdaptiveScalingEnabled
registry_data: "your_registry_data" # E.g. registry_data = 0x00000000
tasks:
- name: Execute AdaptiveScaling redirection script
ansible.builtin.command:
cmd: "/opt/Citrix/VDA/bin/ctxreg create -k \"\" -t \"\" -v \"\" -d \"\" --force"
register: result
failed_when: result.rc != 0
check_mode: no
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Example playbook for locking the RHEL minor version
- hosts: <host1,host2,host3> # replace with your actual hosts in the inventory file.
vars:
rhel_minor_version: "9.3" # replace with your actual minor version such as 9.3, 8.8
tasks:
- name: Lock system to a specific minor version
ansible.builtin.command:
cmd: "subscription-manager release --set="
register: result
failed_when: "'Error' in result.stderr"
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